Getting Started with PD Internet Software
-----------------------------------------

Up until now the only way to connect to the
Internet using an Acorn machine is to use PD
software. There is plenty of this around which
will handle virtually all the functions of the
Net, but finding it and setting it up can be
difficult at first. Several applications need to
be used, which all multitask together to provide
the comprehensive facilities that you will need to
explore the Net fully.

The hub of the system is the TCP/IP transport
application. This is called TCPIP, and is an Acorn
version of the widely-used PD program KA9Q. The
latest version of TCPIP is 2.03. It is fully
multi-tasking, and does not require a separate
comms package to function.

What you do need, however, is a separate program
to dial up and establish the connection. There are
two common protocols for connecting to the Net:
SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol) and PPP
(Point to Point Protocol). Some Internet providers
offer both, others only offer one of these. The 
more common one in the UK is SLIP, and there is 
a PD application called SLIPDial which will 
establish a SLIP connection for you.

To get the connection to work you need the correct
serial block drivers installed in your machine.
Again, these are available as PD in an
application called SerialDev.

One of the things you are most likely to want to
do on the Net is read newsgroup postings from a
variety of newsgroups that cover your interests.
The most efficient way to do this is to use an
offline newsreader - this allows you to read the
postings at your leisure after you have logged
off, and not waste your phone bill by having to
read them all while still on line. There are two
main PD contenders here: ReadNews and NewsBase.
NewsBase seems to be the more widely used, but
this only downloads the news for you; to read it
you need a further application called TTFN (The
Thread Following Newsreader) which works alongside
NewsBase.

These are the basic building blocks you need to
get started, and they are available as a "starter
pack" - details will be given in a moment.

There are additional packages available to access
the World Wide Web (ArcWeb and Webster are the two
for Acorn machines), and there is also a Gopher
client which enables you to use the gopher tool on
the Net.

All these applications work perfectly alongside
TCPIP 2.03, and integrate with it fully. TCPIP
provides the transport system to get packets of
information to your computer, and the other
applications interact with it as required to do
so.

If you are just about to start out on the Net, you
will be wondering how to get hold of this
software. It is all available on the Net itself
(and if you're wondering how you get it when you
need it to access the Net in the first place,
there are ways! For example, if you open an
account with Demon (which is not a bad idea for
Acorn users as they are one of the few providers
to support Acorn at the moment), they will give
you access to their file archive via an ordinary
comms connection. In other words, you can dial up
the Demon archive as you would a bulletin board,
and download the software using ZModem in a standard
comms package such as Hearsay. Demon will give you
details when you join. They may not tell you how
to find the Acorn software when you get there, so
once you are logged in to the demon archive, you
need to type:
  cd /pub/archimedes

Before you go any further, you are recommended to
type "dir" to see what's in the directory, and
then download the file called "ReadMe" or similar
to get a list and descriptions of all the Acorn
files at the Demon site. Note that all the
commands and filenames are case-sensitive.

The starter pack mentioned above is available from
the Demon site, and this is in the subdirectory
"acorn-starter-pak". Typing:
  cd acorn-starter-pak
from the archimedes directory will get you there.
If you've already had a look at the ReadMe file,
you will have a description of the contents of the
subdirectory, so you can now just download what
you need.

The starter pack is probably also available from
various bulletin boards. You may find this a
better way to get hold of it, particularly since
you need to phone Demon to get their password of
the day to get into the Demon archive, and the
phone line is nearly always busy.

Once you've got the software you can start to set
it up. This primarily involves notifying the
system of your own details - node name, 
IP (Internet Protocol) address, password etc. 
Your node name will be given to you by your 
Internet provider when you join, and if you
are with Demon you get your IP address the first
time you log on and specify your password. Again,
Demon will give you details on what to do when you
join.

The first thing to do is to create a new directory
on your hard disc called "Internet", and put all
the applications into it. As well as those
mentioned, there will also be an application
called TCPIPUser which is part of the TCPIP suite,
and also one called NewsDir which is where all
your news and mail are stored. You could also
create subdirectories for useful files - e.g.
articles that you want to keep etc. TCPIPUser
keeps a directory within itself for file downloads
via ftp.

Instructions for setting up TCPIP are given with
the application. This mainly involves entering all
your relevant details into a file, which is then
used by TCPIP each time you connect.

Now SLIPDial has to be set up. The first time you
run it, you will be prompted to enter information
about your setup. This consists of (1) the serial
block driver name, which you should enter as
"Internal"; (2) the serial port number, which is
0; (3) the modem>computer speed (which is not the
same as the baud rate at which your modem connects
to the phone line - this is the speed at which you
want your serial port to talk to the modem). This
depends on the modem speed and also on which
computer you are using. On a Risc PC, for example,
the serial port can operate at a high speed, and
if you are using a 14,400 baud modem, you can
usually set the computer>modem speed to 57,600
bps; (4) your node name; and (5) your password. If
you are using Mercury a sixth prompt will ask for
your PIN number.

SLIPDial will now be set up with these values, and
you should not need to configure it again.
SLIPDial is script driven, which means that
details such as telephone numbers etc can be built
into the scripts, and appear on the menus. A
default script for Demon is supplied with the
package, but this may not have your local PoP
listed on the menu. You can alter the script
quite easily by opening the subdirectory Scripts
and loading the file Demon into a text editor. you
will see a section headed "Setup menus". This
contains a line with all the PoP menu items in,
each consisting of a string such as
"Manchester:call man". The "man" at the end is
merely the name of a procedure in the script which
dials the number for Manchester. So if your local
PoP is, say, Edinburgh, you could alter the string
to "Edinburgh:call edi", then look further down
the script for the line ":man", change this to
":edi" and alter the phone number in the next
line, and resave the script. Now you will find
that Edinburgh has replaced Manchester on the
SLIPDial menu, and choosing the menu option will
dial the number you entered into the script.

If you are itching to get onto the Net you should
be able to do so now. NewsBase has not yet been
set up, but you will probably find that the
default settings enable you to download the Acorn
newsgroups at least. NewsBase and TTFN have
comprehensive instructions with them, so you are
unlikely to experience any problems in setting
them up.

If you are still floundering, then provided you
can get on the Net you can always ask for help. Do
read the FAQ lists first, though, as some people
get a little annoyed at being constantly asked the
same questions when the answer is in the FAQ list.
Generally though you will find most Netters very
helpful. Don't worry if you find the learning
curve steep. Most people flounder around for quite
some time before they begin to make sense of it
all. And don't forget there is always RISC User's
Netline to help you along!
