CompuServe Information Service SSSSSSSSSS YY YY SSSSSSSSSS OOOOOOOOOO PPPPPPPPPP SSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSS YY YY SSSSSSSSSS OOOOOOOOOO PPPPPPPPPP SSSSSSSSSS SS YY YY SS OO OO PP PP SS SSSSSSSSSS YY SSSSSSSSSS OO OO PPPPPPPPPP SSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSS YY SSSSSSSSSS OO OO PPPPPPPPPP SSSSSSSSSS SS YY SS OO OO PP SS SSSSSSSSSS YY SSSSSSSSSS OOOOOOOOOO PP SSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSS YY SSSSSSSSSS OOOOOOOOOO PP SSSSSSSSSS Instruction Manual for CompuServe Sysops Designed, Compiled, and Edited by Tom Pinkerton TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction from Tom Pinkerton...................................Page 1 I. Introduction and Overview a. Introduction...........................................Page 3 b. Getting Started........................................Page 3 c. What are Forums?.......................................Page 3 d. Forum Structure........................................Page 3 e. "Sysop"................................................Page 4 f. "SIG" vs "Forum".......................................Page 5 g. Sysop Performance Guidelines...........................Page 5 i. Duties of Primary Sysops..........................Page 5 ii. Duties of Assistant Sysops........................Page 6 iii. Duties of Section Leaders.........................Page 7 h. ASCII and HMI..........................................Page 7 i. Sysop Commands.........................................Page 7 j. Menu Mode vs Command Mode..............................Page 7 k. Three Letter Commands..................................Page 8 l. HELP!!!................................................Page 8 i. Marketing Manager.................................Page 8 ii. Product Support...................................Page 9 iii. The Sysop Forum...................................Page 10 m. A Typical Day..........................................Page 10 n. "Sysop" and "Section Leader"...........................Page 11 o. Basic CompuServe / Telecommunications Terms............Page 11 II. Forum Parameters a. Introduction...........................................Page 14 b. Entering the Forum Parameters Area.....................Page 14 c. Visitor Privileges.....................................Page 14 i. Announcements.....................................Page 15 ii. Composing Messages................................Page 15 iii. Reading Messages..................................Page 15 iv. Member Directory..................................Page 16 v. User Log..........................................Page 16 vi. Libraries.........................................Page 16 d. Global Defaults........................................Page 16 i. Default Editor....................................Page 17 ii. Member Can Change Name............................Page 17 iii. Sysop Password....................................Page 17 e. Messaging Parameters...................................Page 18 i. Set Number of Sections............................Page 18 ii. Change Section Names..............................Page 19 iii. Establish Public Sections.........................Page 20 iv. Lock Visitors to One Sections.....................Page 21 v. Set Holding Capacity..............................Page 21 vi. Private Messages..................................Page 22 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sysop Manual Table of Contents f. Library Parameters.....................................Page 22 i. Set Number of Libraries...........................Page 23 ii. Change Library Names..............................Page 23 iii. Establish Public Libraries........................Page 23 iv. Lock Visitors to One Library......................Page 23 v. Dynamic Allocation................................Page 23 vi. REPLACE Appends Count.............................Page 24 vii. Rebuilds are Suppressed...........................Page 24 g. Conferencing Parameters................................Page 24 i. Local Conference..................................Page 25 ii. AutoGAG...........................................Page 25 iii. Set Number of CO Rooms............................Page 25 iv. Change Room Names.................................Page 25 v. Establish Public Rooms............................Page 25 III. Announcements a. Introduction...........................................Page 26 b. Knowing the Purpose of Each Announcement...............Page 26 i. News Flash Announcement..........................Page 26 ii. General Announcement.............................Page 27 iii. Messages Announcement............................Page 27 iv. Membership Information Announcement..............Page 27 v. Information for L-Flagged Users..................Page 27 vi. Announcements for Visitors.......................Page 28 vii. Conference Announcement..........................Page 28 viii. Library Announcement.............................Page 28 ix. Sysop Roster.....................................Page 29 x. New Member Announcement..........................Page 29 c. Creating and Editing Announcements.....................Page 29 d. Editing Announcements..................................Page 29 e. Using EDIT.............................................Page 30 f. Formatting Text........................................Page 31 g. Uploading Announcements to the Forum...................Page 32 h. Downloading Announcements..............................Page 34 i. Proofreading Announcements.............................Page 35 IV. Membership Maintenance a. Introduction...........................................Page 36 b. Adding a Member........................................Page 37 i. Specifying the Member You Wish to Add.............Page 37 ii. Specifying the Member's Access....................Page 38 iii. Confirming Your Responses.........................Page 40 c. Editing a Member's Record..............................Page 40 d. Deleting a Member's Record.............................Page 41 e. Listing the Membership File............................Page 42 f. Purging (Deleting) Inactive Members Automatically......Page 42 g. Introducing New Sections...............................Page 43 h. Clearing Special Message/Library/Conf. Room Access.....Page 45 h. Checking the Membership Count..........................Page 45 i. Adding and Removing Special Access.....................Page 45 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sysop Manual Table of Contents V. Message Board Maintenance a. Introduction...........................................Page 47 b. Deleting Messages......................................Page 47 c. Forwarding Messages within a Forum.....................Page 48 i. Traditional Forwarding Commands....................Page 49 ii. New Forwarding Commands............................Page 51 d. Changing Subject and/or Section........................Page 52 e. Holding Messages.......................................Page 53 f. Message Section Descriptions...........................Page 56 VI. Library Maintenance a. Introduction...........................................Page 58 b. Overview of Library Management.........................Page 58 c. Library Mode...........................................Page 58 d. Preview Mode...........................................Page 59 e. Using the LIB Command..................................Page 59 f. Operating in Preview Mode..............................Page 60 g. Examining the Preview Area.............................Page 62 h. Working with Library Files.............................Page 63 i. Merging a Library......................................Page 64 j. Changing a File........................................Page 65 k. Moving Files...........................................Page 65 l. Listing Pending Transactions...........................Page 68 m. Modifying Files........................................Page 68 n. Cancelling Transactions................................Page 70 o. Cancelling a Released Transaction......................Page 71 p. Operating in Library Mode..............................Page 72 q. Adding New Files to the Libraries......................Page 72 r. Uploading Files Under Another Member's I.D.............Page 72 s. Deleting Files from the Libraries......................Page 72 t. Purging the Library of Outdated Files..................Page 74 u. Batch Merging Chart....................................Page 75 v. Merge Logs.............................................Page 76 w. Block Allocation.......................................Page 77 x. Read-Only Libraries....................................Page 77 VII. Conferencing a. Introduction...........................................Page 79 b. Topics for Formal Conferences..........................Page 79 c. Formal vs Informal Conferences.........................Page 80 d. Announcing a Conference................................Page 80 e. Moderating a Formal Conference.........................Page 80 f. Common Problems........................................Page 81 g. Warning and/or Removing Problem Members................Page 82 h. Conference Room Descriptions...........................Page 83 i. Introduction to The Electronic Convention Center.......Page 83 j. Accessing the Electronic Convention Center.............Page 84 k. Submitting a Convention Center Conference Application..Page 84 l. Moderating a Convention Center Conference..............Page 84 m. Convention Center Conference Transcripts...............Page 85 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sysop Manual Table of Contents VIII. Forum Statistics a. Introduction...........................................Page 87 b. Accessing the Forum Statistics.........................Page 87 c. Message Statistics.....................................Page 87 i. Message Statistics.................................Page 88 ii. Slot Statistics....................................Page 88 d. Library Statistics.....................................Page 89 e. Membership Statistics..................................Page 91 f. Confidentiality........................................Page 92 Conclusion...................................................Page 93 Appendix A: Commonly Asked Questions a. General Questions......................................Page 94 b. Billing Questions......................................Page 95 c. Library Questions......................................Page 95 d. Decompression Program Chart............................Page 96 Appendix B: Sample Announcements a. General Announcement...................................Page 98 b. Membership Announcement................................Page 98 c. Information for L-Flagged Users Announcement...........Page 99 d. ASCII Visitor Announcement.............................Page 99 e. HMI Visitor Announcement...............................Page 100 f. Conference Announcement................................Page 100 g. Library Announcement...................................Page 100 h. Messages Announcement..................................Page 100 Appendix C: Sysop Operations Menus...........................Page 102 Appendix D: CompuServe Rules and Terms a. CompuServe Information Service Operating Rules.........Page 104 i. Introduction.....................................Page 104 ii. CompuServe Copyright.............................Page 104 iii. Copyrighted Material.............................Page 104 iv. Public Domain Material...........................Page 105 v. Content & Uses of the Service....................Page 105 vi. Editing and Deleting Content.....................Page 105 vii. Service Termination..............................Page 105 viii. Indemnification..................................Page 105 ix. Standard Pricing Plan............................Page 106 b. Copyright Policy.......................................Page 106 i. Compilation Copyright............................Page 106 ii. Ownership of Information.........................Page 106 iii. Copyrighted, Public Domain, and Shareware Programs....Page 107 iv. Download for Personal Use........................Page 107 v. Redistribution of Information....................Page 108 vi. Commercial Use and Redistribution................Page 108 vii. Penalty for Violations...........................Page 108 c. CompuServe Information Service Agreement Terms.........Page 109 Instruction Manual for CompuServe Sysops Copyright Notice....Page 112 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Sysop Manual Table of Contents INTRODUCTION FROM TOM E. PINKERTON Welcome Sysops! In August, I became an Assistant Sysop on CompuServe. Before I became an Assistant Sysop, I had no idea how much work goes into ongoing forum maintenance. Under normal circumstances, there is no way for the average CompuServe member to see what is going on "behind the scenes." As a Sysop, I have a newfound respect for all of those people who have been Sysoping on CompuServe for a long time. Their tireless work and enthusiasm is amazing! When I first became a Sysop, I was thrown into an entirely new area of the forum. There was a wide range of new commands, which I had to learn to effectively perform my forum responsibilities. Needless to say, that was a difficult task at best. I still have not gotten every detail down to perfection. The menus were confusing (at least to me) and it seems that only Primary Sysops get the manuals, unless a special request is put in. However, thanks to my extremely generous Primary Sysop, Dave Winslow, I obtained a Sysop Manual, and thanks to him and the other Assistant Sysops on the Student Forum, Jim Gecz and Dave Waite, I have learned the Sysop commands. Well, as most of you know, CompuServe has recently released an updated version of the official Sysop Manual. However, due to printing costs and an underestimation of the number of people who would want a copy, obtaining a copy is not an easy task. Due to the formatting and graphics included in the official manual, CompuServe is reluctant to produce a straight text version of the manual. And so I have begun this task. In order to aid future (and current) Sysops in finding their way around the Sysop areas of the forums, I have compiled this unofficial Sysop Manual. I say UNOFFICIAL because this manual has not been checked or guaranteed by any CompuServe personnel. I have had other Sysops proofread it and I did get all of my information from official (or close to official) sources, so I feel this manual to be very accurate, but you should understand that it is not an official CompuServe manual and I am solely responsible for its content. This manual is different from my "Instruction Manual for Assistant Sysops and Section Leaders." This is a complete manual, including commands restricted to Sysops with W flags and providing guidelines and tips for Primary Sysops. The information in this manual is current as of March 25, 1993 - the date which I completed this manual. The included information was collected from the official Sysop Manual, the on-line help screens, the advice of other Sysops, and information downloaded from the Sysop forum. While I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information included in this manual, I feel it to be a relatively reliable source of information. I hope that it will be of benefit to my fellow Sysops. One thing I should note is about the examples in this manual. In this manual, examples are provided for the various functions. When an example of an on- line menu is provided, it may not be identical to the menu you see. The choices on the menu will be the same, but may not be presented in exactly the same way. Please understand that there are different versions of forum software and different versions of information floating around. I have tried to be as accurate as possible, but 100% accuracy cannot be guaranteed. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 1 I want to offer my thanks and appreciation to the work and/or assistance of Tim Barker, Beth Gaynor, Ed Girou, Betty Knight, Mike Schoenbach, and Jonathan Zittrain. Their information has been a major part of this manual. And thanks to all the Sysop Forum members who helped. (Gees, I feel like I'm writing a novel. ) Your comments and suggestions are welcome! --Tom Pinkerton [70243,703] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 2 CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ CompuServe welcomes you to your position as a Forum Administrator (also known as Sysop). As a Forum Administrator, you play an important role in the success of your forum. This manual is provided to help you manage your forum and carry out those duties which CompuServe and your forum's members are counting on you to perform. Getting Started ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you are not familiar with CompuServe forums, it is suggested that you familiarize yourself with them first and then read this guide. CompuServe offers printed and on-line documentation to help you get acquainted with forums, including the CompuServe Information Service Users Guide. If you are a new Sysop, beginning your duties for the first time, you may want to read through this entire manual for an overview of your duties before you begin. To further assist you, detailed examples demonstrating Sysop commands and their applications are provided. Experienced Sysops can keep this guide handy for reference should questions arise as you carry out your duties. What are Forums? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Forums are the crossroads of CompuServe. They are the places where members meet, gather information, share their discoveries, and debate issues. They are vibrant places, full of the life of over one million CompuServe members, and as a Forum Administrator, or Sysop, you are going to be one of the leaders of this group. It is a daunting responsibility that can have frustrations and pressure. But the rewards of being in the forefront of the information industry, regardless of the subject of your forum, make the responsibilities and pressures worthwhile. This manual was written to help you maximize the rewards your forum can offer to both you and to the CompuServe members who use it, and to give you guidelines to best manage the responsibilities you will have. Forum Structure ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Each forum is divided into three main areas - the Message Board, the File Libraries, and the Conference Rooms. There are also several secondary areas such as the Announcements, the Member Directory, and the Instructions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 3 Think of a forum as a town. The Message Board is where people meet and greet each other every day. It's just like a conversation in a real city except that, since most of the people involved in the conversation will not be in the forum at the same time, written messages are left for each other. So you will need to think of the city as a bit different than usual, with streets lined with bulletin boards where people leave messages for their friends and neighbors. A forum's Message Board is divided into sections. You'll find conversations about the latest financial news outside the bank and talk about food prices around the grocery. Files are kept in areas called libraries. When you go into a regular library, you find stacks of books you can use. In a forum, the books are files that people can copy to and from their computers. A forum's library is divided smaller libraries, just like the fiction, cooking, and self-help areas of a real library. The third main part of a forum is the conference area, where members can speak with each other in real time. Whatever one person types on his/her screen appears on the screens of everyone else in that conference. The conference area is the town hall. People can meet there informally and chat but it's also used for important meetings and any official gathering of the townsfolk. In this town the Sysops are the mayor and the city council, in charge of administering the forum and seeing to its welfare. As a Sysop, you are also the librarian, the police department, and the fire department. A Sysop has a lot of jobs in this town! "Sysop" ~~~~~~~ The word "Sysop" stands for System Operator. It comes from the small, local bulletin board systems that are run by one person only - the Sysop. CompuServe uses the word "Sysop" to refer to a Forum Administrator. This is part of the reason that new members may refer to a forum as a bulletin board. There are three different types of Sysops on CompuServe. The Primary Sysop is called the Wizard Sysop, or Wizop, which refers to the special privileges he/ she has. The second type of Sysop are Assistant Sysops, who administer only certain parts of the forum and assist the Primary Sysop. Finally, there are territorial Sysops, called Section Leaders, who are responsible for one specific section of the forum. Every forum has a Primary Sysop. Some forums only have a Primary Sysop, while others have Assistant Sysops, Section Leaders, or a combination. Extremely busy forums may have more than one Primary Sysop, but that is extremely rare. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 4 "SIG" vs. "Forum" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Originally, CompuServe forums were called Special Interest Groups (SIGS). Now, the name "forum" has been adopted to better describe their function as a set of communication tools which together create a unique environment where you can exchange information with a group of people who share similar interests. However, vestiges of the old terminology remain in the vocabulary of many long-time subscribers. Occasionally, you may see the word SIG used to refer to a forum. Sysop Performance Guidelines ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CompuServe allows its Sysops a lot of autonomy in their forums. Each forum has a different ambiance, a different audience, and a different style. While CompuServe recognizes the importance of forum individuality and expects management styles to differ among administrators, there are certain guidelines that all Primary Sysops must follow. These guidelines are listed below. From those guidelines and other sources on the Sysop Forum, the author of this manual has created the guidelines for Assistant Sysops and Section Leaders. These are not official, but are meant to provide information to Assistant Sysops and Section Leaders as to what their responsibilities are like. Duties of Primary Sysops ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * The Primary Sysop should visit their forum at least once daily. An Assistant Sysop should be selected to do this when the Primary Sysop is not available. * The Primary Sysop should review and respond to messages at least once a day. * Announcements and Description Files should always be kept accurate, complete, and up-to-date. * Any file uploaded to your forum's libraries should be reviewed within 24 hours. If a delay occurs and the file is not reviewed within 24 hours, the file's uploader should be contacted with an explanation. * If your forum is a private forum, requests for membership should be processed within 24 hours. * The Primary Sysop should visit the Sysop Forum daily to obtain timely information including communications from the Product Support staff and information on new versions of software and system problems. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 5 Duties of Assistant Sysops ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * The Primary Sysop should visit their forum at least once daily. While Assistant Sysops do not have to visit daily, it is a good idea to do so and some of your tasks may require it. In any case, you should visit regularly. * If you have been granted access to the Sysop Forum, you should visit it each time you log on to CompuServe. * Announcements and Description Files must always be current and complete, if this is an area you have been assigned to maintain. * Any file submitted to a forum's libraries should be merged within 24 hours. If you have been assigned to library maintenance, you should help see that this happens. If a delay occurs and a file is not merged within 24 hours, a Sysop should contact the person who uploaded the file with an explanation. * Requests for membership in private forums should always be processed within 24 hours. Though this is generally the duty of the Primary Sysop, it may be delegated to an assistant. * When all members sign up to CompuServe, they agree to certain Rules of Operation. These rules are printed in Appendix D at the end of this manual. These rules should be enforced on all forums. In addition, the Primary Sysop of a forum may establish additional rules which should also be enforced. Duties of Section Leaders ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * Messages in your section should be kept "flowing." You should move off-topic messages to other message sections; change the subject of message threads when they no longer reflect the true topics being discussed; and try to keep as much new information about the section as possible available to the users. * If a message is posted to a person, but does not include that person's User I.D. Number, you should add the User I.D. by forwarding the message (a process explained later in the manual). * Files uploaded should be merged within 24 hours, and you should check out and approve all files uploaded to your section(s). * File Libraries should be kept up to date. You should regularly check your assigned library sections for outdated files. When you remove a file from the library, you should notify the Sysop in charge of the libraries in your forum. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 6 ASCII and HMI ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Part of the diversity of CompuServe members includes the equipment they use. CompuServe members use everything from TRS-80s to mainframe computers. There are two basic types of software members will use to connect to CompuServe. The first is the basic terminal program - the kind that shows the CompuServe menus for members to navigate. The second is called HMI. HMI stands for Host-Micro Interface, and it is a special protocol CompuServe programs such as the CompuServe Information Manager and Navigator use to communicate with CompuServe. These two types of users will see the forums in very different ways. If you refer to the CompuServe menus or typed commands, remind users (as well as yourself) that this only applies to members not using HMI and, when needed, include HMI instructions as well. If you do not already have a copy of the CompuServe Information Manager, your forum's Marketing Manager (discussed later in this chapter) will be happy to provide you with one so that you can become familiar with its interface. In order for you to perform most of the special Sysop commands you will need to use a standard ASCII (non-HMI) interface. At this time, HMI does not support most of the Sysop commands. If you regularly use the CompuServe Information Manager or another HMI product, you should select "GO" while on-line and type ASCII as the service you want. This will switch you out of HMI mode. When you are done, type GO HMI at any ! prompt to switch back to HMI. As stated earlier, if you need help in using the ASCII interface, several reference manuals are available. In addition, you may type HELP at any ! prompt for brief instructions and information. Sysop Commands ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As a Sysop, you have extra privileges available to you that most people won't see or have access to. To use most of these commands, you must enter a special area of the forum called the Sysop Operations area. To do so, you type SO at any ! prompt. When you enter this command, you will be prompted to enter the Sysop password. No one can enter the Sysop Operations area unless they have the appropriate access flags (discussed in later chapters) and know the Sysop password. As a security precaution, the Sysop password will _NOT_ appear on the screen as you type it. Menu Mode vs. Command Mode ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you are already a regular forum user, you are aware that there are two methods for giving commands to CompuServe. The first is Menu Mode, and it is the default when you enter a forum. In Menu Mode, you see a menu of commands that are available. You can then type the number of the choice you wish to use or type the command. In Command Mode, you do not see anything except the prompt (! or ? or something similar) and you are expected to know the forum's commands well enough to simply type the commands without seeing a menu. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 7 In this manual, the attempt will be made to provide you with the instructions for both Menu Mode and Command Mode. In the examples, however, this manual will assume that you are using Menu Mode. It is best to start out using Menu Mode and then switch to Command Mode when you have learned your way around. Three Letter Commands ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In order to save you time and typing, most commands can be abbreviated to the first three letters of the command. For example, to enter the Message Board of a forum you could either type MESSAGES or MES. Both commands would work. These abbreviations work in either Menu Mode or Command Mode. This only applies when you are using an ASCII interface to CompuServe. HELP!!! ~~~~~~~ Where can you go for help? As you are starting out your journey as a new Sysop, you will have many questions. There are several people and groups who can be of assistance to you. * Marketing Manager Each of CompuServe's Forums has a Marketing Manager who oversees the forum. The Marketing Manager is the main contact for such issues as contracts, marketing and promoting your forum, changing Sysops, and other details about forum structure and design. In general, it is the responsibility of the Primary Sysop of a forum to communicate with the Marketing Manager, If you are an Assistant Sysop, you should generally go through your Primary Sysop. However, the policy of your specific forum is set by that forum's Primary Sysop and Marketing Manager. Your forum's Marketing Manager can assist in the following areas: o Sponsored Account Management o What's New and On-Line Today Articles o Adding and Removing Assistant Sysops and Section Leaders o Contract Negotiations o Contests o Free Flags * Product Support The CompuServe Product Support Staff can also be of assistance in certain situations. Product Support does the maintenance work in forums. They are responsible for setting free flags and W flags. They are responsible for approving requests for additional message or library space. As with the Marketing Manager, it is generally the Primary Sysop's responsibility to communicate with Product Support. If you are an Assistant Sysop, be sure to gain the approval of your Primary Sysop before contacting Product Support. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 8 Areas in which Product Support can assist: * Copyright Violations or Problems Messages reporting any copyright violations or problems should be sent via Electronic Mail to 70006,256. * On-Line Commercial Advertising and Solicitation Violations Messages reporting on-line commercial advertising or solicitation violations should be sent via Electronic Mail to 70006,256. * Problems with Subscribers and Forum Lock-Outs If you have a problem with a subscriber and/or lock someone out of the forum, you should report it to 70006,256. Please include copies of all relevant information and communications. * Free Flag Requests All free flag requests should be sent via Electronic Mail to 70006,256 and a copy should also be sent to your forum's Marketing Manager. When requesting a free flag, be sure to include the following information: o The Name and User I.D. Number of the Person to Receive the Flag o The Name and GO Word of the Forum in Which to Set the Flag o The Date the Flag is to be Set o The Date the Flag is to be Removed When requesting a free flag, be sure that the person is already a member of your forum. Product Support will not add a member to grant a free flag. * Library Block Allocations Requests for additional library blocks should be sent via Electronic Mail to 70006,256. When requesting additional library blocks, be sure to include the following information: o The Number of Additional Blocks Requested o The Name and GO Word of the Forum where the Blocks Should be Added ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 9 * Message Slot Increases To request additional message slots (discussed in later chapters), send a request to 70006,256. When requesting additional message slots, please provide the following information: o Number of Message Slots the Forum Currently Has o Number of Additional Slots Requested o The Current Scroll Rate of the Forum o The Name and GO Word of the Forum Requesting the Increase * The Sysop Forum The Sysop Forum is where you can communicate with other Sysops, CompuServe employees, and Product Support. The Sysop Forum is where you can go to report problems, get help, and ask questions. The Sysop Forum is a private forum and Product Support must grant you access. If you are an Assistant Sysop, your Primary Sysop and/or Marketing Manager must also approve your admittance. The Sysop Forum is the place for such topics as: o How to be a Better Sysop o Technical Forum Problems o Questions about Sysop Commands and Settings o Advice from Other Sysops A Typical Day ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ There is no formula for a typical day in a forum. Every Sysop develops his/ her own style based mostly on the needs of that particular forum. There are, however, some basic guidelines that it might be helpful to start with. Then as your job continues, you can refine this system to meet the needs of your forum. Members will expect to see daily response in the forum. This will include both the Message Board and File Libraries of the forum. Every message in the forum should be read _DAILY_. If you are assigned to watch the messages in a particular section, you should read them all each day. Every file that has been uploaded should also be checked daily. If it takes longer than a day to respond to the questions, uploads, or conversations of forum members, the forum will lose its audience. If answers to some questions or checking on uploaded files will take more than a day, you should let the member know that. Let members know that you're interested and involved! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 10 How long will the typical Sysop spend in a forum per day? Again, the answer is going to vary greatly based on the activity of the forum and the amount of duties you have to perform, but the average Sysop can expect to spend between one and three hours per day. If you are spending more time than that, you might wish to consider bringing in some additional Assistant Sysops and/or Section Leaders. If you are an Assistant Sysop, you should speak to your Primary Sysop when you feel additional staff is needed. "Sysop" and "Section Leader" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This manual was written as a guide for Primary Sysops, Assistant Sysops, and Section Leaders. However, in order to save space and typing, the term "Sysop" will be used to refer to all Sysops and Section Leaders in this manual. Basic CompuServe / Telecommunications Terms ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As a Sysop, you will come across several terms which you may not be familiar with. The following list contains definitions for some of the more commonly used terms: ASCII Standard text information. On CompuServe, this also refers to the non-HMI method of accessing the service. ACCESS The program which controls the library areas of a forum. baud rate The speed at which a member's modem can communicate with CompuServe. 300 baud is the slowest speed available on CompuServe, 9600 baud is the fastest. Speeds faster than 9600 baud are available, but are not supported by CompuServe. BSD CompuServe's Business Services Division buffer See CAPTURE BUFFER capture buffer The last few pages of information in a communications program's memory. A capture buffer can normally be stored to the member's disk to save it permanently, but, if it is not, all information in it is lost when the member's program stops running. CompuServe Mail The system used to send private electronic messages from one CompuServe member to another. It is also called Electronic Mail, E-Mail, and/or EasyPlex. CBX The program which controls the conference areas of a forum. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 11 This symbol stands for "carriage return." It means to press the key on your keyboard that ends a line. On IBM computers, this is the ENTER key. On Apple computers, this is the RETURN key. database A collection of information which is stored on a computer. DISPLA The program which controls CompuServe's menus and display products. download The process of transferring information from a remote computer system to your own computer system. EDIT CompuServe's line-oriented text editor which is used to create and edit text files. Electronic Mail See CompuServe Mail E-Mail See CompuServe Mail EasyPlex The former name of CompuServe Mail which is still used by some long-time CompuServe members. FILGE See EDIT HMI Host-Micro Interface. A special protocol CompuServe products such as the CompuServe Information Manager and CompuServe Navigator use to communicate with CompuServe. host A CompuServe computer to which you are connected. LINEDIT A line-numbered text editor. log file A text file of information on your computer that your communications software uses to copy everything you see on the screen while on CompuServe. Note that this differs from a capture buffer in that a log file's information is written directly and immediately to a disk. logoff The sequence of events which disconnects you from CompuServe's computer. logon The sequence of events which connects you to CompuServe's computer. node A specialized communications computer which allows any remote terminals to communicate with CompuServe's large computer complex in Columbus, Ohio. off-line Disconnected from CompuServe. on-line Connected to CompuServe. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 12 PPN The former name of User I.D. Numbers. It stands for Project, Programmer Number and is still used by some long-time CompuServe members. SIG The program which controls the message areas of a forum. protocol A special means of communicating with a modem. Usually a protocol involves checking the data being sent over the phone lines. The two protocols most commonly used on CompuServe are called XMODEM and CompuServe B+. SIGs Special Interest Groups (Also Known as "forums") SIGSO The program which controls the Sysop Maintenance Mode of a forum. structure Storage devices used by CompuServe products. thread A group of messages in a forum that are a part of the same topic and subject. Message threads generally contain continuing conversations among members. UID See User I.D. Number User I.D. Number A series of numbers (such as 70006,256) which identifies a CompuServe member. Each CompuServe member has a unique User I.D. Number. upload The process of transferring a file from your computer to a remote host. videotex An menu formatted system for accessing remote databases and programs. This is the system that ASCII users use. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 13 CHAPTER TWO FORUM PARAMETERS (W Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Forum Parameters area of Sysop Operations is the first area which Primary Sysops will use when setting up a forum. The Forum Parameters area will also be used when any change the major setup of the forum is desired. Only a Sysop with a W flag in their membership record may access the Forum Parameters area of Sysop Operations. In most forums, the Primary Sysop is the only Sysop with a W flag, however, the contract holder for the forum may request W flags for other Assistant Sysops. The Forum Parameters area of your forum allows you to design some of the features of your forum and enable/disable certain functions used by members and non-members. Entering the Forum Parameters Area ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To enter the Forum Parameters area of a forum, you must first enter the Sysop Operations area of the forum, as explained in Chapter 1 of this manual. You can then enter the Forum Parameters area by either selecting choice 1 from the main Sysop Operations menu or by typing FOR at the prompt. Once you have done that, you will be taken to the main Forum Parameters menu or prompt. As stated earlier, examples in this manual will show the process in Menu Mode, rather than Command Mode. The Forum Parameters menu will look like the following sample menu: Demo Forum Parameters 1 (VIS) Visitor Privileges 2 (GLO) Global Defaults 3 (MES) Messaging Parameters 4 (LIB) Library Parameters 5 (CON) Conferencing Parameters Enter Choice ! From this menu (or prompt) you can choose which parameter you wish to work with by typing the choice's number or the three letter command. Each of these choices is explained in detail below. Visitor Privileges ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Visitor Privileges area of Forum Parameters is where you decide which forum features are available to visitors (non-members). CompuServe recommends that you give visitors access to enough information to become interested in the forum, but not so much information that there is no incentive to join. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 14 The Visitor Privileges menu is as follows: Demo Forum Visitor Privileges [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Announcements [Yes] 2 Composing Messages [No ] 3 Reading Messages [No ] 4 Member Directory [No ] 5 User Log [No ] 6 Libraries [No ] Enter Choice ! All choices on the Visitor Privileges menu are Yes/No toggles. The current setting is shown in brackets next to the menu choice. When the forum is first created, the default choices shown above will be listed. You can change any of the options by typing the number of the choice. The following is a brief explanation of each choice and the reasoning behind CompuServe's recommended settings (which are the defaults): Announcements Setting this option to Yes allows visitors to read all of your forum's announcements. Setting this option to No restricts visitors to reading the special announcements for visitors only. Sometimes, people may decide to visit, rather than join, out of fear they will not really like the forum or that the forum may cost extra money. Allowing members to read the announcements, which describe the forum in detail, may help ease those fears. For that reason, CompuServe recommends this choice be set to Yes. Composing Messages If this option is set to Yes, a visitor can post a message to any member, Sysop, or to All. If this option is set to No, a visitor can only post a message to *Sysop (discussed in later chapters). If this option is set to Yes, you can restrict visitors to posting messages in one section only (see "Messaging Parameters" later in this chapter for more information). Unless you expect many people visiting your forum only once and requesting replies via CompuServe Mail, CompuServe recommends this choice be set to No. Reading Messages If this option is set to Yes, a visitor can retrieve messages from any member or Sysop. If this option is set to No, a visitor can only read messages from a W flagged Sysop. If this option is set to Yes, you can restrict visitors to reading messages in one section only (see "Messaging Parameters" later in this chapter for more information). This option may give reticent members another chance to decide that the forum is for them. However, many members are not interested in posting messages, only reading. Having this option set to Yes gives those members all they want and thus discourages them from joining. CompuServe recommends this option be set to No. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 15 Member Directory If this option is set to Yes, a visitor can add their information to the Membership Directory and read information currently in the Membership Directory. If this option is set to No, a visitor cannot access the Membership Directory. The purpose of the Membership Directory is to allow forum members to find other forum members with similar interests. Forum members will expect that the people in this directory are members of the forum. CompuServe recommends this option be set to No. User Log If his option is set to Yes, a visitor is able to view the User Log - a list of all who have entered the forum in the last 24 hours. If this option is set to No, a visitor cannot access the User Log. There is little reason for a visitor to have access to this information. CompuServe highly recommends this option be set to No. Libraries If this option is set to Yes, a visitor can access the forum libraries. If this option is set to No, a visitor cannot access the forum libraries. If you set this option to Yes, you can restrict visitors to accessing one library (see "Library Parameters" later in this chapter for more information). CompuServe recommends this option be set to No. Global Defaults ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Global Defaults section of Forum Parameters allows you to set miscellaneous defaults that include the default message editor used by members, the switch that enables members to change their names, and the password that your forum's staff uses to enter Sysop Operations. To enter the Global Defaults area, select choice 2 or type GLO fro the main Forum Parameters menu or prompt. The Global Defaults menu is as follows: Demo Forum Global Defaults [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Default Editor [LINEDIT] 2 Member Can Change Name [Yes] 3 SYSOP Password Enter Choice ! Each choice is explained on the next page. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 16 Default Editor CompuServe provides two online forum message editors for members using ASCII programs. They are LINEDIT, a line numbered editor and EDIT, a non-line numbered editor. LINEDIT is somewhat easier for new members to use. Once members become familiar with the editing commands, however, most prefer to switch to EDIT which experienced users can use much quicker. The editor you specify here is the one which is selected for all new forum members by default when they first enter your forum. Members can easily change which editor they use from the Forum Options menu. CompuServe recommends you set the default to LINEDIT. To change the default editor, simply select choice 1. Just as with the Yes/No toggles, the choice selected will toggle from LINEDIT to EDIT or vice- versa. Member Can Change Name If this option is set to Yes, members may change the name they use in your forum by visiting the Forum Options menu. If this option is set to No, members are not able to change their name from the name they originally joined your forum under. In most forums, this option will be set to Yes. However, if your forum requires tight security, or does not allow handles, you may wish to set this option to No. The choice is entirely up to you. No matter what this choice is set to, W and M flagged Sysops can always change any member's name through the Membership Maintenance area of Sysop Operations (discussed in later chapters). SYSOP Password Product Support provides the first password that is used to enter the Sysop Operations area of your forum. From that point forward, W flagged Sysops in your forum can change the password. You can and should change the password frequently. To change the password, select choice 3 from the Global Defaults menu. CompuServe will then display the following prompt: SYSOP Password: Enter the new password you wish to use to access Sysop Operations. For security reasons, the password will not appear on the screen as you type it. To abort the password change and return to the Global Defaults menu, enter a at the prompt without entering a new password. After you enter the new password, CompuServe displays the following prompt: Re-enter SYSOP Password: Enter your new password again to ensure that you did not make any typographical errors the first time you entered the new password.------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sysop Manual Page 17 If your response to this prompt is the same as your response to the first prompt, your new password is effective immediately. If the responses do not match, CompuServe displays the first prompt again. At this point, enter your desired new password again. When you change the Sysop Operations password, be sure to notify your Marketing Manager and any assistants who access the Sysop Operations area. Messaging Parameters ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The forum's Message Board is the primary method of communication that forum members will use. The Messaging Parameters section of Forum Parameters is where you set up the Message Board of you forum. In the Messaging Parameters area, you can set such things as the number of message sections your forum will have, the names of each section, and which sections will be public. To enter the Messaging Parameters area, select choice 3 or type MES from the main Forum Parameters menu. The Messaging Parameters menu is as follows: Demo Forum Message Parameters [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Set Number of Sections 2 Change Section Names 3 Establish Public Sections 4 Lock Visitors to One Section 5 Set Holding Capacity 6 Private Messages [Yes] Enter Choice ! Each choice is explained below. Set Number of Sections You can give your forum any number of message sections from 1 to 18. You must always have at least one public section which every member of your forum can use. When you first arrive in your new forum, two sections will already be set up. Section 0 will be private and will be called "Sysop Section." Section 1 will be public and will be called "General Information." CompuServe recommends you keep one private section for forum staff only. It is also recommended that you retain Section 0 as that private section. A Section 0 sometimes confuses members, who start counting at 1. In addition, having a private section allows you and other forum staff and guests to communicate privately about forum matters. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 18 CompuServe also recommends that you keep one general, catch-all section to give forum members a place to put messages that don't fit in any other of the sections. The "Set Number of Sections" choice is where you set the total number of sections your forum will have. When you add a new section, the first step is to increase the total number of sections. When you delete a section, the first step is to decrease the total number of sections. After you select choice 1 from the Message Parameters menu, CompuServe displays a prompt similar to the example below. It tells you how many message sections the forum currently has and asks you how many message sections you want the forum to have. There are 10 Message Sections. Number of Sections (1 - 18): At this prompt, enter the total number of sections you wish to have in the forum. If you enter a number of message sections greater than the number you currently have, CompuServe prompts you to enter the name of each new section. If you are undecided as to the section names, you can enter temporary names such as "To Be Announced" and rename the sections at a later time. If you enter a number of sections less than the number you currently have, CompuServe displays a prompt similar to the following: There are 10 Message Sections. Number of Sections (1 - 18): 8 Confirm to reduce the number of sections (Y or N): If you confirm to reduce the number of sections, all messages in those sections as well as the description files for those sections will be deleted. Change Section Names Choice 2, "Change Section Names," is used to rename existing sections in your forum. Some forums have one section designated as a hot topic of the month or reserve it for special guests and may change the name fairly frequently. Other forums have sections which remain fairly static. To change the name of an existing section, select choice 2 from the Message Parameters menu. CompuServe will then prompt you to enter the number of the section you wish to change. CompuServe will then display the section's current name and ask you to enter the new name. In the following example, Section 10 will be changed from "To Be Announced" to "Computers/CIS": ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 19 Demo Forum Message Parameters [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Set Number of Sections 2 Change Section Names 3 Establish Public Sections 4 Lock Visitors to One Section 5 Set Holding Capacity 6 Private Messages [Yes] Enter Choice !2 Enter Section Number to Change, "L" for List, or When Finished: 10 10: To Be Announced New 10: Computers/CIS Message section names can be no longer than 19 characters. IMPORTANT NOTE: Many members use auto-navigation programs such as Navigator, TapCIS, or OzCIS. These programs take "snapshots" of your section names and rely on those snapshots until the member tells the program to update the snapshot. Whenever you change your section numbers or names, be sure to post an announcement in your News Flash and in a forum message telling members about the change. Otherwise, some members may miss important information! Establish Public Sections The public sections of your forum are those sections which all members can access. Most of your forum's sections will probably be public. Using choice 3, "Establish Public Sections," you can tell CompuServe which sections are to be publicly accessible. Each time you add a new public section or wish to make a private section public, you must enter it here. To set the public sections, select choice 3 from the Message Parameters menu. When you select choice 3, CompuServe will display a prompt similar to the following. The prompt will list all currently public sections and ask you to enter the new list of public sections. Public Sections : 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 New Public Sections: At the "New Public Sections" prompt, enter a list of all sections you wish to be public, _including_ those sections which are already public. You may use commas and hyphens to separate groups of sections, if you wish (e.g. 1,2,3 or 1-10). ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 20 Lock Visitors to One Section If you decide to allow visitors to read and/or compose messages, you can use Choice 4, "Lock Visitors to One Section," to restrict them to reading and/or composing messages in one section only. You might wish to use this option to restrict visitors to one section which provides information on your forum. To lock visitors to one section, select choice 4 from the Message Parameters menu. CompuServe will then tell you which section, if any, visitors are currently locked to and prompt you to enter the new section to lock visitors to. The prompt will appear as follows: Visitors are not Locked into one Section. Lock Visitors to Section (N for None): At the prompt, enter the number of the section you wish to lock visitors to, or enter the letter N for none. Set Holding Capacity Each CompuServe forum is set up with a specific number of message slots. This means that there is a limit to the number of messages which may be on the Message Board. When this capacity is filled, new messages cause old messages to be deleted, a process referred to as "scrolling." At times, you will see messages that contain important information and which you wish to prevent from scrolling. You can do so by placing the messages on "hold." You may hold up to 25% of your forum's message capacity. In order to able to hold messages you must first use Choice 5, "Set Holding Capacity," to define how many messages you wish to be able to hold. You should set this capacity to the maximum number of messages you wish to ever be held at one time. The number of "holding slots" you create does not affect the Message Board's scroll rate unless they are actually being used. To set the holding capacity for your forum, select choice 5 from the Message Parameters menu. You will then be told what the current holding capacity for your forum is and the total number of messages currently on hold. You will then be prompted to enter the new holding capacity. An example of this follows. In the following example, the holding capacity will be changed from 10 to 20. Demo Forum Message Parameters [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Set Number of Sections 2 Change Section Names 3 Establish Public Sections 4 Lock Visitors to One Section 5 Set Holding Capacity 6 Private Messages [Yes] Enter Choice !5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 21 Holding Capacity is 10. There are 2 Messages Held. New Holding Capacity: 20 Private Messages Private messages are messages that only the sender and recipient can see. Even the forum's Sysops cannot see private messages that are not to or from them. Some forums benefit greatly from private messages, others do not. When you decide whether or not to allow private messages, keep in mind that you have only a limited amount of space for messages, public or private. When there are many private messages on the Message Board, public messages that do members more good scroll faster. *Sysop - Even if your forum has private messages disabled, forum members will be able to post a message to *Sysop which only the sender and W flagged Sysops can see. If choice 6, "Private Messages," is set to Yes, private messages will be permitted. If it is set to No, private messages will be disabled. Library Parameters ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Library Parameters section of Forum Parameters is where you set up the File Libraries of you forum. In the Library Parameters area, you can set such things as the number of libraries your forum will have, the names of each library, and which libraries will be public. To enter the Library Parameters area, select choice 4 or type LIB from the main Forum Parameters menu. The Library Parameters menu is as follows: Demo Forum Library Parameters [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Set Number of Libraries 2 Change Library Names 3 Establish Public Libraries 4 Lock Visitors to One Library 5 Dynamic Allocation [Yes] 6 REPLACE appends Count [No ] 7 Rebuilds are Suppressed [No ] Enter Choice ! Each choice is explained below. Several of the choices are extremely similar to choices on the Message Parameters menu. As such, only brief descriptions of the choices which are similar will be given. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 22 Set Number of Libraries Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to set the total number of libraries which your forum will have. You can set any number between 1 and 18. This option works exactly the same as the option in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. Change Library Names Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to change the names of existing libraries in your forum. This option works in exactly the same way as the option in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. Establish Public Libraries Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to determine which libraries will be public - viewable to all forum members. This option works in exactly the same way as in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. Lock Visitors to One Library If you decide to allow visitors to access the forum's libraries, you can use this option to restrict them to accessing one library only. You might wish to use this option to restrict visitors to one library which provides information on your forum. This option works in exactly the same way as in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. Dynamic Allocation Each forum on CompuServe has a set amount of space for files. This space is measured in units known as blocks. Your forum's libraries have a "pool" of blocks. As files are added to libraries, blocks need to be moved to the correct library where they are needed. With Dynamic Allocation, the entire process is automatic and blocks automatically get parceled out to each library as they need it. For example, if a file is added to Library 3 that requires 42 blocks, 42 blocks are automatically given to Library 3. With Dynamic Allocation turned off, the blocks would have to be manually moved to Library 3 before the file could be added. CompuServe highly recommends that Dynamic Allocation be used at all times. This option is a Yes/No toggle. Simply type the number of the choice to toggle between Yes and No. Yes means that Dynamic Allocation is on. No means that Dynamic Allocation is off and Manual Allocation is being used. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 23 REPLACE Appends Count In certain cases, members or Sysops will replace an existing file with a new file of the same name. Each file's description contains the number of times the file has been downloaded. Many members check the download count of a file before downloading it to see how popular it is and to determine whether or not it is worth their time to download. If you have this option set to Yes, the library will keep the download count from the old version of the file. If you have this option set to No, the library will reset the counter to 0 for the replacement file. It is completely up to your preference and how you would like to use the Replace command that decides whether or not to turn this on. CompuServe makes no recommendation. Rebuilds are Suppressed Just as with the hard disk of a personal computer, CompuServe's disks become fragmented after use. CompuServe uses a process called "rebuilding" to defragment and optimize its disks. When this option is set to No, whenever a merge occurs (discussed in later chapters), CompuServe checks each library to see if rebuilding is necessary. If rebuilding is necessary, CompuServe performs it. CompuServe highly recommends this option be set to No. Conferencing Parameters ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Conference Parameters section of Forum Parameters is where you set up the Conference Rooms of your forum. In the Library Parameters area, you can set such things as the number of rooms your forum will have, the names of each room, and which rooms will be public. To enter the Conference Parameters area, select choice 5 or type CON from the main Forum Parameters menu. The Conference Parameters menu is as follows: Demo Forum Conference Parameters [ ] Represents the Current Setting (Yes/No Options Toggle) 1 Local Conference [Yes] 2 AutoGAG [Yes] 3 Set Number of CO Rooms 4 Change Room Names 5 Establish Public Rooms Enter Choice ! Each choice is explained below. Several of the choices are extremely similar to choices on the Message Parameters menu. As such, only brief descriptions of the choices which are similar will be given. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 24 Local Conference Choice 1, "Local Conference," is the option which enables conferencing within your forum. Almost all forums should have this option set to Yes, unless you do not wish people to conference within your forum. In general, the only forums that will set this option to No are free forums, such as the Practice Forum and CompuServe Help Forum. AutoGAG Sometimes problem members will attempt to disrupt a conference by dumping an entire buffer of information into the conference, thus preventing others from speaking. When this option is set to Yes, members cannot transmit more than three lines of text in six seconds. If they do, a warning message is sent, informing the member that they must wait six seconds before transmitting any more text. Occasionally, you may wish to turn this feature off. For example, when opening a formal conference, you may wish to transmit a pre-prepared buffer of information. If you have a guest speaker at a conference, he/she may wish to open with a pre-prepared speech. In these cases, you will need to set the AutoGAG feature to No. Set Number of CO Rooms Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to set the total number of conference rooms which your forum will have. You can set any number between 1 and 18. This option works exactly the same as the option in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. The only difference is that the numbering of conference rooms begins with 1, rather than 0, and continues through 18. Change Room Names Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to change the names of existing CO rooms in your forum. This option works in exactly the same way as the option in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. Establish Public Rooms Just as with the same option in Message Parameters, this option allows you to determine which CO rooms will be public - viewable to all forum members. This option works in exactly the same way as in Message Parameters and you should refer to that section of this chapter for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 25 CHAPTER THREE ANNOUNCEMENTS (E Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Announcements are text files used for communication with forum members. Each CompuServe forum supports ten announcement files. They are: News Flash Announcement General Announcement Membership Information Announcement Information for L-Flagged Users Announcement Announcements for Visitors (2 announcements) Conference Announcement Library Announcement Sysop Roster Announcement Messages Announcement Programs using the HMI protocol, such as the CompuServe Information Manager, will refer to announcements as "Notices," and you should keep this in mind when referring to the announcements. Knowing the Purpose of Each Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Each announcement contains specific information for forum members. There is some overlap of information between announcements, but each helps to fulfill the obligation you have to keep your forum's members informed and to provide general information to people who want to know something about your forum. The announcements are explained individually below. Each announcement can be no more than 300 lines in length, except the News Flash, which can be no more than 50 lines in length. News Flash Announcement The News Flash Announcement greets members as the enter the forum. Like all announcements, the News Flash Announcement should be friendly and contain timely and important information. The specific purpose of the News Flash Announcement is to alert forum members to upcoming special events (such as conferences and other forum activities), point members to other announcements which contain more detailed information, and promote files that would be of interest to the majority of your membership. The News Flash Announcement can be updated as needed, but should not be over- used. (No more than twice a week is recommended.) When you edit the announcement, you have the option to "reset" the News Flash Announcement so it appears once automatically on the screen of members entering the forum since the announcement has been updated. In addition, the News Flash is available from the Forum Announcement menu so it can be reviewed at any time by forum members. The News Flash Announcement may be no longer than 50 lines (with a maximum of 78 characters per line and a hard at the end of each line). ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 26 General Announcement The General Announcement outlines the three major areas of a forum: Messages, Libraries, and Conferences. The General Announcement should also reference the on-line Instructions area, HELP files, and the ? command (which provides a quick summary of commands that are available at any forum prompt that ends with an exclamation point [!]); as well as providing the HMI equivalent for each of these commands. You can also discuss other general information pertaining to the forum, but concentrate primarily on these three major components. Messages Announcement This announcement should be updated on a regular basis to reflect any "hot topics" or "good content" messages on the Message Board. You can also use this announcement to briefly describe all the message sections. However, you should also point members to the message section description files for an in-depth explanation of each individual message section. Membership Information Announcement The Membership Information Announcement explains how to become a member of the forum, what the requirements are, what the purpose of the forum is, what the fee is (if any), and any restrictions. Make sure to explain that visitors have limited access to the forum until they become members. (The privileges visitors do and do not have are set by the forum's Primary Sysop. Please contact him/her for information on this.) Members will see this announcement when they decide to join the forum, so this is the place to lay out some of the general rules and standards. For example, is this a forum where heated debates may occur? In this case, you might want to remind members not to use profanity or personal attacks. Also, encourage members to participate in the forum. The more members strive to make their feelings known, the more you and the other Sysops can tailor the forum to their interests. You can also use this announcement to encourage members to participate in the Member Directory, which is an area of the forum where members provide a bit of personal information about themselves. The Member Directory can be accessed in the forum via the MEMBER DIRECTORY option of the Forum menu. (CIM users select it from their Special pull-down menu.) Lastly, this announcement should explain how to join the forum (enter JOIN at any ! prompt or select Choice 8 from the Forum menu - CIM users select Join Forum from the Special pull-down menu.). Information for L-Flagged Users The Information for L-Flagged Users Announcement tells a member who has been locked out of the forum that he/she is no longer allowed to access or participate in the forum until certain requirements are met. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 27 Inform the person that they should contact the Primary Sysop via Electronic Mail if he/she wants to discuss the matter further. Be sure to include the name and User I.D. Number of the Primary Sysop. Forum lock-outs are explained in the section of this manual titled "Setting Flags" in Chapter 3. Announcements for Visitors The Announcements for Visitors appear to anyone who enters the forum but is not a member of it. There are two Announcement for Visitors. They are the HMI Announcement and the ASCII Announcement. Which announcement is displayed depends on the communication software the non-member is using. The ASCII Announcement is displayed to users with a standard communications program. The HMI Announcement is displayed to users with a program using the new HMI protocol, such as the CompuServe Information Manager. This announcement greets newcomers. If the forum is open to all CompuServe subscribers, it should encourage all to join the forum. The content of this announcement should briefly explain the benefits of becoming a member as well as explain how to join the forum. Be sure to explain the correct procedures for each type of software (ASCII and HMI). Also mention that the Membership Information Announcement (when available to visitors) contains specific information about the forum and what to expect as a member. State clearly that visitors' use of the forum is limited. Be sure to indicate what options are available to visitors. Also note that whether or not visitors have access to the Message Board, they will be able to post a private message which may only be viewed by a W flagged Sysop. Conference Announcement The Conference Announcement appears to members when they enter the forum's conference area. This announcement should contain a schedule of upcoming conferences and some details about each one. This announcement, like the News Flash Announcement, has a "reset flag" which the Sysop can reset to display the announcement to members who have not seen the latest update of the announcement. As a courtesy to your members, mention the three commands that everyone should know before entering a conference: /HELP, /UST, /EXIT. Mention that members using the CompuServe Information Manager should check their manual for CIM's equivalent of these commands. Library Announcement The Library Announcement provides a general summary of the information contained in each of the libraries. It provides some detail about files of particular interest to the forum's members. It's a good idea to announce new or changed libraries in the News Flash Announcement, then direct members to this announcement for details. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 28 Sysop Roster The Sysop Roster Announcement provides information about the Sysops and Section Leaders of the forum, including the background and forum responsibilities of each. You can include outside interests too, if you wish. Each Sysop's and Section Leader's name and User I.D. Number should appear in this announcement. New Member Announcement CompuServe used to support another announcement called the New Member Announcement. While this announcement is no longer in use, HMI protocol users still see it as a choice on their menu. When they select New Member, they will see the HMI Visitor Announcement. Creating and Editing Announcements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Primary Sysops and Assistant Sysops and Section Leaders with an E flag can edit announcement files. To access the Announcement Maintenance area, select choice 2 from the SO Functions menu, and then Choice 1. If you are in Command Mode, not Menu Mode, you can get to this area by entering MAI;ANN at the SO Functions prompt. From this point forward, we will assume that, in all cases, you are using Menu Mode, not Command Mode. New Sysops should use Menu Mode first to familiarize themselves with the Sysop areas. Once you are familiar, you can switch to Command Mode. After you access the Announcement Maintenance area, you will see the following menu. The words "Demo Forum" will show as the name of your forum. Demo Forum Announcements 1 (EDI) Edit Announcements 2 (UPL) Upload Announcements 3 (DOW) Download Announcements 4 (TYP) Type Announcements Enter Choice ! Note: To return to the Sysop Maintenance Mode (SO) menu, press here. Editing Announcements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To edit announcements while on-line, you can use the EDIT editor (formerly known as FILGE). EDIT has its own set of commands, as do all text editing programs, so be sure you're familiar with all its commands before you begin. (For help with EDIT commands, see "Using EDIT," later in this chapter.) Also, be sure to format your text according to the instructions in the "Formatting Text" section of this chapter. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 29 To edit an announcement, choose Choice 1, or type EDI at the Announcements menu/prompt. CompuServe then displays a menu of announcements that looks like the one shown below. Demo Forum Edit Announcements 1 News Flash 2 General 3 Membership Info. 4 Info for L-Flagged Users 5 ASCII Visitor Announcement 6 HMI Visitor Announcement 7 Conference 8 Library 9 Messages 10 Sysop Roster Enter Choice ! After selecting an announcement, CompuServe prepares the announcement file for editing. This is how the process may appear on your screen: Editing News Flash Announcement... Reading File It is 10 lines long out of 50. Use the /H command for help. [File ready] At this point you will be at the top of the file. Use the standard EDIT commands to edit and update the announcement. Using EDIT ~~~~~~~~~~ You can use the following EDIT commands to edit the contents of your announcement file. These commands also apply to any editing which uses the EDIT editor. /T move the cursor to the top of the file /B move the cursor to the bottom of the file and display the last line /Pn display the number of lines you specify (n), beginning with the line the cursor is on /n or /-n move the cursor up or down the number of lines you specify (n or -n) and displays the nth line /L unique string move the cursor to the line that contains one or more occurrences of the text you specify (unique string) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 30 /Dn delete the number if lines you specify (n), beginning with the line the cursor is on, and display the first line left undeleted /R new line replace the line the cursor is on with the text you specify (new line) /C/old string/new string change the old text you specify (old string) to the new text you specify (new string) /n GC/old string/new string globally change the n occur- ances of the text you specify (old string) to the new text you specify (new string). If n is larger than the number of occurrences, CompuServe displays this message: [STRING NOT FOUND] /W list the current line number Formatting Text ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The format, or appearance, of any announcement appears greatly on the length of the forum member's lines, which they set in Forum Options. Because of this, CompuServe automatically performs formatting on announcements to make them fit on members' displays. No part of the announcement is changed, however, words and spaces may be moved from one line to another. While composing or editing an announcement, you can use the following formatting commands to indent lines, create blank lines, or start new lines. . A period at the beginning of a line forces the text to a new line on the receivers screen. To create a blank line, enter a period without any text on a line and then a period with text on the next. .># The combination of a period, right arrow, and number at the beginning of a line indents subsequent lines by the specified number of spaces (#). Note that indentation does not begin with the current line; it begins after the first line break on the screen. To force immediate indentation, you must enter the indentation command by itself on one line, then enter a period and text on the next. This combination does not create a blank line. To discontinue indentation, simply specify zero (0) as the number of spaces to indent. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 31 .< The combination of a period and a left arrow at the beginning of a line places the first text character of that line (and only that line) at the left margin. All subsequent lines will be indented according the last indentation command. Remember, to be consistent with the way the forum displays an announcement (and most files in general), you must type a period before the first word of a sentence, if the word begins on a new line. To create a blank line, you must enter a period and nothing else at the beginning of a new line. An example appears below. .This is an example to show how typing a period at the the left margin places a sentence at the beginning of a new line. By typing a period at the left margin (shown below), you create a blank line. . .This is the procedure you should use to create blank lines between paragraphs. Note, however, that periods placed anywhere besides the left margin simply designate the end of a sentence. Only when you type a period at the left margin does it create a blank or new line. Using periods as described above allows CompuServe to format the announcements you compose to the screen display of the forum members' terminals and computers. Entering a space in column one also forces a new line, so only use it to indent paragraphs. See the previous section for more information. Uploading Announcements to the Forum ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rather than typing and editing the announcements while on-line, you can create text files containing the announcements off-line and then upload them to the forum. To upload an announcement to the forum, select Choice 2 or type UPL from the Announcements menu/prompt. NOTE: All announcement files you upload should be standard ASCII text. No control characters or word processor formatting codes should be present. In addition, a hard should be placed at the end of each line. Lines should be no larger than 78 characters. CompuServe displays a warning message once you've chosen to upload an announcement. The following example shows the warning message. It explains that the file you upload will completely replace the existing announcement. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 32 Demo Forum Announcements 1 (EDI) Edit Announcements 2 (UPL) Upload Announcements 3 (DOW) Download Announcements 4 (TYP) Type Announcements Enter Choice !2 The result will be a brand new announcement. Continue (Y or N)? If you choose to continue, CompuServe displays the following menu: Demo Forum Edit Announcements 1 News Flash 2 General 3 Membership Info 4 Info for L-Flagged Users 5 HMI Visitor 6 ASCII Visitor 7 Conference 8 Library 9 Messages 10 Sysop Roster Enter Choice ! To upload a file to another announcement, select the announcement from this menu. CompuServe then displays the SO Protocol Menu, which prompts you for the file transfer protocol you wish to use. Demo Forum SO Protocol Transfer protocols available -- 1 XMODEM (MODEM 7) protocol 2 CompuServe's 'B' protocol Enter Choice ! Select the protocol that you wish to use. If you are unsure of which protocol to use, consult the manual that came with your communications software. After you select the protocol, CompuServe or your communications software asks you to enter a filename. At this point enter the filename (including drive and path) containing the text for the announcement. If you enter the wrong name, CompuServe aborts the transfer. Simply start over and enter the correct file name. When CompuServe finds the file you specified, it uploads it to the announcement you specified at the Announcement Upload Menu and displays the following message: *** File Transfer Completed! *** Checking file size... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 33 If the file is too large for the announcement you chose, you must reduce its length and upload it again. The maximum length for all announcements except the News Flash Announcement is 300 lines. The maximum length of the News Flash Announcement is 50 lines. If the file you uploaded does fit, the new text completely replaces the existing text. If it is the News Flash or Conference Announcement you have replaced, you are also given the option of resetting the announcement's flags. Downloading Announcements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you want to download an announcement from the forum, select Choice 3 or type DOW from the Announcements menu/prompt. Here's an example of how this would look: Demo Forum Announcements 1 (EDI) Edit Announcements 2 (UPL) Upload Announcements 3 (DOW) Download Announcements 4 (TYP) Type Announcements Enter Choice !3 You will then be taken to a list of the announcements from where you may choose which announcement you want to download. This will look similar to this: Demo Forum Edit Announcements 1 News Flash 2 General 3 Membership Info 4 Info for L-Flagged Users 5 HMI Visitor Announcement 6 ASCII Visitor Announcement 7 Conference 8 Library 9 Messages 10 Sysop Roster Enter Choice ! At the Enter Choice ! prompt, select the number of the announcement you wish to download. Once you enter a number at the prompt, CompuServe displays the following menu: Demo Forum SO Protocol Transfer Protocols Available -- 1 XMODEM (MODEM 7) Protocol 2 CompuServe's 'B' Protocol Enter Choice !------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------- Sysop Manual Page 34 Select the protocol you wish to use. If you are unsure, consult the manual that came with your communications software. Once you select a protocol, CompuServe or your own communications software (depending upon the protocol) will prompt you to enter a filename. If you are using XMODEM, you should initiate the command to start the transfer at this point. If you are using CompuServe's 'B' Protocol, the transfer will begin automatically. For more information on how to download files, consult the documentation that came with your communications software. After the transfer is complete, CompuServe displays the following message: ***File Transfer Completed! *** Proofreading Announcements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You should proof all announcements you write, edit, or upload to make sure that the text appears the way you intended it to. You can read each individual announcement by selecting Choice 4 or typing TYP at the announcements menu. After you select this choice, CompuServe displays the following menu of announcements: Demo Forum Type Announcements 1 News Flash 2 General 3 Membership Info 4 Info for L-Flagged Users 5 ASCII Visitor 6 HMI Visitor 7 Library 8 Messages 9 Sysop Roster Enter Choice ! Select the announcement you would like to proof. (For example, to Proofread the News Flash Announcement, you would enter 1.) When you view an announcement, you cannot edit it. What you see is exactly what members will see when they choose it from the Announcements menu. To edit it, you must use the procedures for editing described earlier in this manual. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 35 CHAPTER FOUR MEMBERSHIP MAINTENANCE (M Flag Required) (Some Functions Require a W Flag) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Membership Maintenance Mode of SO allows Sysops with an M flag in their membership record to add, edit, and delete members; set or remove certain special flags; set or remove access to restricted message sections, libraries, and conference rooms; and list membership records. Membership Maintenance Mode is available from the SO Maintenance Menu. Here is an example of how you can access it: Demo Forum SO Functions 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 2 (MAI) Maintenance 3 (STA) Statistics Enter Choice !2 Demo Forum Maintenance 1 (ANN) Announcements 2 (MEM) Membership 3 (MES) Messages 4 (LIB) Library 5 (CON) Conference Enter Choice !2 PLEASE NOTE: In the menus shown above, and all SO menus, only those choices you have access to will be displayed. However, no matter what choices are shown, the numbers used to select each choice do not change. Membership Data last updated on 01-Oct-92 09:34:30 by [70243,703] There are 4424 members on file Public Sections: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Public Libraries: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Public Conference Rooms: 1 2 3 5 Press ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 36 Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice ! PLEASE NOTE: The Membership Maintenance menu, shown above, will only display those choices which you have access to. Assistant Sysops, even those with the M flag, do not have access to choices 6-9 and 11-12. Only Sysops with a W flag have access to those choices. Adding a Member ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To manually add a member to the forum's membership file, select Choice 1 or type ADD at the Membership Maintenance menu/prompt. Once you've done this, you will see a series of seven prompts where you identify the person and specify the type of forum access you wish them to have. These prompts are shown below: Add User ID: Name: Auxiliary data: Flags (H for list): Special Section Access: Special Library Access: Special Conference Room Access: Each of the prompts shown above are explained in detail below. Specifying the Member You Wish to Add After you enter the appropriate choice or command to add a member, CompuServe prompts you for the several pieces of information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 37 Add User ID: At this prompt, enter the User I.D. Number of the member you wish to add. If you happen to enter a User I.D. Number of a person who is already a forum member, you'll receive a message indicating that User I.D. Number is already a part of the membership. If you decide that you don't want to add a member after you reach this prompt, just enter a . After you enter a User I.D. Number, CompuServe displays this prompt: Name: Here you should enter the name of the member you want to add. Use middle initials to differentiate between members who have the same first and last names. In forums where "handles" are used, enter the "handle" at the prompt. Please note that names can be no longer than 24 characters. Auxiliary data: Each membership record offers an extra 9 character field for the Sysops to use for whatever they choose. This is known as the Auxiliary Data field, and is the next prompt CompuServe displays. At this prompt, enter any brief and pertinent information, such as the city and state where the user resides or the user's status, such as Sysop or SL. If you don't wish to add any auxiliary data, you can leave this field blank by entering a . Specifying the Member's Access Flags (H for list): Most flags enable administrative capabilities that are only available to Sysops. Most flags must be assigned by a Sysop with a W flag or CompuServe Product Support. An Assistant Sysop, even one with an M flag, can only assign and remove the L (lock-out) flag and can only assign and remove access to those special sections which he/she has access to. A complete list of available flags follows: B - Message Board Sysop. The B flag allows the user to perform maintenance on the forum's Message Board using the special Sysop commands. These commands are explained in the next chapter of this manual. C - Conference Sysop. The C flag allows the user to issues special Sysop commands in the conference area of the forum. These commands include the ability to warn members about their behavior and handle and to block an offensive user's transmissions. These commands are explained in the "Conferencing" chapter of this manual. D - File Library Sysop. The D flag allows the user to perform maintenance on the forum's File Libraries using the special Sysop commands. These commands are explained in the "File Libraries" chapter of this manual. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 38 E - Announcement Sysop. The E flag allows the user to upload, edit, and download the forum's announcements as explained in the previous chapter of this manual. F - Free User. The F flag frees the user of all connect charges while in the forum. This flag must be set/removed by Product Support. L - Locked Out User. The L flag locks a member out of your forum; he/she will not be able to access any of the forum's functions. When the member tries to enter the forum, he/she will see the Info for L Flagged Users announcement. The L flag is usually a last resort for dealing with a member who has been causing trouble within the forum. In most cases, you should send a CompuServe Mail or private forum message to the user before issuing the L flag, though some cases may warrant an immediate lock out. If you do lock out a forum member, please collect a text copy of everything the member has said and/or done and any communication you have had with him/her. Keep a copy for your own reference and send a copy to your Marketing Manager. If you are an Assistant Sysop, you should follow the policies set by your Primary Sysop for handling a lock out situation. M - Membership Sysop. The M flag allows the user to add, edit, and delete membership records as well as assign special message, library, and conference room access. These functions will be discussed later in this chapter. W - Wizard Sysop. The W flag allows the user to perform all of the functions available to users with B, C, D, E, and M flags, as well as setting forum parameters and viewing forum statistics. In addition, a user with a W flag can only be deleted from the forum's membership by Product Support. The W flag may only be set/removed by Product Support. Z - Zap all Flags. The Z flag is the flag you will use when you wish to delete a member's flags. The Z flag will clear all flags except the F and W flags from the user's membership record. At the "Flags" prompt, you should type the letter(s) of the flag(s) you wish to assign to the user. If you are assigning multiple flags, separate each flag with a space. If you do not wish to assign any flags, simply enter a at this prompt. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 39 Special Section Access: Special Library Access: Special Conference Room Access: After you finish setting flags, you are given three prompts which ask you if you would like to assign the new member access to any special sections. Special sections are those sections which are not public. At each prompt, you should enter the number(s) of the private section(s) you wish the user to have access to. If you are granting access to multiple private sections, separate each number with a comma. Sysops with a W flag may assign access to any private section. Sysops with a M flag may only assign access to those sections/libraries/rooms which they have access to. If you do not wish to grant access to any private sections/libraries/rooms, simply enter a at each prompt. Confirming Your Responses After you have completed entering all of the appropriate information at the prompts, CompuServe displays your responses and asks you to confirm their accuracy. It displays the following prompt: Okay? (es, o, bort): If you respond with the letter Y (yes), all of the information you entered is saved. If you enter N (no), CompuServe gives you the opportunity to correct any errors. It displays each line, one at a time, allowing you to make any changes needed. If no changes are needed to a particular line, simply enter a . If you enter the letter A (abort), the record you just entered is discarded. Editing a Member's Record ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To edit a member's record, enter the EDI (edit) command at the Membership Maintenance Mode menu. CompuServe accepts either the User I.D. Number or any part of the member's name. You may not edit the 70006,256 (Product Manager) or 70000,102 (Forum Development) accounts. In addition, only a user with a W flag can edit other users with W flags in their membership records. If you only remember part of the member's name, enter those letters and CompuServe will search for them and display all names containing the letters you entered. At each match, CompuServe asks you if this is the record you want. If it is not, enter N (no) and CompuServe will display the next match. CompuServe will notify you if it can't find the letters or User I.D. Number you entered. If it does find the member's record you requested, it displays the current settings and gives you the same options provided when adding a member: save the settings as they are, change the settings, or abort the edit. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 40 As with adding a member, when you want to edit a member's record, CompuServe shows you each line individually and lets you make changes on each one. Remember, if you enter a on a line, it retains the existing information. Then, when you have gone through all of the lines, it again asks you whether you want to save, change, or abort the changes you've just made to the record. Deleting a Member's Record ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To delete a member from the membership file, enter the DEL (delete) command from the Membership Maintenance menu command prompt, which is shown below. You may not delete any member with a W flag in their membership record. Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice !DEL After you have entered the DEL command, CompuServe prompts you for the member's User I.D. Number. An example appears below: Delete User ID: 70277,2265 If CompuServe finds the User I.D. Number you entered, it will ask you if you are sure you want to delete the record (Y or N). If you enter Y, CompuServe will delete the record. If CompuServe doesn't find the User I.D. Number you enter at the prompt above, it will redisplay the prompt. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 41 Listing the Membership File ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To see the membership file, enter LIS (list) at the Membership Maintenance menu command prompt, shown below: Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice !LIS Once you've done so, CompuServe offers you the following options: Demo Forum List Members Menu 1 (UID) By User ID 2 (NAM) By User Name 3 (DLV) By User's Date of Last Visit 4 (AUX) If User has Auxiliary Data 5 (SFG) If User has Special Flags 6 (SMA) If User has Special Section Access 7 (SLA) If User has Special Library Access 8 (SCA) If User has Special Conference Room Access Enter Choice ! From this menu, you can choose how you wish to system to list the membership file. Enter the number or three letter command of the way you wish to list the file or press CTRL-P to abort. Purging (Deleting) Inactive Members Automatically ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In addition to being able to delete an individual's record one by one, CompuServe enables you to purge members from the membership who have not accessed the forum in a specified amount of time. By removing inactive members from the membership file, system response time will GREATLY improve. CompuServe recommends that a forum's membership file be purged once every six months. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 42 The following example demonstrates how to use the purge feature: Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice !PUR After you enter the PUR command, CompuServe displays the following prompt: Purge members that haven't visited this Forum since (MM/DD/YY): At this prompt, you specify the date that will be used to determine who will be deleted from the membership. If you enter an invalid date at the Purge prompt, CompuServe tells you so. Once you enter a valid date, CompuServe displays the following message: Purging membership... This process may take a while depending on how many members the forum has. At this point, CompuServe scans the last date of visit of every forum member. Note: Members who have been manually added to the forum's membership records, but have never visited, will not be purged. In addition, members with any special flags assigned will not be purged. Should you wish to delete these members, you must do so manually. Introducing New Sections ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When a W flagged Sysop adds new message sections to the public set, it is useful to "introduce" the new sections to the membership. The introduce function of Membership Maintenance mode adds the sections you specify to the default section set of all forum members that have their options configured to automatically allow new sections to be added to their default section set. Without introducing new sections, members will have to manually add the new sections to their own default section set. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 43 Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice !INT After you select the INT command, CompuServe displays the following message of explanation: Sections which have recently been made available for public use may be "introduced" to the Forum's membership. This involves automatically adding the section to the section selection set of each member who has "Add new sections" set. Sections which are not new, and those which are not publicly accessible, should not be introduced. Sections to introduce (separate with commas): At this prompt, enter the number(s) of the section(s) you wish to introduce. As the prompt states, separate the numbers of sections with commas. For example, to introduce sections 16 and 17, you would enter 16,17 and then a enter a . After you enter the section numbers, CompuServe asks you to confirm this introduction by displaying the following prompt: Confirm to introduce new sections 16 17 (Y or N): To introduce the new sections, select Y. To abort the process, select N. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 44 Clearing Special Message / Library / Conference Room Access ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you wish to close down a section that used to be private or change the section's use to a different private section, you will want to remove access to the section from the records of all forum members who previously had access. Rather than editing records one-by-one, choices 7-9 provide a quick and convenient way to clear special access from all records. Simply select the appropriate choice (7, 8, or 9) and you will be prompted to enter the number(s) of the section(s) you wish to clear. Enter the number(s) and special access to that section will be removed from the records of all members. Checking the Membership Count ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The 10th option on the Membership Maintenance mode menu allows you to check the number of members currently in your forum's membership. To check it, select the CNT command from the menu, an example of which is provided on the below. Demo Forum Membership Maintenance 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access Enter Choice !CNT CompuServe will then list the number of members currently on file. Adding and Removing Special Access ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ At times you may wish to grant access to private message, library, and/or conference sections to a group of people in your forum. Similarly, you may wish to remove the special access of a group of people in your forum. CompuServe provides W flagged Sysops the ability to add or remove special access by the same parameters you can use to list the membership file (e.g. by user name, by auxiliary data, by flags, etc.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 45 To assign or remove special access to a group of people, select choice 11 or 12 from the Membership Maintenance menu. You will be prompted to enter the information, just as you were when listing the membership file. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 46 CHAPTER FOUR MESSAGE BOARD MAINTENANCE (B Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ A forum's Message Board is most useful to members when it is current and topical. Among your responsibilities as a Sysop is maintaining the Message Board, which includes deleting obsolete messages, seeing that messages are posted in the appropriate sections, and making sure that the current subject for each message is still valid. While important in all forums, these tasks are essential in large forums, where the Message Board may completely turnover, or "scroll," in less than a week. Other maintenance duties involve forwarding messages, holding and unholding messages, capturing important discussions to store in the forum's libraries, and removing in- appropriate messages. All Message Board maintenance commands are available to W flagged Sysops and Assistant Sysops with a B flag in their membership record. Most of the Message Board maintenance commands are entered at the Read Action menu or CHOICES prompt, which is displayed after you read a message. However, with the exception of the DELETE command, no Sysop commands are listed on the Read Action menu, as this is the same menu that all forum members see. Most of the Sysop commands can also be entered from the main Messages menu or prompt. You must include the message number in the command when entering commands from the Messages menu or prompt. Deleting Messages ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Each forum is allocated a specific number of message slots. When all message slots are used, new messages replace the old ones. By regularly reviewing the Message Board and deleting obsolete messages, you can ensure that space is available for new messages, thus preventing messages of interest to more forum members from being lost. This process provides an additional benefit to forum members by keeping the message board easy to read. As a Sysop, you can delete any message on the board. While reviewing the Message Board, you can delete a message by first retrieving it with any READ command (fully described in the Forum section of the CompuServe Information Service Users Guide). After the message is displayed, you can enter DELETE at the Read Action menu to delete the message. This method enables you to use the full range of message retrieval commands to search for messages to delete. In addition, you can use the DELETE command at the forum Messages menu/prompt. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 47 Sysops also have another, more powerful, delete command at their disposal. Although this should be used with caution, you can delete an entire message thread using the DT or DT ALL commands. The DT command (entered at the Read Action menu or CHOICES prompt) will delete the current message and all replies. The DT ALL command (also entered at the Read Action menu or CHOICES prompt) will delete the entire message thread (current message, all replies, parent message, and all replies to the parent message). Use these commands with great care! In addition to the commands previously explained, the new version of the forum software which, at the time this manual was completed, should be in all forums, supports a new set of deletion commands. These new commands do NOT replace the above commands, they merely are a second set of deletion commands. It is your choice as to which set of commands you use. These new commands are based on the word "remove," rather than the word "delete." These new commands are REM, REM THR, and REM THR ALL. They are entered in exactly the same place and manner as the deletion commands. REM is the equivalent of the DEL command - it deletes a single message. REM THR is the equivalent of the DT command - it deletes a message and all replies to it. REM THR ALL is the equivalent of the DT ALL command - it deletes an entire message thread. Once again, the choice of which set of deletion commands to use is totally yours. NOTE TO HMI USERS: Deleting messages is one of the two things which Sysops _CAN_ do from an HMI product, such as the CompuServe Information Manager. In order to delete a message from within an HMI product, simply select the DELETE button, either with your keyboard or your mouse. The system will show you a "tree" of the message thread and ask you which messages in the thread you wish to delete. Choose the messages and the system will delete them. Forwarding Messages ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Message forwarding is useful in a variety of situations to reroute messages to different members. In instances where the members User I.D. Number has been omitted from the message address, you can add it so that the addressee will see the message when he/she next visits the forum. Sometimes, messages are addressed to "Sysop" and the Sysop feels that a forum member or other Sysop might be better able to answer the question. The forward commands also come in handy here. In some cases, the Sysop feels that a message would be better suited as a private Electronic Mail message. In this case, you can forward the message to Electronic Mail. As with the deletion of messages, the new forum software supports two sets of forwarding commands. The first set is the traditional set, and will work in any forum, no matter what version of the forum software is installed. The second set is the new set, and will only work in a forum where the new software has been installed. As with the deletion commands, the choice of which set to use is totally up to you. Both sets are explained here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 48 Traditional Forwarding Commands In the traditional command set, you have two forward commands available: FMA and FMB. The FMA command will forward the message to Electronic Mail. The FMB command will re-post it within the forum. The first instance in which you would want to forward a message is when the recipient's User I.D. Number has been omitted, or when a different person should receive the message. To re-address a message, first retrieve it with any of the various READ commands. Enter FMB. CompuServe then prompts you for the information: To: Enter the name and User I.D. Number of the new addressee. If you wish to re- send the message to the original addressee, simply enter a carriage return at this prompt. After you enter the information in the To: field, CompuServe will display the following prompt: Post as a New message? At the Post as a New Message prompt, you have two options. You can enter an N (no) to alter the current message without creating a new message. Your other option is Y (yes), which will make a copy of the current message and make the changes you specified in the To: field to the COPY, not the original message. The original will be left unaltered. Under most conditions, you will answer N at this prompt. In forums where private messages are enabled, you will also be asked whether or not to post the message private. When a message has been forwarded by a Sysop, an "[F]" appears in the "To:" line of the message header, right before the addressee's name and User I.D. Number. In the following example, a message that was originally addressed to Sysop is going to be forwarded to the attention of a forum member named Simon Davis. The original message will be altered and a new message will not be created. Demo Forum Forum Menu 1 INSTRUCTIONS 2 MESSAGES 3 LIBRARIES (Files) 4 CONFERENCING (2 participating) 5 ANNOUNCEMENTS from sysop 6 MEMBER directory 7 OPTIONS for this forum Enter Choice !2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 49 Demo Forum Messages Menu 1 SELECT (Read by section and subject) 2 READ or search messages 3 CHANGE age selection 4 COMPOSE a message Enter Choice !2 Demo Forum Read Menu Read 1 [NEW] messages 2 Message NUMBER 3 WAITING messages for you (1) Search [new] messages 4 FROM sender 5 SUBJECT 6 TO (recipient) Enter choice !3 #: 49368 S1/General Information 01-Oct-92 10:38:44 Sb: When is the Meeting? Fm: Mike Schoenbach 70006,2043 To: Sysop Hi! I was wondering if you could tell me when the next users group meeting is going to be held and where? Mike Press for next or type CHOICES !FMB To: Simon Davis Post as a New message? N Press for next or type CHOICES !REREAD #: 49368 S1/General Information 01-Oct-92 10:38:44 Sb: When is the Meeting: Fm: Mike Schoenbach 70006,2043 To: [F] Simon Davis 72323,106 Hi! I was wondering if you could tell me when the next users group meeting is going to be held and where? Press for next or type CHOICES ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 50 The second instance in which you would want to forward a message is when the message would be better suited as an Electronic Mail message or when the message is about to scroll off of the board and you want to send it to the recipient's mailbox so that they don't miss it. Forwarding to Electronic Mail is achieved through the use of the FMA command. An example of this is provided below. #: 49370 S2/Business 01-Oct-92 10:38:50 Sb: #49360-Closing the Deal! Fm: Donna Sheppard 70425,3411 To: Carol Allen 71233,451 I know you're on vacation an won't see this message for at least two weeks, but please contact me as soon as possible so that we can finalize the contracts. -Donna- Press for next or type CHOICES !FMA To User ID ( for same): Message Mailed to 71233,451 The next time that Carol Allen logs on, she will have the following message waiting in her Electronic Mail mailbox: Date: 02-Oct-92 From: Sysop John A. Doe [70243,703] Subj: Demo Forum, msg # 49370 The following is a mailed copy of a message in Demo Forum: #: 49370 S2/Business 01-Oct-92 10:38:50 Sb: #49360-Closing the Deal! Fm: Donna Sheppard 70425,3411 To: Carol Allen 71233,451 I know you're on vacation an won't see this message for at least two weeks, but please contact me as soon as possible so that we can finalize the contracts. -Donna- New Forwarding Commands The new forum software also supports three new commands for forwarding messages. The first instance in which you would want to forward a message is when the recipient's User I.D. Number has been omitted or when another person should receive the message. This forwarding process is achieved using the FOR BOA command. An example of how this would work is on the following page.------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------- Sysop Manual Page 51 Press for next or type CHOICES !FOR BOA To: 70243,703 Post as (P)rivate message? n Message forwarded to [70243,703] The second instance in which you would want to forward a message is when the message would be better suited as a private Electronic Mail message or when the message is about to scroll off of the board and you wish to place it in the recipient's mailbox so that they don't miss it. This forwarding process is achieved using the FOR MAI command, which is entered in EXACTLY the same manner as the FOR BOA command. The final instance in which you would want to forward a message is when the message is about to scroll off of the board and you wish to re-post it is a new message so that it gets a second "trip" through the board. This process is achieved using the FOR BOA NEW command. When using this command, you are also given the option of changing the subject and/or section of a message. The following is an example of how this process works: Press for next or type CHOICES !FOR BOA NEW To: 70243,703 Post as (P)rivate message? n New Subject: Important notice New Section # : 17 Message #27492 posted Changing Subject and/or Section ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Occasionally, the subject of a message needs to be changed. If the current subject doesn't reflect the actual content of the message or your feel that the current subject is not descriptive, it should be changed. When subject lines accurately reflect message contents, forum members can use the search and scan functions to review message headers and be confident that messages they decide to read relate to the subject specified. You can also correct misspellings and similar errors. In addition, if a message is posted in an inappropriate section, you can move the message and any replies to the appropriate section. To change the subject or section of a message (and any replies to that message), retrieve the parent (root) message with any READ command and enter CHA (change) at the CHOICES prompt or the Read Action menu. CompuServe then displays the following prompt: New Section # : At this prompt you can enter a to leave the message and all of its replies in the current section, or you can specify a new section number for the thread. After entering your choice, CompuServe displays the following prompt: New Subject: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 52 Here you should enter the new subject information for the message or enter a to leave the current subject intact. Subjects may be no longer than 24 characters. Also, please not that a semicolon (;) is not a valid character in message subjects. CompuServe then displays a list of messages that were effected by the change: Sections/Subjects changed in #'s: 1 message was moved The subject and/or section in any replies to the current message are also automatically changed when using the CHANGE command. The following is an example of using the CHANGE command: #: 729 S8/Examples 28-Sep-92 15:26:58 Sb: Test Message Fm: Product Manager 70006,256 To: Sysop John A. Doe 70243,703 This is an example of changing a subject. Press for next or type CHOICES !CHA New section # :3 New subject: Subject Changed Section/Subject changed in #'s: 3 messages were moved Press for next or type CHOICES ! In addition to the CHA command, the new forum software supports two new commands for changing the subject and/or section of a message. These new commands perform the same functions as the CHA command, but the operate a bit differently, in that the CHA command offers you the ability to change the section AND subject of a message thread, while each of these new commands changes only one of those things. The new commands are MOD SEC (for Modify Section) and MOD SUB (for Modify Subject). These commands are entered at the CHOICES prompt or Read Action menu, just as the CHA command is. The prompts will be exactly the same as with the CHA command. However, the MOD SEC command will ONLY prompt you for a new section and the MOD SUB will ONLY prompt you for a new subject. Holding Messages ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It is possible to keep a message or thread from scrolling (being automatically deleted) from your Message Board. This is accomplished by placing the messages (or threads) on "hold." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 53 Once a message is placed on hold, it will not be subject to the scroll until you take the message off holding status. When you place a message on Hold, you have three options. Each should be entered at the Read Action prompt. The commands you can enter are HOL ON, HOL THR ON, and HOL ALL ON. The HOL ON command will Hold the current message and only the current message. The HOL THR ON command will Hold the current message and all replies to the current message. The HOL ALL ON command will place the entire thread on Hold, all the way back to the root message. When retrieving a message on hold, an (H) will show in the message header along side the message number to represent the status of the message as being on (H)old. Please note that the (H) will be displayed only to Sysops. Normal forum members see nothing but the usual message number. Each forum has a limited number of message slots which can be used to hold messages. The number of slots a forum has is determined by the Primary Sysop however any Sysop can check how many holding slots are currently in use as well as the maximum number of holding slots by issuing the HOLD SIZE command from the CHOICES prompt. To remove a message or thread from Hold, simply retrieve the message and issue the same command as before, replacing the word ON with the word OFF (e.g. HOL OFF, HOL THR OFF, HOL ALL OFF). The HOL OFF command removes the current message from Hold. the HOL THR OFF command removes the message and all replies from Hold. The HOL ALL OFF command removes the entire thread from Hold. An example of the Hold commands appears on the following page. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 54 #: 44061 S10/General Information 08-Apr-92 17:06:58 Sb: New Responsibilities! Fm: Product Manager 70006,256 To: All Recently, two of our veteran Sysops have taken on some additional responsibility within Forum Support. Harry Knutowski, 76703,4214, has been given the added powers to assist with library maintenance. Harry will be able to maintain merges when we are not available. Thanks, Harry! Mike Schoenbach, 76703,4363, has taken on some additional training responsibilities. He will be assisting all new forums with development and special assistance to new Sysops. This responsibility was once solely the responsibility of Mark Riaboy, but due to some other priorities (The Health Forum), Mark has decided to relinquish some of his Forum Support duties. Many of you know Mike from his Atari Assistant Sysop status and also for taking the initiative to WizSys the Practice Forum! He seems to do an outstanding job with whatever he undertakes. (Just be sure to take time out and smell the roses, Mike!!) Thanks to both of you for stepping forward and accepting these new challenges! We couldn't do it without you - and the others like you! Give yourselves a pat on the back! Donna Read Action !HOLD ON Messages Held: 44061 Read Action !HOLD SIZE Message Holding slots are 10% full (13). There are 112 Holding slots available. Read Action !RER #: 44061 S10/General Information 08-Apr-92 17:06:58 Sb: New Responsibilities! Fm: Product Manager 70006,256 To: All Recently, two of our veteran Sysops have taken on some additional responsibility within Forum Support. Harry Knutowski, 76703,4214, has been given the added powers to assist with library maintenance. Harry will be able to maintain merges when we are not available. Thanks, Harry! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 55 Mike Schoenbach, 76703,4363, has taken on some additional training responsibilities. He will be assisting all new forums with development and special assistance to new Sysops. This responsibility was once solely the responsibility of Mark Riaboy, but due to some other priorities (The Health Forum), Mark has decided to relinquish some of his Forum Support duties. Many of you know Mike from his Atari Assistant Sysop status and also for taking the initiative to WizSys the Practice Forum! He seems to do an outstanding job with whatever he undertakes. (Just be sure to take time out and smell the roses, Mike!!) Thanks to both of you for stepping forward and accepting these new challenges! We couldn't do it without you - and the others like you! Give yourselves a pat on the back! Donna Read Action !HOLD OFF Messages Unheld: 44061 Read Action !HOLD SIZE Message Holding slots are 9% full (12). There are 113 Holding slots available. You can easily locate messages that have (H)olding status by specifying HOLD as your reading age criteria (i.e. READ HOLD, BROWSE HOLD, SCAN HOLD, etc.). Message Section Descriptions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In addition to checking the messages daily, Sysops assigned to Message Board maintenance also have the responsibility to see to it that each message section's description file is up to date and accurately reflects the topics being discussed in that section. The following example demonstrates how to work with the message section description files. The example begins from the main SO menu/prompt. Demo Forum SO Functions 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 2 (MAI) Maintenance 3 (STA) Statistics Enter Choice !2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 56 Demo Forum Maintenance 1 (ANN) Announcements 2 (MEM) Membership 3 (MES) Messages 4 (LIB) Library 5 (CON) Conference Enter Choice !3 Demo Forum MES Maintenance 1 (DES) Description Files Enter Choice !1 Demo Forum Description Files 1 (EDI) Edit Description 2 (UPL) Upload Description 3 (DOW) Download Description 4 (TYP) Type Description Enter Choice ! The maintenance of the message section description files is performed in the same way in which the forum's announcements are maintained. All files should be in the same format and use the same formatting commands as the announcement files. The same length restrictions apply. Please refer to Chapter 2, "Announcements," for information on these editing functions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 57 CHAPTER FIVE LIBRARY MAINTENANCE (D Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ One of the main responsibilities of Sysops is to manage the forum's libraries. Sysops who have a W or D flag in their membership record can use special commands to add, edit, and delete any library file as well as perform other tasks necessary to keep the forum's libraries current and useful to forum members. Whenever you enter the forum, CompuServe will notify you of any libraries requiring attention. This usually means that a member has either upload a new file or requested that one of his/her uploaded files be removed. This reminder of libraries requiring attention will also appear when you select Library from the Forum Maintenance menu. Overview of Library Management ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ While in the Library Maintenance Mode of SO, you can create and edit library description files and view the status of library merges. The other two areas of Library Maintenance Mode are Preview and Library Modes. Preview Mode is where you, as a Sysop, can view, download, or manipulate recently uploaded files before they are made available to forum members. Library Mode is the main library area, accessed through the Sysop Maintenance Mode (SO mode), rather than through the Forum menu, giving you additional Sysop commands to use. Library Mode ~~~~~~~~~~~~ When you use the LIB command to enter the library from any command prompt, you are in Library Mode and can access library files that are available to regular forum members. Like other forum members, you can also upload files and mark your old files for removal. However, in this mode, you, as a Sysop, have additional privileges, including uploading files under another member's User I.D. Number; changing the keywords, description, and/or title of any file; and submitting any file or deleting any file in the library. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 58 Preview Mode ~~~~~~~~~~~~ When forum members upload new files to a library or request that their old files be deleted, these changes are not made immediately. Instead, each request to add, change, or delete a file from the library creates a transaction in a special "preview" area, which can be accessed by entering the PRE command. This places you, as a Sysop, into the Preview Mode. The purpose of Preview Mode is to enable you to review these transactions and make any necessary changes before allowing forum members to access them. In this mode, you have several options available to manage the Preview transactions. For example, you can add newly uploaded files to the library, delete existing library files, cancel transactions, edit keywords, change file names, and more. To return to Library Mode from Preview Mode, you can enter the LIB command. The remainder of this chapter describes the Sysop library management capabilities and the commands used to perform them. For your convenience in maintaining the libraries, most of the commands are presented on menus where you can perform the desired function by simply selecting the appropriate choice number. As always, however, you can switch to command mode when you feel comfortable with the commands. Using the LIB Command ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To access Library Maintenance Mode, select Choice 2 from the Forum SO Functions menu or enter the command MAI. See the example below: Demo Forum SO Functions 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 2 (MAI) Maintenance 3 (STA) Statistics Enter Choice !2 Demo Forum Maintenance 1 (ANN) Announcements 2 (MEM) Membership 3 (MES) Messages 4 (LIB) Library 5 (CON) Conference Enter Choice !4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 59 After you select Choice 4, CompuServe displays a message indicating which libraries require attention, and the Library Maintenance Mode menu. Here is an example of how this might look: The Following Libraries Need Attention: 0 1 Press ! Demo Forum Library Maintenance 1 (PRE) Preview Library 2 (DES) Description Files 3 (ALL) Allocate Blocks 4 (BAT) Batch Status 5 (MEL) Merge Logs 6 (REB) Rebuild Logs Enter Choice ! Choice 1 (PRE) allows you to enter the library preview areas that need attention. Choice 2 (DES) allows you to view, edit, upload, or download the various library description files. Choice 3 (ALL) allows you to view or modify each individual library's disk storage allocation, if the forum uses manual allocation. If the forum uses Dynamic Allocation (explained later in this chapter), this choice's only function is to create "read-only" libraries. Choice 4 (BAT) allows you to view the status of any successful, failed, and/ or rebuild merges for each transaction. Choice 5 (MEL) allows you to view the complete merge logs for the previous eight merges. Choice 6 (REB) allows you to view rebuild logs. Operating in Preview Mode ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In Preview Mode, you can perform the tasks required to update the library database itself. These include: * Reviewing the transactions in the preview file. The preview file identifies recently uploaded files and requests to delete files, change files, move files, etc. * Adding and/or deleting files listed in the preview file. Before adding a file to the libraries, you can change its name, description, and keywords. You can also move the file to another library. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 60 * Once files have been uploaded they are kept in a Preview area. If you are in preview and issue and DIRectory command, all the transactions that will affect that library will be listed. To perform any of these tasks, first use the PREVIEW command or select the appropriate menu choice from the Library Maintenance menu. CompuServe will display a menu of libraries that require attention. These are noted by asterisks (*) in brackets. Select the library you wish to preview by selecting the appropriate library number from the Preview Menu menu. TIME SAVING TIP: Once you become familiar with library commands and no longer need menus, you can skip past the Preview Menu menu by entering the PREVIEW command followed by the library number you wish to preview (i.e. PREVIEW 1). An example of the Preview Menu follows. Demo Forum Preview Menu Libraries Needing Attention: [ ] 0 Sysops Only [*] 1 Campaign 1992 [ ] 2 Computers / CIS [ ] 3 Ask the Sysops [ ] 4 Hot Topics [ ] 5 Script/Nav Pgms [ ] 6 Teacher Connect [ ] 7 Comm Utilities [ ] 8 Help Files/Info [ ] 9 Read Only #1 [ ] 10 General Interest Enter Choice !1 After you select the library you wish to preview, a menu of your choices is displayed. It is similar to the menu which is displayed when members access the normal library area, with three exceptions, which will be detailed below, following an example of the menu: Campaign 1992 (pre) 1 BROWSE thru files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice ! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 61 Choice 3 (UPLOAD a file) does not appear on this menu because you cannot upload a file in the Preview Mode. Choice 7 (MERGE transactions) is only available in the Preview Mode and is not displayed to normal members or Sysops in normal Library Mode. Choice 6 (PREVIEW library) also does not appear in the normal Library Mode menu. Examining the Preview Area ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To view transactions in the Preview Area, use the BRO command (Choice 1) at the menu shown above. When you enter BRO at the menu/prompt, CompuServe displays the following information for each file in that library's preview area: User I.D. Number of the submitter Name of file File Type (ASCII, Binary, GIF, etc.) Date of submission Size of file in characters Number of accesses (count) Date of last access Keywords Description of the file's contents Title of the file Status (NEW, RELEASED, CANCELED, FAILED) Type (UPLOAD, ERASE, COPY, MOVE, CHANGE, REPLACE) The following is an example of using the BRO command to review entries in the preview area. In this example, the first entry in the preview area for Library 1 (LIB 1) is displayed. Demo Forum Library 1 Campaign 1992 (pre) 1 BROWSE thru files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW area 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 62 [70006,256] Lib: 1 *New Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES ! Working with Library Files ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If you want to act on the current entry, type CHO at the ! prompt to display the Library Disposition menu. Data Library Disposition 1 READ this file 2 DOWNLOAD this file 3 DESCRIPTION 4 RETURN to the library menu 5 CANCEL this transaction 6 MODIFY file attributes 7 COPY to another library 8 MOVE to another library 9 RELEASE transaction to MERge Enter Choice ! You can use any of the commands listed on the menu or press to move on to the next preview file entry. Descriptions of the commands that appear on the menu are listed below. PLEASE NOTE: You do NOT have to type CHO and display this menu to use the commands on the menu. If you know which command you wish to use, you may simply type it at the CHOICES ! prompt. READ enables you to read the contents of the current file if it is in ASCII format. If the file is not in ASCII format, you will receive a warning that the file might not be readable and that control characters might be displayed. DOWNLOAD allows you to download the file using one of CompuServe's error- checking protocols. All binary files need to be downloaded and checked for viruses. DESCRIPTION allows you to view the title, keywords, and description of the file. This is useful if you operate with your Library Options set to short mode. RETURN returns you to the main Library Menu in Preview Mode. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 63 CANCEL cancels the action pending with that file. For example, if the current entry is a newly uploaded file it will not be added when a merge is scheduled. If the entry is a pending erasure, for example, it will not be erased. MODIFY can be used in either the Preview Mode or the Library Mode. This option allows you to change the filename, title, description, keywords, file type, access count, and User I.D. Number of the uploader. COPY makes a copy of the current file and places the copy in another library, which you specify. The result is two identical files - one in the original location and another in the library to which it was copied. (You cannot COPY a file in Preview Mode, you must MOVE it.) MOVE copies a file to another library and automatically removes the file from its original location. RELEASE is required for transactions in the preview area to be processed by a MERGE. Any file or transaction that is not released will be ignored by the merge. The library software does not merge specific libraries, but specific files. Any files that are RELeased AFTER a merge has been scheduled but before the merge actually starts running WILL be included in the merge. When you have reviewed all the entries in the preview area and have made any desired changes, you can incorporate these changes into the library using the MERGE command. The MERGE command appears on the Library Menu in Preview Mode, and is described in the following section. Merging a Library ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The MERGE command causes all transactions that were released to be incorporated into the public library. The new files marked for addition to the library are added and those marked for erasure are removed: There are two formats for issuing the MERGE command. These are: MER and MER # # equals the number of hours in the future you want the library to merge. If no number is specified after the MERGE command (as in the first format), the system will schedule the merge as follows: East Coast (Standard Time): MERGE entered between 4 pm and 2 am - merge starts at 2 am MERGE entered between 2 am and 4 pm - merge starts immediately West Coast (Standard Time): MERGE entered between 1 pm and 11 pm - merge starts at 11 pm MERGE entered between 11 pm and 1 pm - merge starts immediately--------- -------------------------------------------------------------------- Sysop Manual Page 64 (Note: For Daylight Savings Time, add one hour to the times specified.) If you specify a number after the MERGE command (e.g. MER 3), CompuServe will schedule the merge in the specified number of hours (e.g. in 3 hours). If you specify a 0 (e.g. MER 0), CompuServe will begin the MERGE immediately. MERGE 0 should NOT be used during prime time hours, when the system is most busy. Prime time hours are between 4:00 pm and 2:00 am EST. The only exception to this is when the merge is extremely important (such as removing an offensive file), in which case you may deem a merge immediately necessary. Changing a File ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A member has the option to change a file they uploaded using the CHA command. Sysops may not use this command to modify members' files. You must use the MODIFY command, which is discussed later in this chapter. Moving Files ~~~~~~~~~~~~ If a member uploads a file to the wrong library, the Sysop has the ability to move the file to the correct library. Once you move the file to the new library, you will need to go to the new library to perform any changes to the uploaded file. Once these changes have been made, the file is ready to be released. The following example will demonstrate moving a file from Library 8 to Library 2. Demo Forum Library 8 Help Files / Info (pre) 1 BROWSE thru files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !1 [70006,256] Lib: 1 *New Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES !CHO ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 65 Data Library Disposition 1 READ this file 2 DOWNLOAD this file 3 DESCRIPTION 4 RETURN to the library menu 5 CANCEL this transaction 6 MODIFY file attributes 7 COPY to another library 8 MOVE to another library 9 RELEASE transaction to MERge Enter Choice !8 Destination Library (0-10) ?2 Transaction Moved to Lib 2 At this point, you should ensure that the file was properly moved, you should enter the preview area for Library 2. Once you do a directory or browse in that library, it should show that the file was moved. An example of this follows. Demo Forum Library 8 Help Files / Info (pre) 1 BROWSE thru files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !LIB 2 No Forum merge scheduled The last Lib 2 merge was 29-Sep-92 3:01:00 by [70243,703] Demo Forum Library 2 Computers / CIS (pre) 1 BROWSE thru files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !DIR ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 66 [70006,256] Lib: 1 *New Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Total of 1 transaction(s) Press ! Demo Forum Library 2 Computers / CIS (pre) 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 MERGE library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !1 [70006,256] Lib: 1 *New Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES !CHO Data Library Disposition 1 READ this file 2 DOWNLOAD this file 3 DESCRIPTION 4 RETURN to the library menu 5 CANCEL this transaction 6 MODIFY file attributes 7 COPY to another library 8 MOVE to another library 9 RELEASE transaction to MERge Enter Choice !9 Transaction Released for Merging **NOTE: You do not need to call up this menu each time you wish to perform a function. For example, to release a transaction, you could simply type REL at the CHOICES prompt. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 67 Listing Pending Transactions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Once a transaction has been released for merging, you will not find it in either the Preview area or the Library area. In order to display a list of the pending transaction(s), you must do the following: Demo Forum Library 2 Computers / CIS (pre) 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 MERGE library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !dir pen lib:all [70006,256] Lib: 1 *Released Erase* OLDCIS.ZIP/Bin Bytes: 6366, Count: 2, 12-Aug-91 Last: 07-Sep-91 [73567,2047] Lib: 8 *Released Erase* SALTNG.ZIP/Bin Bytes: 60222, Count: 143, 11-Sep-89 Last: 20-Jan-91 [71041,2200] Lib 7 *Released Erase* 2400VP.ASP/Asc Bytes: 15442, Count: 34, 22-Jul-92 Last: 14-Aug-92 [70006,101] Lib: 2 *Released Upload (04:17:52 PM EDT)* TEST.TXT/Asc Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Total of 4 transaction(s) Press ! Modifying Files ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You can change certain features of a file by using the MODIFY (MOD) command. The MODIFY option works in both Library Mode and Preview Mode, though it does not appear on the end user menu. You are limited to one transaction per file. (You can perform more than one modification to a file but you cannot, for example, request that a file be MOVed and DELeted at the same time.) When you enter the MODify command, you are prompted for the field to modify. After selecting your choice from the field to modify menu you are asked for the name of the file you wish to modify. As shown in the following examples, you are then ready to make the desired changes. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 68 *** NOTE: You may also enter the MOD command at the CHOICES prompt which follows the display of a file in Library or Preview Mode. Demo Forum Library 2 Comm Utilities 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 UPLOAD a file 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library Enter Choice !MOD File name: TRAIN.TXT Attribute to Change: 1 - (FIL) File Name 2 - (TYP) Type 3 - (TTL) Title 4 - (KEY) Keywords 5 - (DES) Description 6 - (UID) User ID 7 - (COM) Comments 8 - (COU) Access Count Enter Choice(s): 1,3 <--You can change more than one attribute at a time. Old File Name: TRAIN.TXT New File Name: TRAIN.TST Old Title: Testing New Title: This is a Training File Press ! Demo Forum Library 2 Comm Utilities (pre) 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 69 [70006,101] Lib: 2 *New Change (Fm: TRAIN.TXT)* TRAIN.TST/Asc Bytes: 1260, Count: 7, 02-Jul-92 Last:15-Jul-92 Total of 1 transaction(s) NOTE: Choice 8, "Access Count," on the MODify menu is only available to Sysops with a W flag in their membership record. Cancelling Transactions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Cancelling a transaction gives you the ability to prevent a transaction from ever being processed. For example, if a member has uploaded a file, cancelling that transaction would delete the file and prevent it from being merged into the public libraries. To cancel a transaction, you must first enter the Preview area where the transaction resides. The following example will demonstrate the cancel process. (Note that any transaction can be cancelled, not just new uploads.) Demo Forum Library 2 Computers / CIS (pre) 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !1 [70006,256] Lib: 1 *New Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES !CHO ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 70 Data Library Disposition 1 READ this file 2 DOWNLOAD this file 3 DESCRIPTION 4 RETURN to the library menu 5 CANCEL this transaction 6 MODIFY file attributes 7 COPY to another library 8 MOVE to another library 9 RELEASE transaction to MERge Enter Choice !5 The system will then prompt you to confirm the cancellation and will delete the transaction. Cancelling a Released Transaction ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sometimes, a transaction may be released by mistake. Until the transaction has actually been processed by a merge, you can unrelease it and return it to the library's Preview area. To do so, you must first enter the Preview area of the library in which the released transaction resides. You must then enter the command BRO PEN (browse pending), which will list all currently released transactions. At the CHOICES prompt, enter the command UNR (for unrelease) and the transaction will be returned to the library's Preview area. An example of this follows. Demo Forum Library 2 Computers / CIS (pre) 1 BROWSE files 2 DIRECTORY of files 3 n/a 4 DOWNLOAD a file 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library 7 MERGE transactions Enter Choice !BRO PEN [70006,256] Lib: 1 *Released Upload* TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES !UNR ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 71 Transaction Un-Released The transaction would then be back in the Preview area for the library where you could work with it as usual. Operating in Library Mode ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In Library Mode, you can perform the same functions as normal forum members, such as submitting new files, marking files for removal from the library, downloading files, etc. However, as a Sysop, you have the following extra capabilities: * In addition to uploading your own files to the libraries, you can upload under another member's User I.D. Number. This feature will come in handy when you must alter a file on your computer and re- upload it. * You can mark several files for removal with one command, the PUR command. This command provides a convenient way of removing old and outdated files from the library without having to erase each one individually. * As described in the previous section, Modifying Files, you can change a file's features with a simple command, the MOD command. Adding New Files to the Libraries ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To add a file you have created to the libraries, enter the UPLOAD command, as any forum member would do. The CompuServe Information Service Users' Guide provides full details on uploading files. Uploading Files Under Another Member's I.D. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As a Sysop, you have the power to upload a file under another forum member's User I.D. Number. To do this, you must specify the member's User I.D. Number in square brackets next to the filename. Here is how you would issue the command: UPLOAD MYFILE.TXT[70243,703] Deleting Files from the Libraries ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As a Sysop, you have the power to delete any file from the forum's libraries. To delete a file that has already been MERged and is in live service, you must enter the library using the BROwse command. This is done in Library Mode and NOT in Preview Mode. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 72 When you enter the BROwse command, it will display, one-by-one, information on all of the files in the specified library, just as it does in Preview Mode. For each file, the BROwse command will display the following information: User I.D. Number of Uploader Name of File Date of Submission Size of File in Characters Number of Accesses Date of Last Access Keywords Description of File's Contents After this information is displayed, CompuServe prompts you to enter a for the next file or type CHOICES, to display the Disposition menu. You can then either enter the DEL command or display the Disposition Menu and select the Delete option from that menu. *** NOTE: We are NOT in Preview Mode at this point. We are in Library Mode! Here is an example of the deletion process: Demo Forum Library 1 Campaign 1992 1 BROWSE Files 2 DIRECTORY of Files 3 UPLOAD a File (FREE) 4 DOWNLOAD a File to your Computer 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library Enter Choice !1 Enter libraries (e.g. 1,2,3 or ALL) or for current library: Enter keywords (e.g. modem) or for all: Oldest files in days or for all: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 73 [70006,256] Lib: 1 TEST.TXT/Bin Bytes: 1260, Count: 0, 25-Jul-92 Last:**Never** Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Please Erase. Do not merge to live service! Press for next or type CHOICES !CHO Demo Forum Library Disposition 1 READ this file 2 DOWNLOAD this file 3 DESCRIPTION 4 RETURN to the library menu 5 ERASE this file 6 MODIFY file attributes 7 COPY to another library 8 MOVE to another library Enter Choice !5 Are you sure (Y or N)? y File Now Scheduled for Erasing... Deleting a file from the libraries will create a new transaction in the Preview Area which you or another Sysop must release and merge. Purging the Library of Outdated Files ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In many cases, files which are uploaded to your library will become outdated or lose their popularity after a time. Outdated or infrequently accessed files can tie up valuable library space, which could be used for more current and popular files. As a Sysop, you have a convenient command at your disposal which allows you to delete a group of outdated files at once, without going through each and every file in your libraries. The command is the PURGE command. This command is available from the Library Menu in Library Mode, though it does not appear on the menu. At the Library Menu or prompt, enter the command in the following format: PUR xxx -OR- PUR xxx LIST xxx is the number of days since the file was last accessed. For example, to purge the library of all files which have not been accessed in 180 days, you would type PUR 180 or PUR 180 LIST. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 74 Entering the purge command will have the library search for all files that have not been accessed in the specified amount of time. All files matching the search criteria will then be displayed one-by-one. If you used the PUR xxx command, they will be displayed in the "browsing" format, similar to that used in Preview Mode. If you use the PUR xxx LIST command, they will be displayed in the shorter, "directory" format. When you enter the PURge command, the default is to search only the files in the currently selected library. If you wish to PURge all of the forum's libraries, you should add the words LIB:ALL to the end of the PURge command, so that it would be entered in this way: PUR xxx LIB:ALL -OR- PUR xxx LIST LIB:ALL The following is an example of how a PURge would work: Demo Forum Library 1 Campaign 1992 1 BROWSE Files 2 DIRECTORY of Files 3 UPLOAD a File (FREE) 4 DOWNLOAD a file to your Computer 5 LIBRARIES 6 PREVIEW library Enter Choice !PUR 180 [70006,256] Lib: 1 OLD.TXT/Asc Bytes: 1260, Count: 26, 09-Jan-91 Last:24-Jan-92 Title: A Test File Keywords: TEST Test file. Erase this file (Y/N/A)? Y *** Erased *** CompuServe recommends that files that have not been accessed in the past six months (180 days) be purged from your forum's libraries, though your Primary Sysop may set his/her own policy on purging. You should always contact your Primary Sysop and gain permission before beginning a library purge. Batch Merging Chart ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Batch Merging Chart is a chart which displays a list of all libraries, the date each was last MERged, who ordered the MERge, and what the status of the MERge is (successful, failed, etc.) The Batch Merging Chart will also display the time of the next scheduled MERge, if one is scheduled.------ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Sysop Manual Page 75 Here is an example of how the Batch Merging Chart is displayed and how it will appear: Demo Forum Library Maintenance 1 (PRE) Preview Library 2 (DES) Description Files 3 (ALL) Allocate Blocks 4 (BAT) Batch Status 5 (MEL) Merge Logs 6 (REB) Rebuild Logs Enter Choice !4 Lib Last Merge Who Status --- --------------- ------------ ---------- 0 03-Oct-92 06:13 [70243,703] Successful 1 30-Sep-92 15:45 [70277,2502] Successful 2 01-Dec-92 13:32 [70006,256] Successful 3 01-Dec-92 13:32 [70006,256] Successful 4 01-Dec-92 13:32 [70006,256] Successful 5 15-Nov-92 01:15 [76703,2033] Successful 6 07-Sep-92 02:59 [76703,2033] Successful 7 22-May-91 07:03 [70243,703] Successful 8 23-May-92 09:55 [70243,703] Successful 9 01-Dec-92 13:32 [70006,256] Successful 10 15-Dec-92 00:12 [70243,703] Successful No Merge Currently Scheduled Last Merge was 15-Dec-92 00:12 by [70243,703] Press ! The first column of the chart contains a listing of all libraries that exist in the forum. The second column contains the date and time of the last merge which affected that library. The third column lists the User I.D. Number who ordered the merge specified in the second column. The fourth column lists the status of the merge. Finally, at the bottom of the chart, the date and time of the next scheduled merge, if any, is listed and the date and time of the last merge are listed along with the User I.D. Number of the person who ordered that merge. When a merge fails, you should contact Product Support (discussed in Chapter 1) and provide them with a copy of the Merge Log for the failed merge. More information on Merge Logs is provided n the next section of this chapter. Merge Logs ~~~~~~~~~~ The Merge Log allows you to view the "log file" (capture) of the actual merge process. The system captures this for you in case of a failed merge because the Merge Log will normally contain the needed information to determine what went wrong. The Merge Log also contains some valuable statistical information. You can view the Merge Logs of the most recent eight merges.----------------------------------------------------------------- ------------ Sysop Manual Page 76 The Merge Logs are reached from the Library Maintenance Menu by typing MEL or selecting Choice 5. The Merge Logs are extremely self-explanatory and will, therefore, not be shown in detail here. The Merge Logs will first list all transactions which were processed in the merge. Then, a listing of the total number of transactions will be presented. Following that, the number of accesses since the last merge will be displayed. And finally, the system will list each library affected by the merge and present you with some statistics on it. Block Allocation ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As explained earlier in this chapter, each forum is allocated a specific number of blocks for its libraries. The number of blocks in a library determines how many files that library can hold. One block is equal to approximately 512 characters. Each of your forum's libraries must have blocks available in order for members to upload files. There are two methods by which blocks can be allocated to your forum's libraries. The first method, and the method which most forums now use, is "Dynamic Allocation." When Dynamic Allocation is used, the process of allocating blocks is handled automatically. The second method is called "Manual Allocation." When Manual Allocation is used, the Sysops of the forum are responsible for seeing to it that enough blocks are assigned to each library. This method is discouraged, due to the additional maintenance required. The method used in your forum is determined by the Primary Sysop. As a Sysop, you have the ability to view the allocations for each of your forum's libraries. This is done by viewing the forum's Allocation Table. The first column of the table lists the library number. The second lists the number of blocks allocated to that library. The third column informs you how many blocks are actually being USED in that library. The final column lists the number of blocks used by pending transactions in Preview Mode. You can select the Allocation Table from the Library Maintenance menu (or the main SO menu), by typing ALL. This will bring up a table with the following headings: Current Status of the Libraries: Lib *Alloc In Use (pre) === ====== ====== ===== If Dynamic Allocation is being used in your forum, the asterisks (*) will appear before the word "Alloc." Read-Only Libraries ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ There is one allocation task which can be performed in either Dynamic Allocation or Manual Allocation. That is creating "Read-Only" libraries. Read-Only libraries are libraries which members may NOT upload files to. Only forum Sysops may upload files to a Read-Only library. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 77 The creation of a Read-Only library is accomplished by allocating zero (0) blocks to that library. To do so, call up the Allocation Table by typing ALL, as described in the previous section. The table explained in the previous section will then be displayed. At the bottom of the table, the following prompt will appear: Enter Library number to change (CR when done): At this point, you should enter the number of the library which you wish to make Read-Only. When you are prompted to enter the number of blocks you wish to allocate, type 0 and . This will make the library Read-Only. If you ever wish to remove the Read-Only status, simply allocate any number of blocks, other than zero, to the library. If Dynamic Allocation is being used, it will begin working again. If Manual Allocation is being used, you will be ready to begin allocating blocks again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 78 CHAPTER SIX CONFERENCING (C Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The conference area of a forum allows members to communicate with each other in "real time." Members gather from all over the world in a forum's conference area to talk about a variety of subjects. However, unlike a phone conversation, there is no limit to the number of people who can participate in an open conference discussion. The conversation in a forum conference is carried on simply by typing the text you wish to transmit and entering a when you are finished. The text you type will appear on the screens of all members participating in the conference. Likewise, the text that other members type will appear on your screen. The conference area of a forum is divided into "rooms," which are setup by the forum's Primary Sysop. A forum's conference area can support up to 18 conference rooms. Only users in the same electronic conference room can communicate directly with each other. Conferencing is a vital part of any forum and following a few important guidelines will keep conferences of any size running smoothly. When only a few people are involved in an informal conference, there is usually no need for special rules, or "conference protocol." However, when a formal conference is announced in advance, there may be many participants and rules of order must be established. This chapter includes guidelines to assist you in organizing and conducting conferences, an explanation of capturing the conference proceedings to your forum's libraries, and an explanation of the special Sysop conference commands available. Topics for Formal Conferences ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Conferences don't have to be only for important occasions. The following are some reasons that forums use to hold conferences: * Find a celebrity or well-known personality who can be a guest at a conference. You may find such people already on CompuServe, or you may recruit a non-CompuServe member to come in for a special guest appearance. * Weekly conferences may be scheduled around a common topic. For example, a forum might hold a weekly conference for trouble- shooting or to discuss current events. It is the job of Sysops and Section Leaders to create conferences which are suited to your particular forum's audience. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 79 * A holiday or special occasion is a wonderful time for a gathering of your forum members. Naturally, not many people will want to conference on New Year's Eve, but you can schedule a conference for a convenient day or time near the holiday. For example, the CompuServe Games Forum has a haunted house on Halloween. Each room is renamed to be a room of the haunted house, with Sysops and Section Leaders in each room to describe the room and promote conversation. * A weekly conference for no reason is one of the most popular of all reasons to hold a conference. Scheduling a time for forum members to meet informally and simply chat with each other, as is done on the CB Simulator, is a wonderful way to draw your forum's members together and familiarize them with conferencing. Formal vs Informal Conferences ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Informal conferences are just friendly gatherings of members, without any rules or regulations on when they can speak. You may find five different conversations going on at the same time, as in the CB Simulator. The majority of your forums conferences will probably be informal. Sometimes, though, you may want to keep the conference under control with only one person speaking at a time. This is especially true when you have a conference featuring a person who will be answering questions or responding to comments. In those instances where you wish to keep the conference under control, it is time to hold a formal conference. Announcing a Conference ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ All scheduled conferences, whether formal or informal, should be announced in your forum's News Flash and Conference announcements. In addition, all conferences should be announced in a message or two, posted in one of your message sections. Most forums also include a file in their libraries with a complete schedule of upcoming conferences. Moderating a Formal Conference ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For a large conference to run smoothly, it is a good idea to establish and publicize the conference rules or protocol well in advance. If you expect several first-time conferencers, you may want to schedule a practice conference to demonstrate how the actual conference will work. The following page lists some suggested procedures. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 80 * Comments and/or questions should not be made spontaneously, but should be handled by the moderator. When a participant wants to speak, he/she should request a turn by transmitting a question mark (?) by itself. The moderator then adds the member to the list of waiting questions and, when it comes time for that member to speak, the moderator should send a private message to the member notifying them to go ahead. Comments should be handled in the same way, however, members wishing to comment should send an exclamation point (!) instead of a question mark. Unless time prohibits, people wishing to comment should be called on immediately, since their comments often relate to the question currently be asked or responded to. * When called on to speak, the person should transmit an asterisks (*) to indicate that they are ready to talk. They can then proceed with their question or comment. * Lines of text should generally be no longer than 70 characters. Shorter lines keep communication flowing faster which tends to make conferencing easier. * When participants have finished "speaking," they should make this fact clearly known by typing "ga" (go ahead). When participants have typed a line and have more to say, they should end the line with ellipsis (...). At the beginning of a moderated conference, you should point out certain mechanics of how the system works. For example, mention that a line of text is not transmitted until a is entered. Also mention that the name of the person "speaking" is automatically added at the beginning of each line of text transmitted. You should also mention that non-CompuServe Information Manager participants can get a complete list of available commands by typing "/HELP" (without the quotes). CIM users should press F1 for help. Most of the guidelines for a conference are matters of courtesy that are usually followed when taking to others in a group setting. Just as face-to- face communication is not effective when more than one person is speaking at the same time, an on-line conference cannot work effectively if participants attempt to communicate simultaneously. You should emphasize that participants must take turns in a conference. Common Problems ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In an ideal situation, conferences would always run smoothly and without incident. However, conferencers are human beings and you will sometimes have problems. The following are some of the more common tricks that you should be on the lookout for: * People who are claiming to be CompuServe representatives doing security checks and asking for member passwords. These claims are ALWAYS fake, as CompuServe will NEVER ask for a member's password unless the member is logging on or changing their password. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 81 * Members using handles such as SYSOP, SYSTEM, and CompuServe Maintenance. You can determine whether a message from SYSTEM is real by viewing the list of current conference participants. If the name SYSTEM appears on the list of current participants, it is a fake. Warning and/or Removing Problem Members ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As a conference moderator with a C or W access flag, you have several special commands available for dealing with problem members. You may warn members about their behavior and may kill them, which prevents them from transmitting any more text in the conference. To use these commands, you must know the problem member's job number. In order to find out a member's job number, type /UST. This will bring up a list of everyone in the forum, their name, User I.D. Number, and job number. These are the commands: /WI LWARN # - Warns a member that his/her language or behavior is in- appropriate. This is best used on a member the first time a mistake is made, such as using foul language or speaking out of turn in a conference. The person will receive the following message: *** SYSTEM - Your language and/or behavior is considered inappropriate by CompuServe. Please modify it appropriately or you will loose your ability to speak. /WI HWARN # - Warns a member that his/her handle (name) is in- appropriate. Again, this should be used on first time offenders. This should NOT be used on a member who has asked for a password. If a member asks for a password or does not immediately change their handle, YOU SHOULD IMMEDIATELY KILL THEM FROM THE CONFERENCE. *** SYSTEM - Your name is considered inappropriate by CompuServe. Please change it immediately or you will loose your ability to speak. /WI KILL # - Prevents a member from speaking in conference and removes his/her name from the /UST list. The KILL is in effect as long as any of the members in the conference at the time the command is issued are still present or until the WI NOKILL command is issued. /WI NOKILL # - Cancels the WI KILL command previously used on a member. The # in a WI NOKILL command MUST be a members User I.D. Number, as he/she will no longer have a job number. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 82 Conference Room Descriptions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In addition to moderating conferences, a Sysop or Section Leader with a W flag or C flag can maintain the conference room description files. The following demonstrates how to access the Conference Room Description Maintenance area of the Sysop Maintenance Mode. Demo Forum SO Functions 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 2 (MAI) Maintenance 3 (STA) Statistics Enter Choice !2 Demo Forum Maintenance 1 (ANN) Announcements 2 (MEM) Membership 3 (MES) Messages 4 (LIB) Library 5 (CON) Conference Enter Choice !5 Demo Forum CO Maintenance 1 (DES) Description Files Enter Choice !1 At this point, you will be in the Conference Description Maintenance area, which works in exactly the same way as Message Description Maintenance works. Please refer to that section of Chapter 4 for information on this. Introduction to The Electronic Convention Center ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Electronic Convention Center is a centralized location for holding special conferences. If you are planning a large conference and are expecting a turnout of over thirty members, or want to keep the flow of conversation more structured, you should hold the conference in the Convention Center, rather than in a forum room. There are four types of conferences that can be held in the Convention Center. They are Roudtable, Moderated, Lecture, and Invitation. A roundtable conference is the least restrictive of all conferences, permitting unrestricted conferencing throughout the duration of the conference. This is just like the conferencing available in a forum's conference rooms. A moderated conference is more formal, usually hosted by an experienced individual focusing on a specific topic of interest. There will be a moderator and a speaker, both of whom may even be the same person. After the opening statement, members may ask questions and make comments in turn. There is no open conversation in a moderated conference. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 83 PLEASE NOTE: Moderators of conferences in the Convention Center do NOT need to have a 'C' flag in your forum, or any Sysop flags for that matter. When a request for a Convention Center conference is submitted, a moderator is specified. That person has moderator capabilities in the specified conference and no others. In this way, any CompuServe member may be specified as a moderator. A lecture conference is the most restrictive type of conference. No open conversation, questions, or comments are allowed at any point during a lecture conference. Only authorized speakers may communicate in a lecture conference. All others are only allowed to watch. An invitation-only conference can be attended only if your User I.D. Number was put on a list set up by the Convention Center Manager. Any of the previously mentioned styles of conference may be invitation-only, but a person's User I.D. Number must appear on the list before they can attend the conference. Accessing the Electronic Convention Center ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Members may access the Electronic Convention Center by GOing CONVENTION. This will display the main menu. Members may enter a conference room up to 30 minutes before a conference begins. Submitting a Convention Center Conference Application ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Conference applications are submitted from the main Convention Center menu. This choice is available only to Primary Sysops and persons they designate. Sysop Flags do NOT give you access to this choice. In order to submit a Convention Center conference application, you must either be the Primary Sysop of your forum or your Primary Sysop must have contacted Product Support, who can activate this choice for you. Moderating a Convention Center Conference ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Convention Center conference moderator has the following commands available to him/her. Each of these commands must be preceded by a slash (/). When a command includes the number sign (#), you should replace the number sign with a participants job number. START Begin the Conference ENDCO End the Conference NEXT Go to the Next Question LAST q Adjust the Size of the Queue OPEN Start Open Discussion CLOSE Return to Moderating RECOGNIZE # Let a User Begin Speaking UNRECOGNIZE # End a Users Speaking Privelege EDITBULLETIN Edit the Short Bulletin (Part of the CO Application) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 84 RELINQUISH Give Control to the Alternate Moderator NOCAP Suspend Capturing of the Conference CAPTURE Resume Capturing of the Conference CSTATUS Display the Status of Capturing WIZARD KILL # Silence an Abusive User WIZARD NOKILL # Remove a User's "Gag" Restriction WIZARD HWARN # Warn User About their Name WIZARD LWARN # Warn User About their Language WIZARD VER Display the Conference Software Version Notes about the Above Commands: The bulletin referred to in the EDITBULLETIN command is an announcement which members see when viewing the description of the conference from the main Convention Center menu. This bulletin is initially set up when the application for the conference is submitted. The alternate moderator mentioned in the RELINQUISH command is also chosen in the application. The capturing referred to in the NOCAP and CAPTURE is automatically conducted by the Convention Center software. At the end of the conference, you may download it and upload it to your forum's libraries. You do NOT need to start the capturing process - it is automatically done. These commands are provided only in the event that you wish to stop the capturing. Convention Center Conference Transcripts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As stated in the previous section, conferences are automatically captured by the Convention Center. After the conference, the moderator can download the transcript and then upload it to his/her forum's libraries. The following demonstrates how this is done: Electronic Convention Center(tm) INFORMATION/RESERVATIONS 1 Instructions 2 List Conferences/Make Reservations 3 Review/Cancel Reservations 4 Conference Etiquette 5 Conference Set-Up and Commands Enter Choice !5 Electronic Convention Center(tm) CONFERENCE APPLICATIONS 1 Instructions 2 Submit a Conference Application 3 Commands for Moderating 4 Download Transcript Enter Choice !4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 85 Enter filename for your computer: If you enter a carriage return at the "Enter filename" prompt, you will then be asked to choose a protocol to use for the download. Otherwise, CompuServe B protocol will be used. Once the download has been completed, you will be prompted: Delete host file (Y or N)? Entering Y (for "Yes") at this prompt, will cause the transcript to be removed from the Electronic Convention Center. Be sure to check your disk to make sure you have a good copy of the transcript before deleting it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 86 CHAPTER EIGHT FORUM STATISTICS (W Flag Required) Introduction ~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Statistics feature of Sysop Operations is available to all Primary and Assistant Sysops with a W flag in their membership record. The Statistics feature allows you to access important information concerning you forum's Message Board, File Libraries, and membership records. This chapter will explain how to access and interpret all information available through the Statistics area of Sysop Operations. Accessing the Forum Statistics ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Sysop with a W flag can access the Statistics area by selecting choice 3 or typing STA from the main Sysop Operations menu or prompt. An example of this follows. Demo Forum SO Functions 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 2 (MAI) Maintenance 3 (STA) Statistics Enter Choice !3 CompuServe then displays the following menu: Demo Forum Statistics 1 (MES) Message Statistics 2 (LIB) Library Statistics 3 (MEM) Membership Statistics Enter Choice ! The following sections explain how to access and interpret the information available through this menu. Message Statistics ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Choice 1, "Message Statistics," allows you to view information about your forum's Message Board. These statistics include the number of messages posted in each section, the number of active threads in each section, the number of private messages posted in each section, and the current distribution of message slots. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 87 To access the Message Statistics, select choice 1 or type MES from the main Statistics menu. You will then be presented with the following menu: Demo Forum Message Statistics 1 (MES) Message Statistics 2 n/a 3 (SLT) Slot Statistics Enter Choice ! Message Statistics The Message Statistics choice on the menu above will display information on how many threads, messages, and private messages you have in each section. When you select choice 1 or type MES from the Message Statistics menu, you will be presented with a chart similar to the following: MESSAGE STATISTICS Section Message Thread Private ------- ------- ------ ------- 0 576 121 141 1 113 25 29 2 560 52 20 3 1413 251 38 4 308 58 5 5 229 25 15 ------------------------------------------- TOTAL 3199 532 248 The "Section" column displays the number of each message section in your forum. The "Message" column displays the total number of messages in each section of your forum. The "Thread" column displays the total number of threads in each section of your forum. And the "Private" column displays the total number of private messages in each section of your forum. This is the only place where you can receive information on the private messages in your forum. Slot Statistics The Slot Statistics tell you how the slots in your forum are currently being used. It shows the total number of slots available in your forum, how many are message slots, how many are thread slots, and how many are name slots. It also shows how many slots are available (empty). ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 88 To access the slot statistics, select choice 3 or type SLT from the Message Statistics menu. You will receive a chart similar to the following: Slot Statistics Slot type Number --------- ------ Message 4943 Thread 826 Name 257 Available 4 ------ Total 6030 Please note that slots can be listed as available, even in a forum which has a full Message Board. For instance, if a new message is posted which only requires one slot and the message that gets scrolled off required four slots, that would leave three slots available. Library Statistics ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Choice 2, "Library Statistics," of the main Statistics menu, allows you to view information on the total number of files in each library and specific information such as how many files are ASCII, Binary, GIF, etc. To access the library statistics, select choice 2 or type LIB from the main Statistics menu. When you do so, you will be presented with three screens of information. The system will pause between each screen. The first screen will be similar to the following: Library # Users Downloads Blocks Free Frag-Index ------- ------- --------- ------ ---- ---------- 0 9 1 784 45 1/ 12 1 9 1833 1928 32 3/ 16 2 30 2953 1190 30 1/ 41 3 0 0 1 0 0/ 0 4 6 195 146 9 1/ 7 5 21 306 490 53 4/ 22 ------- ------- --------- ------ ---- ---------- Total 75 5288 4539 169 Index:338+1087 In this chart, the "Library" column displays the number of each forum library. The "# Users" column displays the number of users who have uploaded files to each library. The "Downloads" column displays the number of times a file has been downloaded from each library. The "Blocks" column is another indication of the total blocks in use in each library. This column may differ from the Allocation Table (discussed earlier in this chapter). This column is for the use of CompuServe. The "Free" column displays the number of blocks in each library which cannot be used because of fragmentation. The "Frag- Index" column is for CompuServe's use. It gives the number of fragmented files and their effect on the forum. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 89 The second screen of information displayed will be similar to the following: Library Download History Library 1wk 2wk 1mo 2mo 3mo 6mo >6mo Total ------- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -------- 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 1 7 1 2 3 0 1 0 14 2 35 3 0 3 0 0 0 41 3 6 0 0 0 0 1 0 7 4 2 4 5 2 3 5 0 21 5 23 14 15 21 10 18 0 101 ------- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -------- Total 73 20 22 30 13 26 0 186 This chart tells you how long it has been since files in each library have been accessed. This will give you some idea of how active each library is. If you see the majority of files being accessed within the last month, the libraries are busy and are seeing a lot of action. If, however, most of your files have not been accessed in months, your libraries are not drawing anyone in. The final screen of information displayed will be similar to the following: Library ??? Asc Bin Img Rle Nap Gif Total ------- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ------- 0 0 6 5 0 0 0 1 12 1 0 16 0 0 0 0 0 16 2 0 40 1 0 0 0 0 41 3 0 7 0 0 0 0 0 7 4 0 22 0 0 0 0 0 22 5 0 103 0 0 0 0 0 103 ------- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ------- Total 0 194 6 0 0 0 1 201 This last chart details what types of files you have in each of your forum's libraries. A brief explanation of the meaning of each file type follows: Asc - This stands for ASCII and indicates a standard text file. Bin - This stands for Binary and indicates a program file or a text file that has been compressed. Img - A machine-specific image file. Rle - RLE is an older graphics format used for electronically scanned pictures. This format is not often used today. Nap - NAP is another old graphics format which, like RLE, is not widely used today. Gif - GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format - the format for electronically scanning pictures developed by CompuServe. This type of graphic is viewable on most all types of computers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 90 ??? - This indicates that the file type is unknown. Most of the files in your libraries will probably fall under the Asc, Bin, or Gif categories. This may vary, of course, depending on the topic of your forum. You will find files of the other types occasionally uploaded, but these types are no longer common. Membership Statistics ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Choice 3, "Membership Statistics," provides you information on the members of your forum. In the Membership Statistics area you can determine the number of free users, the number of paying users, and the number of users who have visited your forum in a given period of time. To view the membership statistics, select choice 3 or type MEM from the main Statistics menu. You will then receive the following warning prompt: Warning: Compiling membership statistics may cause Files Busy messages for users. Compile membership statistics (Y or N)?: Generating the membership statistics is a system resource- intensive function. You should only use this function when your forum is less active or it is likely to generate Files Busy messages for your forum's users. It is usually best to view the membership statistics during the early morning hours. When you do confirm that you wish to generate the membership statistics, you will receive a chart similar to the following: MEMBERSHIP STATISTICS Free Members 223 2% Paying Members 9205 97% TOTAL 9428 | Non-cumulative | Cumulative |-------------------------|------------------------- Last Access | Paying Free | Paying Free -------------|-------------------------|------------------------- Never | 17 0% 4 0% | Over 1 yr. | 77 0% 11 0% | Within 1 yr. | 3564 37% 82 0% | 9111 96% 208 2% Within 6 mo. | 1387 14% 23 0% | 5547 58% 126 1% Within 4 mo. | 1476 15% 34 0% | 4160 44% 103 1% Within 2 mo. | 902 9% 20 0% | 2684 28% 69 0% Within 1 mo. | 320 3% 3 0% | 1782 18% 49 0% Within 3 wk. | 288 3% 8 0% | 1462 15% 46 0% Within 2 wk. | 402 4% 10 0% | 1174 12% 38 0% Within 1 wk. | 772 8% 28 0% | 772 8% 28 0% ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 91 The top portion of the chart indicates three items of information: number of free members (which includes only CompuServe sponsored accounts and not free flags used in your forum), number of paying members, and the total number of members. In this example, 223 members have sponsored accounts, 9205 members are paying users, and there are 9428 total members. The second portion of the chart is where CompuServe breaks down the membership into a chart that shows the total number of members who have visited the forum within a specified period of time (cumulative) and those who have visited the forum once, but have not returned (non-cumulative). For example, using the chart above, you can see that this forum has 9428 members. By looking at the "Within 1 Year" category in the cumulative column, you will see that 9111 paying members have visited the forum within one year. However, by looking at the non-cumulative column, you can see that 3564 paying members have visited the forum within the last year, but _not_ within the last six months. Therefore, while 9111 members have visited the forum within the last year, 3564 of those have not been back within the last six months. Interpretation of the chart continues in that way down through the columns. Confidentiality ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Please note that your forum's statistics are provided for your information only. The information contained in the forum's statistics is confidential and should not be discussed with anyone who is not under CompuServe's non-disclosure agreement. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 92 CONCLUSION With the exception of the appendices, this concludes the Instruction Manual for CompuServe Sysops. I sincerely hope that this manual has been of some assistance to you in performing your duties. There is one final thing I would like to mention before closing. If you have any comments or suggestions regarding the content or layout of this manual, or find any errors (which I'm sure are there), please feel free to contact me. Tom Pinkerton 1328 Shawnee Trail Ironton, OH 45638 CIS User I.D. Number: 70243,703 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 93 APPENDIX A COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS As a CompuServe Sysop or Section Leader, you are considered an "insider," someone who is an expert on using the service and knows all the "tricks of the trade." Unfortunately, when you are new to CompuServe and Sysoping your- self, it is sometimes difficult to live up to these expectations. Therefore, the following are some of the more commonly asked questions and answers. The list below by no means represents all of the questions you will receive, but is only meant to act as a good start. For more information on different topics, you should visit the libraries of the Sysop Forum. General Questions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I am looking for a specific service on CompuServe, but don't know the name or GO word for it. How do I find it? A. All of the services on CompuServe can be searched using the FIND command. ASCII users just type FIND and the topic you're interested in at any ! prompt. CIM users simply select "Find" from the "Services" pull-down menu. You'll receive a menu of all matching choices and their GO words. Q. I'm trying to download from the libraries, but I keep getting an error message and the download aborts. What's wrong? A. In most cases, telephone line noise is the cause of downloading problems. However, if you are sure that line noise is not the cause, you should also check your communications software setting and make sure they are set to eight data bits and no parity. This should be explained in your software's manual. The CompuServe Information Manager is automatically configured to those settings. Q. I've heard about software packages called CIM and Navigator. What are they and where can I get more information? A. The CompuServe Information Manager (CIM) and CompuServe Navigator are communications programs for DOS and Macintosh machines produced by CompuServe. They use CompuServe's new Host-Micro Interface (HMI) to navigate through CompuServe using pull-down menus, rather than GO words and commands. More information is available on CIM by typing GO CIM at any ! prompt. More information about Navigator is available by GOing NAV. Q. I've heard about software programs which can automate your on-line CompuServe time. Tell me more. A. There are several software packages available to automate your CompuServe time and, hopefully, reduce it. Some of the more popular programs are TapCIS, OzCIS, and AutoSIG. TapCIS has its own forum, called the TapCIS Forum, and you should go there for more information on that program. GO TapCIS. Information on all other automated programs is available in the IBM Communications Forum. GO IBMCOM.--------------------------------- -------------------------------------------- Sysop Manual Page 94 Q. I was in a forum and suddenly saw a message on my screen from another member. What are these messages and how do I respond? A. Members are capable of sending private messages to each other while in a forum. If you are using CIM, you should select "Talk" from the "Conference" pull-down menu. If not, you should type /SEN and the users job number. For more information on these topics, CIM users should GO CIMSUPPORT; non-CIM users should GO PRACTICE. Billing Questions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. I have questions about my billing. -OR- I want to check my billing. What should I do? A. You can check all of your charges by visiting the CHARGES area. GO CHARGES. You can view or change your billing options by GOing MEMBER. If you have specific questions about items on your bill, you should contact Member Service by visiting the on-line Feedback area (GO FEEDBACK) or by calling 1-800-848-8990. Q. Do I have to pay connect charges while uploading files to the forum's libraries? A. No. In all forums, uploads to the libraries are free on connect charges. However, downloads are not free. Q. I am spending too much money trying to learn how to use the forums of CompuServe. Is there a less costly way to do this? A. Yes. CompuServe offers several free forums for the purpose of learning to use forums. Members not using CIM or Navigator can access the Practice Forum by typing GO PRACTICE at any ! prompt. Members using CIM for DOS can GO CIMSUP. Members using CIM for Macintosh can GO MCIMSUP. Members using CIM for Windows can GO WCIMSUP. And members using the CompuServe Navigator can GO NAVSUP. Library Questions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Q. What are file transfer protocols? A. When you upload or download a file, you are asked to choose a file transfer protocol. A protocol is a method which CompuServe uses to send and receive files which allows it to check for errors. You should consult the manual which came with your communications software to determine which file transfer protocols are available to you. Q. Please explain files in the libraries that end in ARC, ZIP, ZOO, LZH, SIT, etc. I download them, but can't use them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 95 A. Most programs and some other files in CompuServe's libraries are packaged in a special compressed form. This is done to: - reduce download time and connect charges - keep related files together (i.e. programs and documentation) - save disk space on CompuServe's computers Q. How do I get these compressed files to work? A. Before working with a compressed file, you must decompress it. To do this, you will need a special decompression program. Q. Where can I find a decompression program. A. The answer is different for each type of decompression program. However, the following is a list of each compression type, and where you can find the decompression program. This list is not guaranteed. Computer Format Decompression File Where to Find It GO Word ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~ Amiga LZH LHARC.EXE AmigaUser Forum AMIGAU Amiga ZIP UNZIP.LZH AmigaUser Forum AMIGAU Amiga ZOO ZOO210.LZH AmigaUser Forum AMIGAU Amiga ARC ARC.EXE AmigaUser Forum AMIGAU Apple IIe & IIc ARC DEARC2.BNY Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIe & IIc ZOO BOOZ2E.BXY Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIe & IIc BNY SHRINK.EXE Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIgs BNY SHRINK.EXE Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIgs ARC SHRINK.EXE Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIgs ZOO SHRINK.EXE Apple User Forum APPUSER Apple IIgs SIT SHRINK.EXE Apple User Forum APPUSER Atari LZH UNLZH.ARC Atari Prod. Forum ATARIP Atari ZIP UNZIP.ARC Atari Prod. Forum ATARIP Atari ZOO BOOZ.ARC Atari Prod. Forum ATARIP Atari ARC ARC602.TTP Atari Prod. Forum ATARIP Atari 8-Bit ARC UNARC.COM/SUPERA.ARC Atari 8-Bit Forum ATARI8 Commodore 8-Bit ARC ARC230.BIN/ARCEAZ.HLP Com Art & Games Forum CBMART Commodore 8-Bit LBR ARC230.BIN / LU.BIN Commodore App Forum CBMAPP Commodore 8-Bit LZH CS-DOS.SDA/LHARC1.ARC Commodore App Forum CBMAPP DOS (IBM Type) CPT EXTPC.EXE IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS DOS (IBM Type) LZH LHA213.EXE IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS DOS (IBM Type) ZIP PKZ110.EXE PC Vendor C Forum PCVENC DOS (IBM Type) ZOO ZOO210.EXE IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS DOS (IBM Type) ARC ARC-E.COM / ARC-E.DOC IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS DOS (IBM Type) SIT UNSTUF.ZIP IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS DOS (IBM Type) PIT UNPACK.ZIP IBM Systems Forum IBMSYS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 96 Computer Format Decompression File Where to Find It GO Word ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~ Macintosh CPT COMPAC.SEA Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM Macintosh LZH LHARC.SIT Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM Macintosh ZIP UNZIP1.CPT Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM Macintosh ZOO BOOZ21.SIT Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM Macintosh ARC ARCPOP.BIN Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM Macintosh SIT EXTRAC.BIN Macintosh Comm Forum MACCOMM ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 97 APPENDIX B SAMPLE ANNOUNCEMENTS The following are suggested samples for the announcements you will use in your forum. These are only suggestions and samples and should most definitely always be customized to your forum. Members do not like to be greeted with a "form letter." The News Flash and Sysop Roster Announcements have not been included here, since they vary so greatly depending on the individual forum. General Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hello and welcome to the Widget Forum! This forum is devoted to the discussion of the different types of widgets and the people who use them. Whether you already own a widget, or are just considering buying one, this is the forum for you! The Widget Forum is divided into three main areas and several secondary areas. The three main areas are the Message Board, the File Libraries, and the Conference Rooms. Each of these areas has an announcement which describes them and provides instructions on how to use them. You are encouraged to read those announcements. The secondary areas are the Announcements (also known as Notices), the Member Directory, the Forum Options, and the Instructions. The Announcements are what you are reading right now. They are written by the forum's managers (also known as Sysops) and contain helpful information. The Member Directory is where members voluntarily enter themselves and their interests. In the directory, you can find other forum members with the same interests and can create an entry for you. Users of the CompuServe Information Manager may access the Member Directory from the Special menu. All others may access it from the Main Menu (or prompt) of the forum. The Forum Options area is where you tell CompuServe how you wish to access various areas of the forum. Users of the CompuServe Information Manager may access the Forum Options from the Special menu. All others may access it by typing OPT at any ! menu or prompt. And finally, the Instructions area is where you may get help in using the forum. You may access it from the Main Menu or prompt. CompuServe Information Manager users cannot access the instructions area, but can consult their manual for help in using the forum. If at any time you have questions, please do not hesitate to post a message to Sysop. Welcome to the Widget Forum! Membership Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hello and welcome to the Widget Forum! This forum is devoted to the discussion of different types of widgets and the people who use them. On this forum, you will find ongoing discussions on every widget-related topic imaginable! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 98 There are no special requirements or fees to become a member, and the process is a simple one. CompuServe Information Manager users simply select Join from the Special menu. All other users simply type JOIN from any forum ! menu or prompt. There are no additional charges to use the forum, beyond your normal connect-time or extended services charges. Members are asked to use their real names - no handles please - and to enter themselves in the Member Directory. After that, you might want to post a message addressed to All introducing yourself. If you need any assistance, please feel free to post a message to *Sysop. Welcome to the Widget Forum! Information for L-Flagged Users Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We regret to inform you that you have been locked out of the Widget Forum by one of the forum's managers. Until such time as this lock out is removed from your account, you will not be able to access the forum. The amount of time you will be locked out of the forum depends upon the reason that you were locked out. If you wish to discuss this lock out, please feel free to contact Jeff Lutz, Primary Manager of the Widget Forum via CompuServe Mail. Jeff's User I.D. Number is 70243,2502. ASCII Visitor Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome to the Widget Forum! This forum is devoted to the discussion of the different types of widgets and the people who use them. Here you can find conversations about every widget-related topic imaginable! Here in the Widget Forum you will find many friendly and helpful people, as well as many useful files and programs, and regularly scheduled live conferences, where you can chat with other members about the wonderful world of widgets! To join us here, all you need to do is to type JOIN from the Main Menu or Forum ! prompt. No other action is necessary and there is no charge beyond your normal CompuServe connect or extended service charges. We do ask that you use your real first and last name and, if you're a vendor, you list any affiliations. If you choose not to sign up at this time and only "visit," the forum functions you have at your disposal will be limited, so go ahead and join up! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 99 HMI Visitor Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome to the Widget Forum! This forum is devoted to the discussion of the different types of widgets and the people who use them. Here you can find conversations about every widget-related topic imaginable! Here in the Widget Forum you will find many friendly and helpful people, as well as many useful files and programs, and regularly scheduled live conferences, where you can chat with other members about the wonderful world of widgets! To join us here, all you need to do is to select the JOIN button. No other action is necessary and there is no charge beyond your normal CompuServe connect or extended service charges. We do ask that you use your real first and last name and, if you're a vendor, you list any affiliations. If you choose not to sign up at this time and only "visit," the forum functions you have at your disposal will be limited, so go ahead and join up! Conference Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome to the Conference Rooms of the Widget Forum! The conference rooms of the forum are where members gather for "live" conversations. In a conference room, what you type appears on the screens of the other people in the room and what they type appears on your screen. There are two types of conferences - formal and informal. Formal conferences are run by a designated moderator, while informal conferences are just chats among members with no rules. For complete instructions on conferencing, as well as a complete schedule of upcoming conferences, please download the file CO.TXT from the "General Information" library. This is a simple text file that can be read by any type computer. Library Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome to the File Libraries of the Widget Forum! The File Libraries of the Widget Forum contain many files related to the subject of the forum - widgets. The files generally fall into one of two categories: software programs and text files. In the libraries, you will find many software programs (public domain, shareware, and freeware) that you may download to enhance your work with widgets. In the libraries, you will also find many informative text files containing everything from tips on widget buying to instructions on widget use. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 100 The Widget Forum has 10 public libraries. They are General Information, Intro to Widgets, Wonders of Widgets, Widget Buying, Widget Use, Widget Brands, Widget Controversy, Little Known Facts, Widget Programs, and Widget Vendors. Each library has a corresponding description file which explains the kind of files you can find there. To read the descriptions, CompuServe Information Manager users select Description from the Library menu. All other users, type DES at the Library menu or Library ! prompt. To access the file libraries, CompuServe Information Manager users select the Library menu. All other users, type LIB from the Main Forum Menu or Forum ! prompt. Messages Announcement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Welcome to the Message Board of the Widget Forum! The Message Board is the hub of communication in the forum. In the Messages area of the forum, you can exchange messages with other forum members. On the Message Board, you may find person-to-person notes, answers to questions, and on-going discussions. You can post your own messages, reply to other messages, or just read messages posted by other members. The Widget Forum is divided into 10 public sections. They are General Information, Intro to Widgets, Wonders of Widgets, Widget Buying, Widget Use, Widget Brands, Widget Controversy, Little Known Facts, Widget Programs, and Widget Vendors. Each section has a description file which explains exactly what the subject of the messages in that section is. To read the descriptions, CompuServe Information Manager users select Description from the Messages menu. All other users type DES from the Messages Menu or Messages ! prompt. To access the Message Board, CompuServe Information Manager users select the Messages menu. All other users, type MES from the Main Forum Menu or Forum ! prompt. Please note that the Sysops request that you use no profanity on the Message Board of the Widget Forum. Also, do not post messages encouraging members to perform an illegal act or to violate CompuServe rules. For full details on CompuServe rules, GO RULES on-line. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 101 APPENDIX C SYSOP OPERATIONS MENUS The following is a complete list of all menus reached from Sysop Operations Mode (SO). 1 (FOR) Forum Parameters 1 (VIS) Visitor Privileges 1 Announcements [Yes] 2 Composing Messages [No ] 3 Reading Messages [No ] 4 Member Directory [No ] 5 User Log [No ] 6 Libraries [No ] 2 (GLO) Global Defaults 1 Default Editor [LINEDIT] 2 Member Can Change Name [Yes] 3 SYSOP Password 3 (MES) Messaging Parameters 1 Set Number of Sections 2 Change Section Names 3 Establish Public Sections 4 Lock Visitors to One Section 5 Set Holding Capacity 6 Private Messages [Yes] 4 (LIB) Library Parameters 1 Set Number of Libraries 2 Change Library Names 3 Establish Public Libraries 4 Lock Visitors to One Library 5 Dynamic Allocation [Yes] 6 REPLACE appends Count [No ] 7 Rebuilds are Suppressed [No ] 5 (CON) Conferencing Parameters 1 Local Conference [Yes] 2 AutoGAG [Yes] 3 Set Number of CO Rooms 4 Change Room Names 5 Establish Public Rooms 2 (MAI) Maintenance 1 (ANN) Announcements 1 (EDI) Edit Announcements 2 (UPL) Upload Announcements 3 (DOW) Download Announcements 4 (TYP) Type Announcements ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 102 2 (MEM) Membership 1 (ADD) Add Member 2 (EDI) Edit Member 3 (DEL) Delete Member 4 (LIS) List Membership 5 (PUR) Purge Inactive Members 6 (INT) Introduce New Sections 7 (CLM) Clear Message Special Access 8 (CLL) Clear Library Special Access 9 (CLC) Clear Conference Special Access 10 (CNT) Check Membership Count 11 (ASA) Add Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 12 (RSA) Remove Special Sec/Lib/Room Access 3 (MES) Messages 1 (DES) Description Files 1 (EDI) Edit Description 2 (UPL) Upload Description 3 (DOW) Download Description 4 (TYP) Type Description 4 (LIB) Libraries 1 (PRE) Preview Library 2 (DES) Description Files 1 (EDI) Edit Description 2 (UPL) Upload Description 3 (DOW) Download Description 4 (TYP) Type Description 3 (ALL) Allocate Blocks 4 (BAT) Batch Status 5 (MEL) Merge Logs 6 (REB) Rebuild Logs 5 (CON) Conference Rooms 1 (DES) Description Files 1 (EDI) Edit Description 2 (UPL) Upload Description 3 (DOW) Download Description 4 (TYP) Type Description 3 (STA) Statistics 1 (MES) Message Statistics 1 (MES) Message Statistics 2 n/a 3 (SLT) Slot Statistics 2 (LIB) Library Statistics 3 (MEM) Membership Statistics ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 103 APPENDIX D COMPUSERVE RULES AND TERMS The following is the complete text of the CompuServe Information Service Operating Rules as of March 28, 1993. Every member agrees to these terms when they sign up their CompuServe membership. No one becomes a CompuServe member without agreeing to these terms. The most current version of these rules is always available on-line by GOing RULES. CompuServe Information Service Operating Rules ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The CompuServe Information Service ("the Service") consists of computing and information services and software, information and other content provided by CompuServe, Incorporated ("CompuServe"). In addition, third parties provide information, software, and other content (collectively, "Third Party Content") which may be accessed over the Service. These Operating Rules are provided to make online information usage and communications a positive and secure experience for members. Members agree during the online sign up procedure to the terms and conditions outlined in these Operating Rules. Introduction These Operating Rules are part of the terms of your Service Agreement with CompuServe, and you are bound by them. CompuServe may modify these rules at any time by publishing the modified rule(s) over the Service. CompuServe Copyright The entire contents of the Service is copyrighted as a collective work under the United States Copyright Laws. The copying, redistribution, or publication of any part of the Service is prohibited, except as expressly provided below. Each member who places information, software, or other content, in the public areas of the Service grants CompuServe the right to edit, copy, publish, distribute, and translate such information, software, or other content. Subject to this grant, each member who information, software, or other content on the Service retains any rights member may have in such information software, or other content. Copyrighted Material Copyrighted material must not be placed on the Service without the permission of the owner(s) or the person(s) they specifically authorize. Only the owner(s) or such authorized person(s) may upload copyrighted material to the Service. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 104 Members may download copyrighted material for their own use. Except as expressly provided by copyright law, copying, redistribution, or publication must be with the express permission of CompuServe and the owner(s) or such authorized person(s), if other than CompuServe. Permission must be specified in the document, on the Service, or must be obtained directly from CompuServe and the owner(s) or such authorized person(s), if other than CompuServe. In any copying, redistribution, or publication of copyrighted material, any changes to or deletion of author attribution or copyright notice are prohibited. Public Domain Material Any member may upload public domain programs to the Service. Any member may download public domain programs for their own use or non- commercially re- distribute a public domain program. Member assumes all risks regarding the determination of whether a program is in the public domain. Content & Uses of the Service Member agrees not to publish on or over the Service any information which violates or infringes upon the rights of any others or which would be abusive, profane, or sexually offensive to an average person, or which, without the approval of CompuServe, contains any advertising or any solicitation of other members to use goods or services. This paragraph, however, should not be interpreted to restrict member from utilizing CompuServe Mail in the conduct of a legitimate business except that member may not, without the approval of CompuServe, send unsolicited advertising or promotional material to other CompuServe members. Members agree not to use the facilities or capabilities of the Service to conduct any business or activity or solicit the performance of any activity which is prohibited by law or to solicit CompuServe members to become members of other competitive information services. Editing and Deleting Content CompuServe reserves the right in its sole discretion to edit or delete any information, software, or other content appearing on the Service, regardless of whether it violates the standards for content. Service Termination CompuServe reserves the right in its sole discretion to suspend or terminate Service to any member at any time. Indemnification Member agrees to indemnify and hold CompuServe harmless from any claims and expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, related to member's violation of the Service Agreement, including these rules or any information, software, or other content placed on the Service by the member.------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------- Sysop Manual Page 105 Standard Pricing Plan Multiple members of the same household may share a single User I.D. Number. However, only one person is authorized to access the Service at any given time on one User I.D. Number. Copyright Policy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The CompuServe Information Service provides access to more than 1700 products covering thousands of subject areas to our members worldwide. Material offered on the CompuServe Information Service originates with a wide variety of sources, ranging from creative public domain software programs uploaded by members to multi-faceted databases provided by large corporations. The following information will address some commonly-asked questions about copyright and ownership or material, particularly as it relates to public domain information and shareware programs. What is a Compilation Copyright? CompuServe has copyrighted the contents of the CompuServe Information Service as a compilation copyright, just as many magazines and newspapers reserve such a copyright on the contents of their publications. This copyright is held in accordance with the 1976 Copyright Act of the United States. A compilation copyright is granted when an organization collects information in a lawful way, adds value to it, and offers it to others. In this case, the CompuServe Information Service is a value-added product; CompuServe Incorporated has committed substantial financial resources to collecting more than 1700 areas on the service and offering them in an organized, structured way to a defined user base through a nationwide telecommunications network. The compilation copyright is intended to protect that substantial investment from unauthorized exploitation. This does NOT mean that CompuServe assumes ownership of individual programs and databases provided to the system by members or information providers. If I Upload a Software Program I've Developed to CompuServe, do I Still Retain Ownership of the Product? Yes, you do. CompuServe's compilation copyright does NOT supersede individual ownership rights or copyrights to any of the material furnished to the Service by members or information providers. For example, a member who creates a program and uploads it to a CompuServe forum data library STILL OWNS that program, and may upload it to other information services and bulletin board systems. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 106 It should be noted, however, that CompuServe cannot grant any redistribution rights for materials copyrighted by the author, unless specifically authorized to do so, CompuServe does not own the material or the copyright. These rights must be obtained directly from the author. What is CompuServe's Stance toward Copyrighted, Shareware, and Public Domain Programs? Each of these types of property have special considerations, and deserves seperate explanation: Copyrighted Material CompuServe does not allow copyrighted material to be placed on the CompuServe Information Service without the author's permission. Only the owner(s) or persons the specifically authorize may upload copyrighted material to the Service. Any member may download copyrighted material for their own use. Any member may also non-commerically redistribute a copyrighted program with the expressed permission of the owner or authorized person. Permission must be specified in the document, on the Service, or must be obtained directly from the author. Public Domain Any member may upload public domain programs to the Service. Any member may download public domain programs for their own use or non- commercially redistribute a public domain program. Shareware Only the author or authorized persons may upload shareware programs. Any member may download shareware programs for their own use, subject to the terms provided by the owner. Any member may non-commercially redistribute a shareware program subject to the provided terms explicitly displayed in the software itself, or with permission of the author or authorized person. As a CompuServe Member, Can I Download Public Domain Information and Shareware Programs for my own Use from CompuServe Forum Data Libraries? Yes, you can. Public domain information and shareware programs are uploaded to CompuServe forum data libraries by their authors for use by other CompuServe members. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 107 May I Download Programs from CompuServe Forum Data Libraries and Share them with a Friend, or Upload them to Another Bulletin Board System? In keeping with the spirit of the development of public domain information and shareware, it is not CompuServe's current policy to prevent casual redistribution of this type of information -- this is low volume and low frequency use or redistribution of information where no commercialism is involved. This means that a member may download a file and share it with others for no commercial gain -- either via a bulletin board service, diskette, or other means. It's important to note that CompuServe cannot grant redistribution rights for programs clearly copyrighted by the author, unless specifically authorized to do so. Such permission must be obtained directly from the author of the program. May I Download and Resell a Program from a CompuServe Forum Data Library? Commercial exploitation of material contained on the CompuServe Information Service is specifically prohibited by the CompuServe Service Agreement, to which each member agrees before being permitted to access the Service. Therefore, members cannot lawfully download and redistribute public information or shareware programs for personal gain. In addition, mass redistribution of public information or shareware is also prohibited. Mass distribution is defined as high frequency and/or high volume transfers. What are the Penalties for Violating the Compilation Copyright or Service Agreement Provisions? When a situation involving exploitation is brought to CompuServe's attention, we investigate and, if warranted, remind the violator of the Service Agreement Terms. If subsequent violations are reported, access to the CompuServe Information Service may be terminated for the violator and, in extreme cases, a letter is sent from our legal counsel asking that he or she cease and desist, or risk further legal action. This is done as a positive step to protect the value and use of the material for CompuServe Information Service members, and to discourage unauthorized redistribution of that material. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 108 CompuServe Online Information Service Agreement Terms ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. The CompuServe Information Service ("the Service") consists of the computing and information services and software, information, or other content provided by CompuServe Incorporated ("CompuServe"). In addition, third parties provide information, software, and other content (collectively, "Third Party Content") which may be accessed over the Service. These terms and any Operating Rules published over the Service constitute the entire and only agreement (collectively, "the Agreement") between CompuServe and member (including its designated users) with respect to the Service and supersede all other communications and agreements with regard to the subject matter hereof. 2. Upon notice published over the Service, CompuServe may modify this agreement, the Operating Rules or prices, and may discontinue or revise any or all aspects of the Service at its sole discretion and with- out prior notice. 3. Unless otherwise agreed, member's right to use the Service or to designate users is not transferrable and is subject to any limits established by CompuServe, or by member's credit card company if billing is through a credit card. 4. Member agrees to indemnify CompuServe against liability for any and all use of member's account. 5. Member is responsible for and must provide all telephone and other equipment and services necessary to access the Service. 6. Member shall pay, in accordance with the provisions of the Billing Option selected by member, any registration or monthly fees, connect time charges, minimum charges and other charges incurred by member or its designated users at the rates in effect for the billing period in which those charges are incurred, including but not limited to charges for any purchases made through the Service and any surcharges incurred while using any supplemental networks or services other than the Service. Member shall pay all applicable taxes relating to use of the Service by member or its designated users. Member shall be responsible for all use of the Service accessed through member's or its designated users' password(s). ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 109 7. MEMBER EXPRESSLY AGREES THAT USE OF THE SERVICE IS AT THE MEMBER'S SOLE RISK. NEITHER COMPUSERVE NOR ANY OF ITS INFORMATION PROVIDERS, LICENSORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE; NOR DOES COMPUSERVE OR ANY OF ITS INFORMATION PROVIDERS, LICENSORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS MAKE ANY WARRANTY AS TO THE RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM USE OF THE SERVICE. THE SERVICE IS DISTRIBUTED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OTHER THAN THOSE WARRANTIES WHICH ARE IMPLIED BY AND INCAPABLE OF EXCLUSION, RESTRICTION, OR MODIFICATION UNDER THE LAWS APPLICABLE TO THIS AGREEMENT. NEITHER COMPUSERVE NOR ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED IN CREATING, PROMOTING, OR DELIVERING THE SERVICE SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF USE OF THE SERVICE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE OR OUT OF ANY BREACH OF WARRANTY. MEMBER EXPRESSLY ACKNOWELEDGES THAT THE PROVISION OF THIS THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL ALSO APPLY TO THE THIRD PART CONTENT. 8. Except as expressly permitted in the Operating Rules, neither CompuServe nor its designated users may reproduce, redistribute, retransmit, publish or otherwise transfer, or commercially exploit, any information, software, or other content which they receive through the Service. 9. The provisions of paragraphs 7 and 8 are for the benefit of CompuServe and their respective Information Providers, Licensors, Employees, and Agents; and each shall have the right to assert and enforce such provisions directly on their own behalf. 10. Subject to the terms of this Agreement, CompuServe grants to member a personal, non-exclusive, nonassignable and nontransferrable license to use and display the CompuServe Information Manager software ("Software") on any machines of which member is the primary user. Unauthorized copying of the Software, or the written materials associated therewith is expressly forbidden. Member may not sublicense, assign or transfer this license or the Software. Any attempt to sublicense, assign or transfer any of the rights, duties or obligations under this license is void. 11. This agreement is, and shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of the State of Ohio applicable to agreements, made and performed in Ohio. Any cause of action of Customer must be instituted within one year after the claim or cause of action has arisen or be barred. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 110 12. If Customer's account is a qualified business account and approved by CompuServe for corporate billing, charges for the services provided under this agreement will be accumulated and identified by User I.D. Number and will normally be invoiced following the end of the month in which the service is provided. Terms of payment on all charges are net, ten (10) days in the currency in which billed. If any payment due hereunder is not made by Customer within thirty (30) days after the invoice date, late charges of one and one-half percent (1 1/2%) per month shall be due and payable with respect to such payment and CompuServe may, in addition, at its sole discretion and without notice to the Customer, (a) suspend its performance under this agreement and the member's and its designated users' access to and use of the Service, or (b) terminate this agreement and member's and its designated users access to and use of the Service. For accounts not approved by CompuServe for corporate billing, Customer must provide payment by credit card or direct debit. 13. Notwithstanding any acknoweldgement of a member purchase order by CompuServe, any provisions or conditions in any purchase order, voucher, or other memorandum of the member which is in any way inconsistent with, or adds to, the provisions of this agreement is null and void. Neither the course of conduct between parties nor trade practice shall act to modify the provisions of this Agreement. If any provision of this Agreement is determined to be invalid, all other provisions of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect. The provisions of paragraphs 7, 9, and 13 and all obligations of and restrictions on member and its designated users shall survive any termination of this agreement. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 111 This "Instruction Manual for CompuServe Sysops" is Copyright (c) 1993 by Tom E. Pinkerton. All Rights Reserved. CompuServe forum staff members may duplicate and/or redistribute this manual to other CompuServe forum staff members and CompuServe employees, so long as no fee is charged and the title page, "Introduction from Tom Pinkerton," and this copyright notice remain in place and unedited. CompuServe, Incorporated may duplicate and/or redistribute this manual to any person(s) it wishes and charge any fee(s) it wishes, so long as the title page, "Introduction from Tom Pinkerton," and this copyright notice remain in place and unedited. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- Sysop Manual Page 112