PC Media 7/PC MEDIA CD07.iso/internet/winsock/wsockets.txt

Text File | 1994-12-12 | 51KB | 1,182 lines

                                          Revised:  June 21, 1994
                                                       Release 05

--------------------------------------
WINDOWS AND TCP/IP FOR INTERNET ACCESS

by

Harry M. Kriz
University Libraries
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
Blacksburg, VA   24061-0434
[e-mail]


--------
ABSTRACT

Internet, the global network of computer networks, is arousing
enormous popular interest. In part, this interest is being driven
by the availability of free or inexpensive shareware software for
Microsoft Windows. It is now technically simple for a personal
computer to become a host on the internet. The casual user can
find, retrieve, and view information gathered from around the
world without having to learn complicated computer commands. In
this paper, I describe the principal functions and services
available via the internet. Then I outline the technical
background and terminology needed by the beginner who wants to
make his PC a host on the internet. Finally, I describe several
Windows software packages and programs that facilitate using
internet services. All the software is freely available over the
internet.


------------
INTRODUCTION

Internet, the world-wide network of computer networks, has
captured the imagination of the general public. A year ago, the
internet was barely mentioned in the popular computing magazines.
Now it is the topic of articles in national news magazines, local
newspapers, and grocery-store tabloids.

Awareness of the internet has spread primarily by word-of mouth.
Computer pundits were not discussing the internet in Spring 1993
when I first began investigating the internet in my work as a
librarian. Indeed, most pundits seem to have acquired internet
access only in the Spring of 1994. Thus, computer magazines have
not been helpful for those wishing to learn about the internet.

Now in June 1994, there is something of a feeding frenzy of
interest in the internet. Bookstores are flooded with guides to
the internet. Software vendors are rushing to market with
collections of software designed for navigating the resources on
the internet. It is almost as if the crest of the internet wave
has passed. Pundits who did not have access to the internet last
year are already writing negative opinions about the difficulties
of navigating internet resources, and about the uselessness of
those resources.

Complaints about the internet are many. Certainly it can be
difficult to find information and resources on the internet. A
great deal of information is unvalidated, non-authoritative, or
otherwise questionable. Some resources should not be available to
children. Some would argue that some of the information should
not be distributed even to adults.

It is important to remember that the internet is not a service.
Rather, it is a means of gaining access to services and of
retrieving information and other objects that can be represented
electronically. In considering complaints about the internet, one
might draw an analogy between the internet and New York City.

New York is big, complicated, and disorganized. The city's myriad
resources can be hard to find. Some of what happens or what is
available in New York should not be seen by children. For those
wishing to navigate the complexity of New York, there are guide
books, phone directories, magazine articles, and individuals with
expert knowledge about areas of particular interest. One can
navigate the complexity of the city by subway, taxi, and bus. One
can even hire a private guide to conduct a tour of the city.

The internet can be compared to the streets of New York City. The
services available on the internet have their analogies in the
city's libraries, department stores, bookshops, art galleries,
street vendors, and street-corner zealots passing out literature
or lecturing the passing crowds. It is safe to assume that
somewhere on the streets of the city there will be found
information and services of interest to almost anyone. However,
finding that information might take some time for someone who is
new to the city and its resources. Similarly, somewhere on the
internet there also will be found information and services of
interest to almost anyone.

Traveling the internet requires only a few basic tools. First is
a computer with a network connection to the internet. Such
connections are common at universities, and becoming more common
in businesses. If a direct network connection is not available,
an alternative is to connect to the internet through the
computer's serial port by dialing up a terminal server that
offers a SLIP connection (Serial Line Internet Protocol). Either
of these connections can be used with a variety of commercial or
shareware software to make your local computer a host on the
internet and to access services and information from the entire
earth. This paper will emphasize the use of freeware and
shareware versions of software running under Microsoft Windows.


-----------------
INTERNET SERVICES

The internet services of interest to most people consist of four
basic functions. These are electronic mail (e-mail), internet
news, file transfer between computers (FTP), and remote login to
another computer (telnet). Access systems like Gopher and World
Wide Web now supplement these basic internet functions by
assisting the user in browsing and searching the internet for
relevant information in a user-friendly manner.

Until recently, internet functions were accessible primarily
through character-based interfaces using a variety of complex
command sets. Thus, in 1992 and 1993, best-selling books on the
internet contained page after page of screen displays or command
sequences captured from UNIX-based systems executing basic
internet functions.

Affordable internet software for Windows has become available
only since Spring 1993. Prior to that time, Windows users were
dependent for internet access on expensive, proprietary,
commercial products in which each vendor's offerings were
mutually incompatible with every other vendor's offerings.
Publication of the Winsock applications programming interface
provided a way for individual client software (such as a telnet
or FTP client) to be compatible with every vendor's networking
products. As a result, beginning in 1993 there was a blossoming
of freeware, shareware, and commercial internet software for
Windows.

Of special interest has been the development of Windows
interfaces to the World Wide Web, such as Cello and NCSA
(National Center for Supercomputing Applications) Mosaic. The Web
was developed by the high energy physics community to distribute
technical papers and other forms of data. WWW is now widely
viewed as a means for educators, businesses, and hobbyists to
distribute multimedia information to a world-wide audience.
Graphical WWW clients enable publication of data over the
internet in a manner which allows the user to view text, color
graphics, sound, and video in a manner that approaches the
usability, and surpasses the functionality, of a printed
magazine.


******
E-MAIL
Electronic mail is probably the most widely used internet
function. A commonly used configuration requires that a user have
an account on a POP (Post Office Protocol) mail server. The
e-mail client software accesses the server and downloads any
incoming messages to the user's PC. Mail composed at the user's
PC is transmitted to the internet through the mail server.

*************
INTERNET NEWS
Internet news, also known somewhat incorrectly as USENET news, is
a conferencing system made up of thousands of topical conferences
known as news groups. Those familiar with electronic bulletin
board systems will compare internet news to echo conferences.
Others will draw an analogy to mailing lists such as listserv on
BITNET. The user reads the news by using client software to
subscribe to a selection of news groups. When the client software
accesses an NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol) server, the
server downloads to the client a list of subjects for all unread
messages stored on the server for the selected group. The user
can then select any message for reading, post a response to the
message to the group, or reply directly to the original poster of
the message. The client software maintains on the user's PC a
list of all available groups on the server, along with records of
which messages have been read or skipped over. Only the messages
selected for reading are actually downloaded to the user's PC.

***
FTP
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) allows the transfer of files between
any two computers of any type. Thus, files can be transferred
from PC to PC, PC to mainframe, PC to Mac, PC to UNIX machine,
and vice versa. Any kind of computer file, whether it be a text
file or a binary file representing software, graphics images, or
sounds, can be sent. Of course, whether the file is usable on the
receiving machine depends on the nature of the file and the
availability of software to make use of the file.

******
TELNET
Telnet enables the user of a PC to login to a host computer at
another site on the internet. The user's PC then acts as a dumb
terminal attached to the remote host. Such access usually
requires that the user have an account on the remote host. For
instance, a student or faculty member at one university might
have an account on a computer located at another university. An
increasing number of commercial services are becoming available
via telnet, including services such as the Dow Jones News Service
and the Lexis/Nexis service. In addition, some services are
available without charge. For example, hundreds of libraries in
all parts of the world allow free remote access to their
computerized catalogs and to some specialized databases.

******
GOPHER
Gopher is a system that enables the user to find files and other
internet services by navigating a system of menus and submenus.
As a corollary, it provides a means for information providers to
publish information on the internet in a discoverable manner.
Prior to the development of Gopher at the University of
Minnesota, information on the internet was located by asking
friends and strangers where to look.

The first step in using a Gopher client is to point the client at
the address of a known Gopher server. The client then retrieves
that Gopher's menu of topics. Typically, many of the topics on a
Gopher menu are pointers to yet other menu items on other Gopher
servers. The fact that each item in the sequence of selections
might come from different Gopher servers in widely scattered
parts of the world is completely transparent to the user. The
Gopher client software presents the many different Gopher servers
as if they represented a single application on a single machine.
Navigating such menus can lead the user to skip from one Gopher
server to another, literally retrieving information from servers
scattered around the world in just a few minutes.

Items on Gopher menus can be of many different data types in
addition to menus listing choices of topics. When an item such as
a text, graphics, or sound file is selected, the Gopher client
transfers the file to the user's PC. Then, as an option, it may
load the file into an appropriate "viewer" selected by the user.
A simple text file could be loaded into Windows Notepad. A
graphics file in GIF or JPEG format might be loaded into LVIEW, a
popular freeware graphics viewer for Windows. A binary program
file would simply be downloaded into a designated directory for
use at some other time. Finding relevant Gopher menu items is
facilitated through the use of Veronica, which is a database of
the text of Gopher menus. Most Gopher servers will include
Veronica access as a menu selection.

**************
WORLD WIDE WEB
World Wide Web (WWW) is a system that enables users to find and
retrieve information by navigating a system of hypertext
documents. In a hypertext document, selecting a highlighted word
or phrase causes a new document to be retrieved and displayed.
Thus, WWW leads the user to skip from one document to another,
retrieving information from servers scattered around the world.
This contrasts with the simple menu displays used by Gopher.

Viewing a WWW document with a Windows graphical client such as
Cello or Mosaic is much like reading a magazine. Information is
displayed with typographic fonts and color graphics, and
supplemented by sound that can be played by clicking an icon
embedded in the document. Clicking on a highlighted word or
phrase in the document retrieves yet another document.


-----------------
TECHNICAL DETAILS

It is helpful to know some internet terminology when working with
your local network specialist or internet service provider to
make your PC a host on the internet. The two most common modes of
internet access are through a direct network connection or
through a SLIP server.

A direct network connection involves installing a network
interface card (NIC) in your PC. Most likely this will be an
ethernet card. This card in turn is connected to your
organization's local area network. Wiring usually consists of
coaxial cable (as in thin-wire ethernet) or twisted pair
telephone wiring (as in 10Base-T ethernet). The local network in
turn must be connected to the internet, and it must be capable of
handling TCP/IP data packets.

TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) is the
method by which data on the internet is divided into packets of
bytes. Each packet is delimited with header information that
includes the destination address where the packet is to be routed
when it is transmitted over the internet. The local network and
your PC may also be using other network protocols simultaneously
with TCP/IP. For instance, your PC may already be connected to a
network using Novell, LANtastic, or Windows for Workgroups
network protocols.

***************
SOFTWARE LAYERS
Several layers of software are involved in implementing a direct
network connection. A commonly used method is to first install a
piece of software called a packet driver that deals directly with
the network interface card. This is loaded under DOS from the
AUTOEXEC.BAT file as a TSR (terminate and stay resident) program.
A packet driver should be included with the software that comes
with the card. If the manufacturer of the card does not supply a
packet driver, free packet drivers are available in the Crynwr
Packet Driver Collection as described at the end of this
document.

The next layer of software is the TCP/IP driver, which can be
implemented in a variety of ways. Until recently, this was often
another DOS TSR program loaded from the AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
Increasingly this layer of software is implemented as a Windows
dynamic link library (DLL) or as a Windows virtual device driver
(VxD), which does not require any modification of the boot files
on the PC. This driver, which implements TCP/IP functionality for
the system, is referred to as the TCP/IP protocol stack. The
driver may be written to work with a specific network card, or it
can be written to interface with a packet driver. In the latter
case, a single TCP/IP driver can be used with any network card
for which an associated packet driver is available. Thus, the
packet driver specification eliminates the need for software
vendors to customize their TCP/IP protocol stack for every
network card on which it is used. When using a packet driver with
Windows applications, another DOS TSR referred to as a virtual
packet driver may be required to interface between the Windows-
based TCP/IP protocol stack and the DOS-based packet driver.

When a direct network connection is not available, internet
TCP/IP software can be used over serial lines to connect to a
SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol) server that provides a
connection to the internet. SLIP does not require the drivers
used for a direct network connection. The Trumpet Winsock
shareware package to be described later has all SLIP functions
internal to the TCP/IP driver, which is configured through a
Windows dialog box.

SLIP is less transparent to the user than is a direct network
connection. The user first obtains an account on a SLIP server.
Connecting to the internet involves dialing the SLIP server using
normal serial communications software and establishing a SLIP
connection. Once the connection is established, TCP/IP software
running on the PC can be used just as if the PC was connected
directly to the internet through a network card. SLIP users are
well advised to settle for nothing less than transmission at
14,400 bits per second. Internet services such as World Wide Web
transmit a great deal of data, especially when images or sound
are being used. Slow modems and slow connections will discourage
anyone but the most dedicated user from exploring the
possibilities of the internet.

TCP/IP client applications work at the top of the layers of
software so far described. Clients run independently of whether
the computer has a direct connection or a SLIP connection to the
internet. TCP/IP applications frequently are referred to as
clients because they access a corresponding server (a daemon in
UNIX terminology) on another machine. An FTP client, for
instance, is the application on the user's machine that accesses
the FTP server running on a host computer located elsewhere on
the internet. Until recently, each TCP/IP client had to be
written to interface with a particular vendor's TCP/IP protocol
stack. Clients that worked with one vendor's TCP/IP driver would
not work with a driver from another vendor. This restriction was
eliminated with the development of the Windows Sockets
Application Programming Interface, otherwise known as the Winsock
API, or more simply Winsock. Winsock works in the layer between
the TCP/IP client and the TCP/IP protocol stack.


-------
WINSOCK

"Winsock" is the buzzword that dominates discussion about TCP/IP
and Windows. All of the software to be described here is based on
Winsock. The implementation of Winsock is transparent to the
user, but it is helpful for the end-user to know how it supports
Windows applications.

Winsock (short for Windows sockets) is a technical specification
that defines a standard interface between a Windows TCP/IP client
application (such as an FTP client or a Gopher client) and the
underlying TCP/IP protocol stack. The nomenclature is based on
the Sockets applications programming interface model used in
Berkeley UNIX for communications between programs.

When you launch a Winsock compliant client like HGopher, it calls
procedures from the WINSOCK.DLL dynamic link library. These
procedures in turn invoke procedures in the drivers supplied with
the TCP/IP protocol stack. As described earlier, the TCP/IP
driver communicates with the computer's ethernet card through the
packet driver.

The WINSOCK.DLL file is not a generic file that can be used on
any system. Each vendor of a TCP/IP protocol stack supplies a
proprietary WINSOCK.DLL that works only with that vendor's TCP/IP
stack.

The advantage of Winsock to the developer of a client is that the
application will work with any vendor's Winsock implementation.
Thus, the developer of an application such as a Gopher client has
to understand the Winsock interface, but he does not have to know
the details of each vendor's TCP/IP protocol stack in order to
make his client application compatible with that stack. Winsock
also eliminates the need for an application developer to include
his own TCP/IP protocol stack within the application program
itself as an alternative to making his application work with a
particular vendor's protocol stack. The use of protocol stacks
internal to the client results in conflicts when two clients try
to access the single packet driver that is communicating with the
network card. The ability to create applications compatible with
any vendor's Winsock compliant protocol stack has resulted in a
blossoming of Winsock compliant shareware applications since the
summer of 1993.

The Winsock standard offers advantages to the end-user. One
advantage is that several Winsock applications from different
vendors can be used simultaneously. This is a marked improvement
over earlier packet driver applications in which each application
contained a built-in TCP/IP stack. Such applications cannot share
the packet driver except through the added complexity of a packet
multiplexer such as PKTMUX. A second advantage to the user is
that any Winsock compliant application will run with any vendor's
TCP/IP protocol stack and accompanying WINSOCK.DLL.

Unfortunately, some commercial vendors of TCP/IP clients are not
yet taking advantage of Winsock capabilities. There are still
TCP/IP clients that require dedicated access to the packet
driver, and clients that will run only with the TCP/IP protocol
stack supplied by one particular vendor. Fortunately, the clear
trend is for all commercial vendors to make their applications
more usable and portable through the use of the Winsock standard.


---------------------
SOFTWARE DESCRIPTIONS

Once the required networking hardware is installed and an IP
address is assigned, or once a SLIP account is obtained on a
server, the user needs to install a TCP/IP protocol stack and a
selection of TCP/IP clients. The remainder of this paper
describes such software.

For each application, I briefly outline the installation
procedures. I do this primarily to illustrate the simplicity of
using Windows for internet access. Please be sure to read any
text files included with each package in order to complete the
configuration and to learn about all functions of the software.

I have installed all the software described here for many of my
colleagues in the Virginia Tech Libraries. With some practice I
have found that I can install a complete suite of TCP/IP
applications in about half an hour. Some individuals who read the
previous versions of this document were up and running in less
than an hour after obtaining the software. They expressed their
delight at the ease of networking with Windows.

**********************************
DISCLAIMERS AND LIMITED WARRANTIES
I am not an expert on anything. I am just an enthusiastic
end-user of these products in my daily work. Some of these
products are in alpha or beta versions at this writing. Despite
this, most are as stable and reliable as any commercial
application. In some cases, the alpha or beta designation may
arise from the fact that features are still being added by the
authors. Indeed, some of these products have gone through several
releases in the past few months as developers responded via the
internet to feedback from users who reported bugs or requested
new features.

I have used all of the client software with a direct connection
to an ethernet network using a Western Digital or SMC ethernet
card with the Trumpet Winsock shareware TCP/IP protocol stack and
WINSOCK.DLL. In addition, I have used most of the clients with
FTP Software's commercial package PC/TCP version 2.2. In the
latter case I obtained the most recent version of FTP Software's
WINSOCK.DLL file by anonymous FTP from ftp.ftp.com in directory
/support/winsock under the name winsock.exe (a self-extracting
ZIP file). The Trumpet and FTP products both use a packet driver
interface to the network card. I have also used most of the
clients on a Windows for Workgroups network using the Final Beta
version of Microsoft's add-on TCP/IP package. This package is
available by anonymous ftp from ftp.microsoft.com in the
directory /peropsys/WFW/tcpip/vxdbeta under the file name
MTCB3.EXE, a self-extracting archive file. I also have used most
of the client software through a SLIP server using the Trumpet
Winsock. Both a dialup connection to the SLIP server and a
connection through an IBM/ROLM digital switch (modemless
connection) were used at various times.

As discussed above, the client software described here should run
with any TCP/IP protocol stack that offers Winsock support. If
your PC is already using a network operating system that does not
include Winsock support, you should check with your vendor to
find out if Winsock support is available. If Winsock support is
not available from your vendor, then it may be possible to
install the Trumpet Winsock TCP/IP protocol stack over your
existing network drivers using a small program known as a packet
driver shim. Instructions for this configuration are included in
the Trumpet Winsock documentation.

The information about version numbers, file sizes, and dates was
verified on June 21, 1994.


***************
TRUMPET WINSOCK  (TCP/IP protocol stack and basic clients, )
                 (including telnet, FTP, ping, Archie      )

Comment:  You need this package (or some other TCP/IP protocol
stack that supports Winsock) before you can use any of the client
software described later. Trumpet Winsock does not require any
additional network software. It's TCP/IP functions can be
installed over other network software such as Novell or Windows
for Workgroups using a packet driver shim. Instructions for such
installations are included in the ZIP file.

Author:     Peter Tattam, Trumpet Software International

Fee:        $20 shareware fee. TSI has extended the free trial
            period until the final release of version 1.0B,
            which is in beta testing at this time.

Version:    1.0 Revision A

File name:  twsk10a.zip    February 3, 1994    120,569 bytes
            (includes the TCP/IP protocol stack)
            winapps.zip    November 30, 1993   131,516 bytes
            (includes basic clients)

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.utas.edu.au in directory /pc/trumpet/winsock
or by Gopher from
  info.utas.edu.au under menu item
  UTas FTP Archive/pc/trumpet/winsock

Installation:

  1.) Create directory C:\TRUMPWSK and unzip TWSK10A.ZIP and
      WINAPPS.ZIP into this directory.

  2.) Install software drivers.

      Ethernet network:

a.) Install packet driver for your ethernet card.
The entry in my AUTOEXEC.BAT file is:

          C:\ETHERNET\8003PKDR.EXE /B:240 /R:D000 /I:10 /E:61

      b.) Install WINPKT.COM virtual packet driver included in
          TWSK10A.ZIP. The entry in my AUTOEXEC.BAT file is:

          C:\TRUMPWSK\WINPKT.COM 0x61

      SLIP:

      No special drivers are needed because SLIP support is
      built into the Trumpet Winsock TCPMAN.EXE program.

  3.) In Program Manager, create a program group named Network.
      Use File Manager to drag and drop the EXE files in
      C:\TRUMPWSK into the Network program group.

  4.) Edit the PATH statement in AUTOEXEC.BAT to include
      C:\TRUMPWSK. This enables Winsock applications to find
      WINSOCK.DLL when they are launched.

  5.) Reboot the computer and start Windows.

  6.) Launch TCPMAN from the Network program group.
      Select Setup on the menu bar. Enter your IP address,
      gateway address, and nameserver address as assigned by
      your local network administrator. (Some SLIP servers do
      not use permanent IP addresses. Instead, the SLIP server
      assigns a temporary IP address at the start of the
      session. In this case, enter 0.0.0.0 as a dummy IP
      address.) If you are using ethernet, enter the software
      interrupt used by the packet driver. If you are using
      SLIP, check the SLIP check box and enter the appropriate
      COM port number in the SLIP port box. Exit from TCPMAN.
      The file TRUMPWSK.INI will be created in the C:\TRUMPWSK
      directory.

  7.) Launch any Winsock compliant application. TCPMAN.EXE will
      start automatically if it is not already running. (If you
      are using SLIP, you must first connect to the server and
      start a SLIP session. This can be done with the dialing
      function in TCPMAN.) Several clients are included with the
      Trumpet Winsock, including TELW.EXE for telnet, FTPW.EXE
      for FTP, WINARCH.EXE for searching Archie databases,
      PINGW.EXE to ping another machine on the network, and
      HOPCHKW.EXE to trace the path through the internet used to
      reach a particular host.

Note:  The WINSOCK.DLL file for the Trumpet Winsock remains in
the C:\TRUMPWSK directory. Some vendors may require that their
WINSOCK.DLL be copied to the C:\WINDOWS directory. If you have
used Winsock software from another vendor, but now want to try
the Trumpet Winsock, be sure to remove the other vendor's
WINSOCK.DLL so that it will not interfere with the Trumpet
Winsock implementation.

Tip:  The WINARCH client for Archie searching that is supplied in
WINAPPS.ZIP defaults to searching the Archie server at archie.au.
You can access a different Archie server by using a command line
argument. For instance, to use the Archie server run by AT&T, use
the command line winarch.exe -archie=ds.internic.net.

SLIP usage:  Trumpet Winsock includes a simple dialing function.
You can connect to your SLIP server by manually issuing the
dialing commands. You can also write a script that will dial and
start your SLIP session automatically. When your SLIP session
starts, TCPMAN will use the address assigned by the SLIP server.

PITFALL:  After dialing with TCPMAN.EXE and establishing the SLIP
session, you must press the <ESC> key to escape from dialing mode
and to re-enable the SLIP function in TCPMAN.EXE.

If you want to dial your SLIP server automatically, but you do
not care to write your own dialing script for TCPMAN.EXE, a
utility named DIALER provides a convenient means of dialing the
phone and automatically starting the SLIP session. DIALER can be
set up to automatically issue the commands and passwords needed
to start the SLIP session. DIALER version 2.0A is available by
anonymous FTP from:

     ftp.demon.co.uk
     /pub/ibmpc/windows/utilities/dialexe.zip
     (May 27, 1994, 31,072 bytes)


*******
HGOPHER  (Gopher client)

Comment:  Version 2.4 of HGopher was the most recent shareware
version. However, HGopher has been sold to FTP Software Inc.,
which expects to issue a commercial version in the near future.
Thus, version 2.4 is no longer available from its author. He
still distributes Version 2.3 of HGopher, which is quite
functional and will continue to be available as shareware. It
will no longer be maintained or enhanced. Copies of version 2.4
may still be found at some anonymous FTP sites or at some Gopher
sites.

Author:     Martyn Hampson

License:    Public domain. Mr. Hampson suggests you donate
            $10.00 to your favorite charity if you like HGopher.

Version:    2.3

File name:  hgopher2.3.zip  October 21, 1993   190,057 bytes
            (Yes, that is not a valid DOS name. You will have to
            change it to something else when you download it.)

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  lister.cc.ic.ac.uk in directory /pub/wingopher
or by Gopher from
  gopher.ic.ac.uk under menu item
  Networking/HGopher Information Center/The Hgopher distribution
  and Viewers


Installation:
  1.) Create the directory C:\HGOPHER and unzip hgopher2.3.zip
      (under whatever name you saved it) into this directory.
  2.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\HGOPHER\HGOPHER.EXE.
  3.) Launch HGopher.
  4.) Supply the addresses and other information in the dialog
      boxes for the menu selections Options Gopher Set Up and
      Options Network Set Up. For some types of information
      distributed via Gopher, you will need to configure the
      viewers using the Options Viewers dialog box. For example,
      you need to tell HGopher which telnet client to use, and
      which program to use for viewing JPEG or GIF image files.
      The HGOPHER.INI file and bookmark files are kept in the
      C:\HGOPHER directory.


*******************
TRUMPET FOR WINDOWS  (internet news reader and POP mail client)

Comment:  To read internet news, you need access to an NNTP
(Network News Transfer Protocol) server. To use the mail
functions, you need an account on a POP (Post Office Protocol)
mail server. (I have not tested the mail functions in this
application because I prefer to use PC Eudora for mail.)

Author:     Peter Tattam. Trumpet Software International

Fee:        $40.00 shareware fee. TSI has extended the free
            trial period until the final release of version
            1.0B, which is in beta testing at this time.

Version:    1.0 Revision A

File name:  wtwsk10a.zip   August 28, 1993     167,601 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.utas.edu.au in directory /pc/trumpet/wintrump
or by Gopher from
  info.utas.edu.au under menu item /pc/trumpet/wintrump

Installation:
  1.) Create the directory C:\WINTRUMP and unzip WTWSK10A.ZIP
      into this directory.
  2.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\WINTRUMP\WT_WSK.EXE.
  3.) Launch the program.
  4.) Supply the address and other information in the dialog
      boxes for the menu selections File Setup and File Network
      Setup. NEWS.PRM and other configuration files will be
      created and stored in C:\WINTRUMP.

PITFALL:  The list of available news groups on your news server
is stored by Trumpet in the file NEWS.GRP. At times, Trumpet
fails to fully update this file with new groups available from
the server. You can force Trumpet to create a new and complete
list of available groups by erasing NEWS.GRP before starting
Trumpet.


*********
PC EUDORA  (full featured mail client)

Comment:  You will need an account on a POP mail server to send
and receive mail at your PC. QUALCOMM sells a commercial version
of Eudora for both Windows and the Macintosh.

Author:     Jeff Beckley and Jeff Gehlhaar, QUALCOMM, Inc.

License:    Shareware version is free

Version:    Shareware: 1.4

File name:  eudora14.exe   December 16, 1993   275,600 bytes
            (self extracting archive file)

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.qualcomm.com in directory /quest/windows/eudora/1.4

Installation:
  1.) Copy the file EUDORA14.EXE to the directory C:\PCEUDORA.
  2.) Execute EUDORA14 from the DOS prompt to unarchive the
      program files.
  3.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\PCEUDORA\WEUDORA.EXE.
  4.) Launch the program.
  5.) Select Special Configuration from the menu bar and supply
      the required information.
  6.) Select Special Switches and set characteristics as
      desired.
  7.) Create mailboxes and nicknames to taste.
  8.) The file EUDORA.INI and other configuration files will be
      created in the C:\PCEDUORA directory.

Note:  A revised version is in beta testing at this time. It is
available by anonymous ftp from ftp.qualcomm.com in directory
/quest/windows/eudora/1.4/beta under the file name eu142b16.exe
(June 8, 1994   198,354 bytes)


*******
WS_FTP    (FTP client)
WS_PING   (ping client)

Author:     John Junod

License:    Public domain

Version:    94.04.24  (WS_FTP)
            94.01.23  (WS_PING)

File names: ws_ftp.zip     April 25, 1994      73,642 bytes
            ws_ping.zip    January 27, 1994    59,373 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.usma.edu in directory /pub/msdos/winsock.files
  Those who want to experiment with a beta copy of a newer
  version of WS_FTP can download ws_ftp.zip.beta from the
  directory /pub/msdos.

Installation:
  1.) Create the directory C:\WS_.
  2.) Unzip WS_FTP.ZIP into this directory.
  3.) Unzip the file WS_PING.EXE from its ZIP file into this
      directory also. (Full source code for WS_PING is included
      in the ZIP file with the name WSPI_SRC.ZIP. Source code
      for the current version of WS_FTP is not distributed.
      However, source code for the 93-12-05 version of WS_FTP
      can be downloaded from directory /pub/msdos/winsock.files
      under the name ws_ftp_s.zip .)
  4.) Create new program items in the Network program group for
      the programs C:\WS_\WS_FTP.EXE and C:\WS_\WS_PING.EXE.
  5.) Launch the programs.
  6.) The WS_FTP.INI file remains in the C:\WS_ directory. A
      file named WINSOCK.INI is created by WS_PING in the
      C:\WINDOWS directory.


***********
NCSA MOSAIC for Microsoft Windows   (World Wide Web browser)
                                    (and Gopher client     )

Comment:  An exquisite display of World Wide Web documents,
including full color graphics and sound mixed in with text. Users
should note the alpha version designation and use caution about
saving work in any other running applications before launching
Mosaic. As in previous versions, simply launching and then
exiting from Mosaic permanently reduces by 3% to 5% the Windows
user.exe resources on my machine. Launching Mosaic and exiting
several times can lead to conditions that require you to restart
Windows.

Mosaic is a 32-bit application and will run under Windows NT,
Microsoft's advanced workstation operating system. Most users
will be using Windows 3.1 and Windows for Workgroups, which are
16-bit applications. To use Mosaic with these systems, you must
first install Win32s version 1.1.5 or later. This addition to the
Windows operating system enables current version of Windows to
run 32-bit code that is not Windows NT specific.

Authors:    Ryan Grant, Briand Sanderson, Darian Woodford

License:    Free

Version:    2.0 alpha 5

File name:  wmos20a5.zip   June 17, 1994         272,435 bytes
            win32s.zip     May 12, 1994        1,269,110 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu in directory /PC/Mosaic

Installation:
  1.) Install Win32s following the instructions in the ZIP file.
      The files will be installed in the directory
      C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\WIN32S.
  2.) Create the directory C:\MOSAIC and unzip WMOS20A5.ZIP into
      this directory.
  3.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\MOSAIC\MOSAIC.EXE.
  4.) Copy the file MOSAIC.INI to C:\WINDOWS. (You can put
      MOSAIC.INI in a different directory if you use a DOS
      environment variable to point to the correct directory.)
  5.) Edit the INI file following instructions in the file
      INSTALL.TXT.
  6.) Launch the program.

NOTE:  You can avoid the added complexity of installing Win32s
and the substantial demands it places on your PC by reverting to
Mosaic version 2.0 alpha 2. This version is still available from
NCSA's FTP server in directory /PC/Mosaic/old. Alternatively, you
can use the WWW browser Cello as described below.


*****
CELLO  (World Wide Web browser and Gopher client)

Comment:  This Web client may be more stable than Mosaic, but it
lacks Mosaic's convenient bookmark menus. Users of Diamond
Stealth video cards report problems with the mouse cursor, which
virtually disappears when the mouse is moved. The listserv CELLO-
L is busy with messages about CELLO development and about
shareware for creating HTML documents for use on Web servers.
Instructions for subscribing to CELLO-L are included in the Cello
Help file.

Author:     Thomas R. Bruce

License:    Free

Version:    1.01a

File name:  cello.zip      March 17, 1994      328,429 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.law.cornell.edu in directory /pub/LII/Cello

Installation:
  1.) Create the directory C:\CELLO and unzip CELLO.ZIP into
      this directory.
  2.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\CELLO\CELLO.EXE.
  3.) Launch the program.


*****
WFTPD  (FTP server)

Comment:  I had not imagined I would want or need to use my PC as
an FTP server. However, I have found this product useful on a
couple of occasions to transfer files from an IBM mainframe to my
PC. This is far easier than trying to FTP to the mainframe from
my PC. Even colleagues new to Windows and networking are
beginning to find it useful to run their PC as an FTP server in
order to exchange files with their colleagues. Note that
WinQVT/Net, which is described later, has an FTP server function
also.

Author:     Alun Jones

License:    $15.00. The unregistered shareware version displays
            a message to anyone accessing the server that the
            owner is unable or unwilling to pay the shareware
            fee. The shareware version is limited to five file
            transfers per session.

Version:    1.9c
            Note that previous versions had a serious security
            bug and should not be used.

File name:  wftpd19c.zip   June 14, 1994       131,178 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.cica.indiana.edu in /pub/pc/win3/winsock

Installation:
  1.) Create the directory C:\WFTPD and unzip WFTPD19C.ZIP into
      this directory.
  2.) Create a new program item in the Network program group for
      the program C:\WFTPD\WFTPD.EXE.
  3.) Launch the program.
  4.) Complete the information in the Security dialog box to
      establish security control using access passwords and
      restricted home directories for those you authorize to
      access your PC. The file WFTPD.INI will be created in the
      C:\WINDOWS directory.


------
TELNET

The glaring deficiency in the Winsock pantheon of internet
clients is the absence of a good stand-alone telnet client. Here
is a brief description of some alternatives I have tried.


****
TELW

Comment:  TELW.EXE is included with the Trumpet Winsock package
in the WINAPPS.ZIP file. It is the first client that shareware
users are likely to try. It is a minimal client with no
configuration possibilities. It can be useful at times as a
terminal/telnet viewer in HGopher.


**********
WinQVT/Net

Comment:  WinQVT/Net is an integrated package that includes
telnet, FTP, FTP server, mail, and news reader clients. These
client applications are normally launched from a console window.
The telnet client is probably the best shareware Winsock telnet
client available. You can select terminal emulations and
customize the keyboard. The resizable telnet window includes
scrollback and session logging. A deficiency is that telnet
cannot be launched independently of the console window. However,
if WinQVT/Net is already running, then an instance of the telnet
client can be launched from another application by invoking the
TNSTART.EXE program that comes with WinQVT/Net. This makes it
possible to use this telnet client as the terminal/telnet viewer
in HGopher.

Author:     QPC Software

License:    There has been discussion in alt.winsock and other
            news groups about the difficulty of getting any
            response to e-mail and fax messages from the author
            of WinQVT/Net. Paying the license fee may be
            difficult as a result.

Version:    3.97

File name:  qvtws397.zip   288,373 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  biochemistry.bioc.cwru.edu (closed to public 9-5 weekdays)
or by Gopher from
  biochemistry.cwru.edu under menu item
  CWRU Biochemistry FTP Archive/qvtnet


*******
TRMPTEL

Comment:  This is my favorite telnet client at the moment. It can
be used as a terminal/telnet viewer with HGopher or with Mosaic
and Cello. It is a very early release of a client that can be
expected to become excellent in the near future.

Author:     Peter Tattam

License:    Free beta version

Version:    0.06

File name:  trmptel.exe    April 28, 1994      68,608 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
   petros.psychol.utas.edu.au in directory /pub/trumpet/trmptel


****
EWAN

Comment:  EWAN (Emulator Without a Good Name) is a promising new
Winsock telnet client. It also can be used as a terminal/telnet
viewer with HGopher or with Mosaic and Cello.

Author:     Peter Zander

License:    Free

Version:    1.0

File name:  ewan10.exe     June 15, 1994       129,155 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
   ftp.lysator.liu.se in directory /pub/msdos/windows


***********
NCSA TELNET

Comment:  NCSA telnet is a standard in the DOS and Macintosh
environments. The Winsock client is under development. A
spokesman for NCSA has posted messages to the internet saying
that the existing client was thrown together quickly, and it is
not supported. A student has been hired to write a new version of
the client, but it was said he had to learn TCP/IP and Windows
programming. I have not found this client useful, but others may
wish to experiment with it. No doubt NCSA will produce an
excellent telnet client in the future.

License:    Free

Version:    beta 3

File name:  wintelb3.zip   October 21, 1993    55,834 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu in directory /PC/Telnet/windows


*******
QWS3270

Comment:  Telnet clients usually emulate a VT100 terminal or one
of its variations, the standard for connecting to a UNIX host.
However, telneting to an IBM mainframe requires emulation of an
IBM 3270 terminal. QWS3270 provides the necessary functionality.
I was especially pleased with the easily-configured 4 color
capability that makes it easier to distinguish protected,
unprotected, and highlighted text on a VM screen.

Author:     Jim Rymerson

License:    Free

Version:    3.1e

File name:  qws3270.zip    June 9, 1994        70,526 bytes

Available by anonymous FTP from:
  ftp.ccs.queensu.ca in directory /pub/msdos/tcpip


-------------------------------------
OTHER SOURCES FOR WINSOCK INFORMATION

It remains true that the best guide to the internet is the
internet itself. The best software for navigating the internet is
freely available on the internet.

Considerable information about the Winsock API, along with some
application programs, is available at: sunsite.unc.edu in
directory /pub/micro/pc-stuff/ms-windows/winsock.

The anonymous FTP sites that I list as sources for programs are
the sites designated by the authors as their home sites. These
sites will always have the latest version of the software.

In addition, copies of the software may usually be obtained by
anonymous FTP from ftp.cica.indiana.edu in /pub/pc/win3/winsock.
However, it is the case that this directory at CICA will not
always contain the current versions. Check the directory
/pub/pc/win3/pending.uploads for text files that may describe new
versions of programs that are still in the uploads directory and
not distributed to their final directory location. Unfortunately,
a recent policy change at CICA prevents anonymous users from
viewing the uploads directory. Dates on the files at CICA may
disagree with the dates on the files at the home sites. Note that
CICA is the main internet site for Windows applications. It is
usually busy, and you may have difficulty connecting. There are
several other internet sites that provide mirror copies of the
Windows collection at CICA. These are listed in the message
displayed if you are denied access to CICA. The list of mirror
sites is included in the file README in the /pub/pc/win3
directory. When using CICA, it is helpful to download the file
INDEX (ascii) or INDEX.ZIP from /pub/pc/win3. INDEX contains
one-line descriptions of each file in the collection.

The news groups alt.winsock, and comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc
carry discussions of the Winsock specification and Winsock
compliant applications, as do the groups in the
comp.os.ms-windows.networking hierarchy. Trumpet Winsock and
related clients are discussed in several news groups in the
trumpet hierarchy.

Information about specific clients may be found in groups devoted
to that class of client. For instance, HGopher is discussed in
alt.gopher and in comp.infosystems.gopher. Cello and Mosaic are
discussed in the sections of the comp.infosystems.www hierarchy.

The BITNET listserv WIN3-L@UICVM carries discussions about all
topics relating to Windows, including Winsock applications. Some
news servers carry this listserv under the news group name
bit.listserv.win3-l.

A comprehensive list of FTP'able Winsock applications is
available from Larsen Consulting and Sales, Phoenix, Arizona,
USA. To get a copy of the list, send an e-mail message to
[e-mail] with the Subject: FAQ. Nothing else should be in
the message.

A FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) about TCP/IP on PC-compatible
computers written by Bernard D. Adoba is posted monthly on
comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc. A copy can be obtained by anonymous
FTP from rtfm.mit.edu in directory
/pub/usenet-by-hierarchy/comp/protocols/tcp-ip/ibmpc
under the decidedly non-DOS filename
comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc_Frequently_Asked_Questions_(FAQ).
The version dated May 4, 1994 is 145,270 bytes. I downloaded this
ASCII file to my PC and saved it under the filename IBMTCP.FAQ.
It is also available under the name ibmtcp.zip from
netcom2.netcom.com in directory /pub/mailcom/IBMTCP.

An introduction to SLIP is available by pointing your Gopher
client at gopher.vt.edu. Look down the menus through
Computing Center.../Experimental file system/nyman/whatslip.txt.

The Crynwr packet drivers collection is available by anonymous
FTP in the well-known Simtel20 collection, as well as through a
variety of other methods. The primary publicly available site for
Simtel files is at oak.oakland.edu. The packet drivers are in the
directory /systems/ibmpc/simtel/pktdrvr:
pktd11.zip       November 22, 1993        435420 bytes
pktd11a.zip      November 22, 1993        326152 bytes
pktd11b.zip      November 22, 1993        344847 bytes
pktd11c.zip      December 14, 1993         81834 bytes.


An early version of this document (dated February 9, 1994) was
published in the "Toolkit" section of the March 14, 1994 issue of
"Global Network News." GNN is part of the "Global Network
Navigator," a World Wide Web publication of O'Reilly Associates.
Articles in GNN are aimed at the reader with a general interest
in the internet and networked information. You can read GNN by
pointing Mosaic or Cello at http://www.wimsey.com/gnn/gnn.html.

The latest version of "Windows and TCP/IP for internet access" is
available by anonymous FTP from nebula.lib.vt.edu in the
directory /pub/windows/winsock under the name wtcpip**.zip.


================================================================
I thank each of you who sent me personal messages following the
postings of earlier versions of this evolving document. I have
now received e-mail about this document from individuals on seven
continents. Thanks to AJO at McMurdo Station for sending me a
message from Antarctica.

I am gratified to have been able to help many of you, and I
appreciate the suggestions and information you have sent me. My
efforts in producing this document can be only a small and
indirect repayment of the debt I owe to the developers who
produce this software and to the many internet users who are so
willing to share information.

Please send error reports to me at [e-mail]. I would be
grateful for suggestions for improvements and additions to this
document. Thanks again to everyone who replied to my beginner's
questions over the past year. I greatly appreciate your patience,
and your willingness to share your knowledge.
=================================================================