MAIL PGN GAMES EXTRACTOR ------------------------- Hello, I'm Paolo Buratti and I've done this program for all friends of chess.net and ICC (and other chess site, too). (MailPgn is a full free pubblic domain program.) I enabled my AUTOMAIL e PGN variables, this means that I everyday receive via email many chess games ( they are only email messages that I receive :-[ Before MailPgn, I extracted out everyday from email my chess game with long and annoying copy & paste operations. A good day I had an idea: to do a program that does for me that annoying job. MailPgn is a chess games extractor from email messages for Windows3.1+win32s or Windows95. It reads directly from in-box file all messages and recognizes those of chess nature, then it writes them in a sole ascii file. This is usefull to render more fast and simple the import operations in chess programs like chess-base or task-base. MARK REMARKS AND NOTES ABOUT MAILPGN --------------------------------------- Using MailPgn is very simple, however here above it follows any marks about: A) INSTALLATION B) LOCATE IN-BOX FILE C) MENU COMMANDS D) PREFERENCES SETTINGS E) TECHNICAL NOTES F) IN KIND PAYMENTS A) INSTALLATION ********************************************************* MailPgn is a very little program for this reason I've not done any huge extra large installation program. To install MailPgn: 1) Create a new directory named: "MailPgn" 2) Copy in, the files: MailPgn.exe and MailPgn.txt 3) Smile: you are already on good point :-) *4) From Windows 3.1 environment: A) Open program group where you wish place MailPgn B) Select File Menu -> New -> Single program C) Write in description box: Mail Pgn Games Extractor D) Browse to search MailPgn directory E) Select MailPgn.exe file F) Click on OK G) Now, we'll name you Einstein :-] *4) From Windows 95 environment A) Open program group where you wish place MailPgn B) Click left mouse button in window program group without hit any icon C) Press right mouse button and select new-> link file D) Browse to search MailPgn directory E) Select MailPgn.exe file F) Select Next (or OK) G) Write in description box: Mail Pgn Games Extractor H) Now, we'll name you Einstein :-] B) LOCATE IN-BOX FILE ****************************************************** You could have any trouble to find in-box file :-( Before pressing Browse button (in set up preferences window), select right kind email program. I'm italian and my version of Windows 95 is italian too. However indicatively these are the directories where should be in-box file for specific programs: --- EUDORA MAIL PROGRAM ---- C:\EUDORA <- DIRECTORY IN MBX 37.521 07/05/98 13.49 IN.MBX <- THIS IS IT IN TOC 8.234 07/05/98 13.48 IN.TOC <- NOT THIS OUT MBX 1.783 06/04/98 22.25 OUT.MBX TRASH MBX 4.055 10/01/98 21.06 TRASH.MBX 3 file 45.789 byte 0 dir 157.626.368 byte disponibili --- MICROSOFT OUTLOOK EXPRESS C:\Programmi\Outlook Express\Default User\Mail <- DIRECTORY POSTAI~2 IDX 1.200 02/05/98 22.37 Posta in uscita.idx POSTAI~2 MBX 5.060 02/05/98 22.37 Posta in uscita.mbx POSTAI~3 IDX 1.200 02/05/98 22.37 Posta inviata.idx POSTAI~3 MBX 5.060 02/05/98 22.37 Posta inviata.mbx POSTAE~1 IDX 13.900 07/05/98 15.27 Posta eliminata.idx POSTAE~1 MBX 3.039.020 07/05/98 15.27 Posta eliminata.mbx BOZZE MBX 270.080 05/05/98 19.31 Bozze.mbx BOZZE IDX 19.168 07/05/98 15.44 Bozze.idx POSTAI~1 MBX 264.948 07/05/98 15.59 Posta in arrivo.mbx <- THIS IS IT POSTAI~1 IDX 17.660 07/05/98 15.59 Posta in arrivo.idx <- NOT THIS 14 file 3.643.161 byte 2 dir 1.438.515.200 byte disponibili NOTE: "Posta in arrivo" means: "In box mail" ---- NETSCAPE MESSANGER C:\Programmi\Netscape\Users\md6283\Mail <- DIRECTORY (NOTE: md6283 is my user-id) INBOX 37.265 07/05/98 14.44 Inbox <- THIS IS IT INBOX SNM 7.856 07/05/98 14.45 Inbox.snm <- NOT THIS DRAFTS 0 05/04/98 23.45 Drafts DRAFTS SNM 2.568 05/04/98 23.45 Drafts.snm TRASH 0 05/04/98 23.45 Trash TRASH SNM 2.568 05/04/98 23.45 Trash.snm SENT 4.343 08/04/98 21.54 Sent SENT SNM 6.048 19/04/98 23.23 Sent.snm UNSENT~1 0 05/04/98 23.45 Unsent Messages UNSENT~1 SNM 2.576 05/04/98 23.45 Unsent Messages.snm POPSTATE DAT 169 07/05/98 14.44 popstate.dat 11 file 63.393 byte 2 dir 1.438.515.200 byte disponibili C) MENU COMMANDS ********************************************************* Set Preferences ----------------- It allows to set any value like full-path of in-box file, destination pgn file name, flag PGN only, mask search for subject field ect (See below). Load & Save Preferences ------------------------- Load & Save prefrences are not necessary if you use only one email program. Default preferences file (named MailPgn.prf) will be loaded and saved, automatically everytime MailPgn will start and end a job session. You could use Load & Save preferences if you use differents email programs or different settings for scanning in-box file. Start Game Extraction ------------------------ This command start scanning of you in-box email file. If you have not set any preferences (in past), you will be prompted for set preferences. The chess games founded will be written in destination file set in preferences. MailPgn will write a game report list,too. Game report list doesn't contain chess games but it holds only statistical references of every game played. For example: "PaulaJones(4646) - Clinton(6969) lightning 0-1" (Very high rate...) In bottom there will be also a summary of your won/drawn/lost/adjourned/aborted games and kind played games (Blitz, Wild ect). Game report list file will have same name of destination chess games file but it will have ".lst" extension. D) PREFERENCES SETTINGS **************************************************** Preferences window is divided into five frames. 1) "In-box source" frame Explainations about select in-box file are above in this same document. Note: Microsoft and Eudora in-box file have an ".MBX" extension, while Netscape has NONE extension. Before browsing set right email program kind. 2) "PGN Destination File" frame The chess games extracted from MailPgn will be written in ascii-pgn-file chosen by you. If you set "Create" open mode, the games of last scanning will be overwritten on old games. If you set "Append", the new games will be added on old games, in bottom file. Games report list file will use same open mode. If you set "Remove too new PGN token", MailPgn will remove too recent pgn token, from chess games, before writting in ascii file. PGN format has had very changes and improvments in last years. Many chess programs like file chess program or PGN reader, or converter utility (like CBASCII) could not recognize newest PGN token and break the run with a syntax error. For example chess.net uses [TimeControl] and [Mode] token that CBASCII for MSDOS don't accept (It stops with message: "'[' spurios character founded in game ..." ). If you have these troubles you switch on "Remove too new PGN token" and MailPagn will remove all latest token, let them only standard PGN tokens like these: [Event ; [Site ; [Date ; [Round ; [White ; [Black ; [Result ; [Eco ; [WhiteElo ; [BlackElo ; [Annotator ; [FEN . 3) "Scan only email messages" frame MailPgn will scan only email messages that hold in subject field the string specified by you in editor box. If this editor is empty, MailPgn will scan every email messages. Tip: If you would like extract only adjourned game you could set string "adjourned", if you wish extract only your game vs Babaloo (an handle name) set string "Babaloo" ect. If you flag "Only pgn format", the chess games are not in PGN format will be ignored Warning: if you use a null string for search mask in subject field, and don't switch on "with pgn chess format" it could be probably that MailPgn inserts in destination file a little of trash. If in an email message there are strings like "1/2-1/2", "wild" ect. MailPgn recognizes this message like a chess game. This happens only when "only pgn format" is disabled. 4) "My Nickname (handle)" frame If you wish have a statistical game report list (to save in an ascii file) you must write your battle-name, ie the handle (nickname, alias ect). If MailPgn knows your handle, it could calculate your total score in last scanned games. (Win/Lost/Drawn ect) 5) "Execute Program" frame If you wish analyse immediatly the chess games just scanned, you could set the execution of a convert/import program after scanning. For example you could like convert PGN chess games in Chess Base format whereby CBASCII or starting a reader PGN program to watch your chess games. Tips: If your translate procedure is enough complex you could create a batch file with extension .BAT to execute more programs. Note: If you work in Windows 95 environment, last line of BAT file should be "EXIT" (Otherwise it'll wait you close the window) If you insert in command line editor the characters couple "%s", MailPgn before running the executable program will substitute "%s" with active PGN destination file name. If you switch on "and exit from Mailpgn" box, MailPgn, after be launched applicative, will terminate. Note: if applicative is a MS-DOS program and you are in Window95 environment it's possible you need select right icon on menu row (at bottom desktop) to watch newer program. Note: If checkbox "Execute program (after scannign)" is not flagged, MailPgn will ignore Execute name and command line fields. E) TECHNICAL NOTES ******************************************************* I) MailPgn will not parse email messages with content-type different by text/plain. It will ignore messages in html format and/or multipart/form-data. II) At beginning I thought to allow to MailPgn to extract and remove scanned games from in-box mail. But I've had many troubles with Microsoft Outlook Express. Now MailPgn doesn't write or modify anything in in-box file. This means two news one good and one bad: Good News: You will not have to fear that MailPgn could damage your email messages, because it will read them simply. Bad news: You shall erase manually email messages just scanned. III) MailPgn is able to scan chess games in not PGN format, too. However it could have any trouble to recognize player names. Actually it (if not pgn format) search for "vs." string, if it founds it, will extract white player at left, and black player at right. IV) If after a scansion there are "not recognized email headers" (different by zero number) it's probably that kind email program chosen by you are wrong. You should change it. F) IN KIND PAYMENTS ******************************************************* I play chess everyday on chess.net or ICC with handle "Paolone". If you have appreciated my program, please let me win some games in future. If you are a beautiful girl there will be another method to repay me :-} P.S. Last News: My mother language is not english. I suppose you are very surprised about this news. However if a very WASP mom-english language person wishes rewrite this document in a good english I'll be happy, but please: don't erase my important name :-( Bye Bye, nice things Paolo