Subject: DOOM-related Downloads via E-mail (95/03/22)
Supersedes: <ftpmail_825916624@news.mantis.co.uk>
Date: 1 Apr 1996 05:18:56 +0100
Summary: Describes how to get files from a DOOM-related FTP site via e-mail.

Rec-games-computer-doom-announce-archive-name: howto-ftpmail
Posting-Frequency: monthly

.     () Getting DOOM Files via E-mail. . (95/03/22)

    [ Mar 22 - Changed ftp pointer to URL, file/dir names in examples ]

    If you do not have FTP access, but can receive and process uuencoded
    multi-part e-mail messages (with a uudecode program), you are in luck!

    There is a DOOM Archive mirror in Sweden.  The distances involved
    result in gawd-awful FTP transfer rates for users in the U.S. (and
    the rest of the Western Hemisphere, for that matter).  BUT!

    There is an ftpmailer running on that machine!

    This means that the FTP transfer rate for ftpmail fetches is very fast,
    since it talks to itself (the packets don't even leave the machine).

    E-mail requests are delivered promptly and processed quickly.  Results
    are mailed with Precedence: bulk; prime-time delivery takes a while.

    This is a very good option for those who cannot do FTP, but have e-mail.
    Common sense and courtesy should be exercised when submitting requests:

      * Do not submit jobs during Sweden's prime time.
      * Do not submit jobs during your country's prime time (9am to 4pm?).
      * Do not submit jobs for big files (1M or more) except on weekends.

    In the U.S. (for example) jobs should be submitted between 1700-0200 EDT
    (1600-2300 PDT) if possible.  Tiny jobs would be OK at other times.

    This ftpmailer does FTP transfers in binary mode by default.  This does
    not hurt text files, so you can leave the mode set to binary.  It is
    also intelligent enough to recognize a binary file (such as a zip file)
    and will automatically uuencode it (by default) when mailing it to you.
    This makes things *very* easy!  You just "get" the file, and let the
    mailer decide what to do!

    When you receive uuencoded messages, save them to files with names
    using the part number in the message Subject: (save part 1 as a01,
    part 2 as a02, etc.).  Don't save them in the order that you get them.

    Then use "uudecode" on the first file - "uudecode a01".  Most (if not
    all) versions of uudecode are smart enough to advance the file name
    automatically to get the next file if there is more than 1 part.

    What you'll end up with is the file that was originally uuencoded -
    usually a zip file.  Zip files can be unzipped using pkunzip v2.04g.

    PKZIP v2.04g and R.E.M UUENCODE/UUDECODE v5.25 are available by FTP:

      ftp://oak.oakland.edu/SimTel/msdos/zip/pkz204g.exe
      ftp://oak.oakland.edu/SimTel/msdos/decode/uuexe525.exe

    To submit jobs for the ftpmailer, send a message with ftpmailer commands
    to "ftpmail@ftp.luth.se".  The commands for this ftpmailer differ from
    those of the original ftpmailer at decwrl, so get the help for it.

    Here are some examples of message bodies to send to ftpmail@ftp.luth.se:

    (1) Get help (all lines beyond 'help' line are always ignored):

.  help

    (2) Send the files listing the most recent uploads to your buddy:

.  reply buddy@other.mail.address
.  open
.  cd /pub/doom
.  get LAST.24hours
.  get LAST.7days
.  quit

    (3) Get the DOOM WAD specs and the zipped Official DOOM FAQ:

.  open
.  cd /pub/doom/docs/editing
.  get dmspec16.txt
.  cd /pub/doom/docs/faqs
.  get dmfaq66.zip
.  quit

    (4) Get the DOOM II pix (will be split into many separate messages):

.  open
.  cd /pub/doom
.  cd graphics
.  get doom2pcx.txt
.  get doom2pcx.zip
.  quit

    Read the ftpmailer's 'help' for further information.  If you use the
    above examples, remove the leading white space on the lines.

    [I mailed example (3) to ftpmail@ftp.luth.se on Fri, Sep 02 19:10 CDT
    and got the entire result back in 6 (yes, SIX) minutes!  It was 02:10
    local time and there were only 5 other jobs in the queue.  Terrific!]

    John Van Essen  <vanes002@maroon.tc.umn.edu>  Author of R.G.C.D RFD
