LINKER 1.0 Created and copyright (1995) by SRL Data. All rights reserved. Published by Creative Digital Systems. INTRODUCTION -------------------- Linker is a program for your Newton MessagePad that lets you use AppleLinkUs electronic mail facilities. You can connect to AppleLink and see what messages you have, download those you want to read, reply to messages, send messages from any Newton application that supports mail, and save messages as NotePad items. Linker is easy to use because it supports the standard Newton In and Out Boxes, so it works the same way as faxing, beaming, and Newtonmailing. To use Linker you need a Newton-compatible modem and, of course, an AppleLink account. The copy of Linker you have downloaded is a demo version. You can only send and receive one message per connection. The full version of Linker is available for $55 from: Creative Digital Systems, 293 Corbett Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94114. 415.621.4252. 415.621.4922 (fax) cds.sem (AppleLink) cds.steve (eworld) cdssem(aol) 74774,50 (CompuServe) cds@netcom.com INSTALLATION ------------------- Linker needs approximately 72K of free space on your MessagePad. You can install it either in the internal memory or on an external memory card. It has been tested with all current types of MessagePads, up to the MP110. To install this demo you need the program RNewton Package InstallerS (or an equivalent) and a serial cable to connect the Newton to your Macintosh. Plug the cable into either the modem or printer port on the Macintosh. ItUs better to use the modem port if possible, because the printer port is sometimes used for LocalTalk, which may cause a conflict. Then drag the RLinkerS file onto the Installer and wait. You will be asked to select the port you are using. There is also find a folder called RCCLs.S Some countries have a special way to connect to AppleLink. This folder contains connection scripts for Linker to make it work in those countries. DonUt install any CCLs just yet. They are explained in more detail in the next section. Turn on the Newton and open the Extras Drawer. Tap on Connection and select Macintosh Serial. Then tap Connect. If all is well, Linker installs in about 30 seconds. If there is no response, check that you have connected the cables correctly and specified the right connection options at both the Newton and Macintosh ends. SETTING THE LINKER PREFERENCES --------------------------------------------- Before you can use Linker, you need to tell it certain details about your AppleLink account. Open the Linker application, tap the RiS (information) button, and select Prefs. The Linker preferences sreen appears. HereUs a description of what each item means. The Settings section contains: AppleLink ID: This is your account name, such as RUK0001S or RDEVSUPPORT.S System: This is the AppleLink system number. If you donUt know it, start AppleLink on your Macintosh, and select Set up Connection from the Network menu. Click the More button to see your current number in the System Number field. Alternatively, check the details you were given when you subscribed to AppleLink. Password: This is your account password. When you write or type it, it appears in clear text. DonUt worry, it is obscured from then on. If you prefer not to enter your password here, you are asked for it whenever you try to connect. Phone: This is the telephone number you call. You can get this from your Macintosh by selecting Set up Connection from the Network menu in AppleLink. Connection: You can normally leave this on Universal. If youUre in a country which uses an X25-based communications front end to AppleLink, you may need to install a special CCL (connection method) for your country. One example of a front end is the Transpac network in France. If you need to use a CCL, install it from the CCLs folder on your Linker disk in the same way you install any other Newton package. It then becomes available from the Connection button for you to select. Remove Connection Method: If you install a CCL and later wish to remove it to save space, tap this button and select the CCL you wish to remove from the popup list. A CCL takes approximately 1K of storage space. The Options sections has: Always send links when connecting: If this is set, then any links waiting in the Out Box are sent when you connect, even if you connect just to read your links. The default for this option is Ron.S Mark downloaded links as read: If this is set, then items you download to the Newton are removed from your AppleLink In Basket and appear later in RItems that have been read.S The default for this option is Roff.S Suppress message headers: If this is set, the AppleLink headers that appear at the start of messages are not shown, making the display neater. The default for this option is RonS. Once you have set the options, you are ready to connect. CONNECTING YOUR MODEM ------------------------------------- Make sure you are using a modem that is compatible with your Newton, and plug it into the serial port. Make sure it is connected to the telephone network and that it has power. If you are not in your home country, the telephone system may use connection sockets that are different from what is supplied with your modem. If this is the case, you may be able to purchase a converter. Ask your local technical contact about this. (Airports often sell such items.) IN AND OUT BOXES ------------------------ The In Box and Out Box are in the Extras drawer. If you open these up, youUll see that there is a new RAppleLinkS item in both boxes. When you receive links, they appear in the In Box. When you have links queued for sending, they appear in the Out Box. CHECKING YOUR LINKS ------------------------------ There are two ways to check for AppleLink messages: one is interactive, the other is automatic. If you want to use the interactive method, tap the Linker icon in the Extras drawer. Once the application opens, tap the Connect button. A message appears at the top of the screen telling you what is happening. If all is well, Linker connects to AppleLink and tells you if you have any messages waiting. If you do not, it disconnects immediately. Any links you do have are listed onscreen. Due to the memory limitations of the Newton, only the first 50 links are shown. Select the messages you want to read by tapping on them. A checkmark appears next to each one you tap. When youUre ready, tap the Download button. A popup slip appears showing you LinkerUs progress as it downloads each link. You can tap Disconnect at any time to stop the connection. Once the messages are downloaded, Linker disconnects but leaves the In Box open. You read the links by tapping on them. This opens a simple link viewer, shown to the right. If a link is longer than three or four Newton screens, it is split up into separate links which are numbered in your In Box. At the bottom you will see three buttons: Delete: to delete the link. Reply: to prepare a reply to a link. See Section 7 for information on sending links. Copy to NotePad: to write the text of the link into a new note. Without interacting with Linker, you can simply download all links that are waiting. To do this, open the In Box and tap Send. Then select AppleLink from the popup menu. This connects you to AppleLink and downloads all messages that are waiting. If you want to stop downloading, tap the Stop button at any time. CREATING LINKS --------------------- Once you install Linker, you can send links from any application that supports mail. This includes the NotePad, Names, and Dates applications. If you tap on the Action button you will see that RAppleLinkS now appears in the popup menu. When you select AppleLink, a window appears for addressing the link and optionally changing the subject or editing the text. Write the AppleLink addresses of the message recipients in the To and Cc fields. If you want to send the link to more than one person, use the More button that appears. You can review the list of addressees by tapping on the To or Cc label. You can add more text to your message using the Edit button. This takes you to a simple editor similar to the NotePad. A special feature of the editor is the Phrase facility, which lets you store frequently-used sentences and words, so that you can quickly paste them into your link with just a few taps. Tap the Phrase button at the bottom of the editor to access the phrase list. A list showing all your current phrases appears. To use one of them, select it and then tap the Use button. Alternatively, you can simply double-tap the phrase. To create a new phrase, tap New, then write in your phrase and tap Set. To edit an existing phrase, select it and tap Edit. To remove a phrase, select it and tap Remove. You can tap the scroll arrows to move up and down the list, and the A-Z picker to move more quickly to a phrase that begins with that letter. The list is also movable PJyou can drag it up and down the screen if you need to. When youUre happy with your message, tap the Send button. It will appear in the Out Box.If you change your mind about a link you have queued, tap on it in the Out Box. You can then delete or edit it. SENDING LINKS -------------------- You can send messages in two ways. The simple way is to tap Send in the Out Box and select AppleLink from the popup menu. This sends all your links, but does not attempt to check your AppleLink In Basket for any items waiting. Alternatively, you can open Linker and connect interactively. This connects to AppleLink and sends all items in the Out Box, as well as checks for incoming links. If you address a link incorrectly, it is not sent. Instead, it is left in your Out Box with an Invalid address label. You can then select it and correct the address. TROUBLESHOOTING -------------------------- Communications can be unreliable. DonUt be put off if things donUt work immediately. If Linker canUt connect, it will give you a meaningful error message to tell you what is wrong. In many cases this will be something like RYour modem isnUt responding properlyS or RThere is no dial tone.S In these cases, you need to check that your modem is OK. Try sending a Fax or using another communications program to verify this. Also, check your cables and make sure the modem has power. It may help if you turn it off and on again. Sometimes AppleLink drops the connection while you are downloading. If this happens, try again. However, once AppleLink has started sending a message, it assumes you donUt want to see it again. In fact, Linker has to specifically mark a message as unread after it downloads it for it to remain in the AppleLink In Basket. If the connection drops at the wrong time, AppleLink moves the item to RItems that have been readS PJyouUll need to use a Macintosh with AppleLink to retrieve it. This is a feature of AppleLink, not Linker. If your Newton is running low on memory, communications activities can become unreliable. Linker checks how much spare memory you have when it starts, and if it is low, it gives you a warning. You can continue to work in most cases, but if you find that Linker then fails, you need to restart the Newton by opening the battery cover and pressing the small reset button with your stylus. This normally corrects the problem. A limitation of the current Newton system software is that the In Box and Out Box are only stored on the internal memory of the Newton, not on a card. This means that you must ensure there is sufficient free internal memory to keep the links that you download. If Linker runs out of space when downloading, it will tell you what has happened. You can then free up some space and try to connect again. Linker makes sure that the link that failed is kept in your AppleLink In Basket ready for you to connect again. If your modem connects, but Linker cannot establish a connection with AppleLink, you may need to install a CCL. Look inside the CCLs folder to see if there is one appropriate for your country. If so, install it and configure Linker to use it (see section 3). If you suspect you need a CCL that is not provided, talk to your local AppleLink representative to find out more about the local requirements for a connection. GETTING IN TOUCH WITH US -------------------------------------- Linker was written by Paul Davison of SRL Data, London, UK. SRL Data provides a wide range of Newton, Macintosh, and UNIX development and consulting services, including developer training, custom software development, technical support, and localization services. SRL Data 1 Perren Street, London, NW5 3ED UK UK0001(AppleLink) linker@bilpin.co.uk (Internet) +44.171.267.2561(voice) +44.171.267.1497 (fax) The exclusive worldwide distributor of Linker is : Creative Digital Systems 293 Corbett Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94114 USA CDS.SEM (AppleLink) 74774.50@compuserve.com, cds@netcom.com (Internet) +1.415.621.4252 (voice) +1.415.621.4922 (fax) Contact Creative Digital Systems for Linker ordering, technical support, and customer service.