GEnie is a BIG place -- nearly 300 RoundTables,
each with its own Bulletin Board, Library and
Real-Time Conference area; specialty services like
Dow Jones News Retrieval and Grolier's
Encyclopedia; and GE Mail, with its own subset of
commands and protocol. There's a lot to do, a lot
to see, but getting around with conventional
terminal programs can be challenging at best, even
for the most experienced user.
  
Enter, the new GEnie graphical Front Ends.
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Up Front
  
Front End (or FE, for short) is a bit of jargon
that's been widely used to describe a program that
is downloaded and run by the user to interface with
an online host system. Most Front Ends are used for
multi-player games, adding graphics and sound
enhancements that wouldn't otherwise be available.
  
Although FE's generally include some limited
communications functions, they are not terminal
programs; their primary purpose is to act as an
engine for an individual game. The GEnie FE's,
however, are a different story.
  
Like the Macintosh FE, the new Windows FE is a
terminal program that employs a GUI (Graphics User
Interface) to simplify interaction and navigation
of the GEnie Network. Installation is as painless
as it gets -- as simple as running the
self-extracting .EXE file in its own directory and
following a few basic instructions. Running it is
even easier. Just double-click the GEnie FE icon,
and away you go.
  
The first thing you notice when you run the FE is
its clean, straightforward layout. It runs in its
own resizeable window and like all Windows
applications, everything is either icon or
menu-driven, with primary input coming from the
mouse. The second thing you notice (if you're a
Word for Windows user), is a Word-like toolbar that
puts controls for the built-in text editor right
out front.
  
Unlike so many terminal programs, there are no
complex setups or configurations to complete. In
fact, getting online is as simple as entering your
User ID Number and Password, and selecting 'logon'
from the ONLINE menu. The FE does all the rest,
from initializing your modem, to completing the
logon procedure.
  
Getting Around
  
Once you're online, getting around is as simple as
point and click. The heart of the system -- the
Menu Navigator -- lists all available destinations
and keeps track of where you've been, making it
easy to get around and impossible to get lost.
  
The Windows FE supports and simplifies all of the
usual GEnie functions and commands, from file
downloads and Bulletin Board messages, to GE Mail
and Real-Time Conferences. You don't need a manual
and you don't need to remember a lot of esoteric
command functions; all you need is a mouse.
  
For example, to use GE Mail you just select Create,
List or Read from the MAIL menu, and up pops a
window with button controls, a built-in screen for
text display or entry, and boxes that list all
relevant information, such as To, From, CCs,
Subject, Date, Message Number, and Attached Files.
The button controls let you skip back and forth
through the letters in the queue, download attached
files, draft replies or check on a letter's status.
And the text screen really simplifies composing and
posting a letter.
  
What To Do
  
The Windows FE includes some nifty time-saving
features, like a built-in text editor, automated
Locate/Notify and an Address Book editor. But
perhaps its best feature is the To Do Manager
(TDM).
  
Most of the daily, repetitive tasks you perform on
GEnie, like reading or posting GE Mail, scanning
Bulletin Board messages or downloading files, can
be automated with the To Do Manager. Simply check
the things you want done, and with a single click
of the mouse the Windows FE will send or receive GE
Mail, scan or post message, even handle file
transfers.
  
All messages and mail collected by the To Do
Manager are placed in the Filing Cabinet for
off-line access, where you can read them at your
leisure. Then, using the text editor, you can draft
your replies and let the TDM post them the next
time you log on. It just doesn't get any easier
than this.
  
It's FREE!
  
The new Windows Front End is available as a free
download during non prime-time hours simply by
typing M1465 (keyword FRONTEND) at any GEnie Page
prompt. Less impatient folks can also opt for
postal delivery by calling GEnie Client Services at
1-800-638-9636.
  
The ease and simplicity of Windows; the power of
GEnie's massive online information and
entertainment network. It's an unbeatable
combination.