Chapter 5 - Using VINES Utilities
This chapter describes how to use the VINES Utilities application. The VINES Utilities is a group of applications that lets you:
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Read and send network messages ![]()
Set message notification options ![]()
Display who is currently logged into the VINES network ![]()
Manage access rights for files and folders
Because the VINES Utilities application uses the network to send and receive messages, you first need to log in to the network.
Logging in to the VINES network is similar to the logging on procedure described in Chapter 2. In both cases, you enter your user name and password into a dialog box.
However, the process described in this section is different, because you are identifying yourself to the network to use VINES-specific applications, rather than to mount file volumes on your desktop.
To log in to the VINES network through the Chooser:
1. Choose the Chooser desk accessory from the Apple menu. The box in the upper-left corner of the Chooser window contains icons for AppleShare, VINES, and other resources such as printers:
2. Click the VINES icon to select it. The Chooser displays a Login button to the right. Make sure the AppleTalk option is set to Active.
3. Click the Login button. The VINES Login dialog box appears:
4. Enter your StreetTalk name and password in the text boxes. Use the tab key to toggle back and forth between the two text boxes. If you make any mistakes, select the text you want to correct and retype it.
If your user name appears in the User Name text box in the Chooser window, the same name appears in the StreetTalk Name text box in the VINES Login dialog box.
5. After you enter your user name and password, click OK. Two brief messages appear confirming your login.
6. Close the Chooser window.
You are now logged in to your VINES network and can start using VINES Utilities. This is described in the section "Starting VINES Utilities" later in this chapter.
If you have problems logging in, turn to the next section.
If You Have Problems Logging In
If you incorrectly type your user name or your password, the following alert box appears:
Click OK and try again. Make sure to enter your password using the correct upper-case and lower-case letters. Once you enter a valid user name and password combination, you can proceed as usual.
If you continue to have problems logging in, consult your system administrator for assistance.
In some networks, the system administrator configures the network software to require you to change your password at regular intervals.
If your password has expired and you must change your password, the following alert box appears:
In other networks, you might receive a warning that your password expired and you have the option of changing your password:
To change your password:
1. Click Yes. A password dialog box appears:
2. Enter your old password in the Old Password field.
3. Press tab or click the New Password field. The cursor appears in the New Password field.
4. Enter your new password, and either press return or click OK. A confirmation dialog box prompts you to re-enter your new password.
Note: Unless your network software requires you to change your password (as shown in the examples above), you can only change your password through the logging on to file volumes procedure described in Chapter 2.
Once you log in to the network through the Chooser, double-click the VINES Utilities icon to start the application. The Utilities Selector window appears:
The Utilities Selector window contains three icons. These three icons represent the three components, or applications, that make up the VINES Utilities, as shown in table 5-1:
Icon | Choose | To |
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VINES Messages | Manage the network messages you receive and send across the network |
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Set Access Rights | Monitor and control how you share your folders and files with other users on the network |
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Who am I? | Display the full StreetTalk name of the user currently logged in to the network from your Macintosh workstation |
You access on-line help at any time by choosing VINES Utilities Help from the Apple menu, or by pressing Cmd - H.
The VINES Messages application lets you manage network messages. In VINES, network messages notify you that you received mail, or notify you of network events. System administrators often send network messages to notify a group of users of potential network problems.
Network messages appear in dialog boxes that pop up on your screen when you receive them:
Depending on how you set your message notification preferences, the message dialog boxes remain on your screen until you click OK or press return. Setting your message notification preferences is described later in this chapter.
You also use this application to send short messages to another user, or to a group of users instead of using a network mail application. VINES Messages is most useful when sending a one-line message. If you need to send a longer message, use a network mail application such as VINES Mail for Macintosh.
To start the VINES Messages application, double-click the VINES Messages icon in the Utilities Selector window. You can also choose VINES Messages from the Utilities menu. When you start the VINES Messages application, two windows appear, one superimposed over the other:
To make the Read window active, close the Send window or click anywhere in the Read window.
When you start VINES Messages, the VINES Messages menu appears in the menu bar.
You can also use the VINES Messages menu to open and close the Read and Send windows:
The VINES Messages application lets you set message notification options through the Preferences command in the File menu. Choosing this command displays the following dialog box:
The Message Preferences dialog box contains three options, as shown in Table 5-2:
Icon | Choose | To |
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Do not notify | Prevent any network message from appearing on your screen. Choose the Read command from the VINES Messages menu to view a history of your messages. |
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Blink icon | Cause the Apple menu icon to blink when you receive a network message. Choose the Read command from the VINES Messages menu to view the message. |
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Show message | Set the amount of time you want the network message to appear on your screen before it clears or you click OK. If you enable the option box, the default is 6 seconds. Select the number with your mouse and enter a different value to change it. |
When you finish setting notification options, click OK. Click Cancel to undo any changes.
Network messages that you receive during your current login session are stored in the Read window. Make the Read window active by choosing the Read command from the VINES Messages menu, or clicking the Read window if it is not active:
The Read window contains a history of the network messages you receive during your current login session. When you log out of the network, these messages are cleared.
To delete a network message:
1. Select the message with your mouse
2. Click the Trash icon at the top of the Read window
This section describes how to address and send network messages to other users on the network. In addition, you can access STDA for help in addressing by clicking the STDA icon at the top of the Send window.
To send a network message, either:
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Choose the Send command from the VINES Messages menu ![]()
Click anywhere in the Send window to make it active, if it is partially hidden behind the Read window
The Send window appears:
To send a message:
1. If the cursor is not already in the To: text field, click in the field. The cursor appears at the beginning of the field.
2. Enter the StreetTalk address of each user you want to send the message to. Either:
- Separate the addresses with a comma
- Press return after each address
Follow these guidelines for entering addresses:
- You can enter names and lists into the To: field.
- When addressing a message to more than one user or list, separate each name with a comma or press return after each StreetTalk name.
- You can include wildcard patterns in the To: field such as *@*@WCTUS.
3. Click the Message: text field or press the tab key to move to the Message: text field. The cursor appears in the Message: text field.
4. Enter your message. You can enter up to 71 characters for your message.
Note: If you enter a message of more that 71 characters, an alert box appears. If you need to send a message of this size, break it into separate messages.
5. After you enter your message and at least one address, click the Send icon. A brief message appears, notifying you that your message was sent.
If you are unsure of the StreetTalk name of the user or users you want to send your message to, click the STDA icon to access STDA. This is described in the next section.
Using the STDA Icon
You can also use STDA to help find StreetTalk names to include as addresses. To access STDA, click the STDA icon in the Send window. The StreetTalk Directory Assistance window appears:
The Show Subset button lets you toggle between a subset and the full list. If you have searched for a subset, the button reads, "Show Subset." When you click this button to display the subset, the button changes to read, "Show All." Subsets are explained in the section "Using the Search Editor" later in this chapter.
Using the StreetTalk Directory Assistance Window
This section describes how to search for names and transfer selected names to the top panel.
To use the STDA window:
1. Enter letters in the Key Search text box. As you enter characters, STDA searches for the closest match in the user' s last name, which appears at the top of the list. For example, to search for the name "Bryant," enter the letters B, R, Y ... You' ll find that STDA often displays the name before you finish entering the complete name.
2. To select the name, click the name with your mouse. Select multiple names by command key-clicking on each additional name.
3. Click the top panel of the window to transfer your selected name. The selected name appears.
You can also double-click a name to transfer it to the To: field.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 for each name you want to add as an address. When you finish, click OK. The STDA window closes and the addresses you selected appear in the To: text field of the Send window.
The next section describes how to use the Search Editor to create a list based on search patterns using wild cards.
Using the Search Editor
The Search Editor window lets you create search criteria to generate a subset list that matches a pattern. Click Search Editor to display the Search Editor window:
Enter patterns in either or both the Name Pattern and Description Pattern text boxes using standard wildcard characters. Use an asterisk (*) to denote any number of characters or a question mark (?) to denote any single character.
Click the option boxes next to each text box to enable or disable the patterns you use.
To use the By Example command:
1. Select a name in the STDA window.
2. Click Search Editor. The Search Editor window appears.
3. Click By Example. The selected name and description are copied to the two text boxes. The item name in the StreetTalk name is selected. You can change the selected name to an asterisk (*), for example, or make any other edits to create a search pattern.
To save the search pattern for the current mail session, enable the Save Pattern option box.
Once you create the search criteria, click the Search button. The retrieved names appear in place of the current list. Follow the steps for selecting names described in the previous section. To display the full list of names, click Show All in the STDA window.
The VINES Who am I? application lets you display the StreetTalk name of the user currently logged in to the network. Though in most cases you are the current user, this application is useful if you share your Macintosh with other users.
To start the application, double-click the Who am I? icon in the VINES Utilities window. You can also choose Who am I? from the VINES menu.
The Who am I? window appears, displaying the name, group, and organization of the user currently logged in to the network at your Macintosh:
To close the window, click OK.