Category : Communication (modem) tools and utilities
Archive   : KERPC300.ZIP
Filename : MSTIBM.UPD

File KERMIT.UPD MS-DOS KERMIT 3.0 UPDATES January 1990


This file lists and briefly describes the features that are new to version
3.0 of MS-DOS Kermit, January 1990. The previous release of MS-DOS Kermit
was 2.32/A, January 1989.

The user manual for MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 is "Using MS-DOS Kermit", by Christine
M. Gianone, published by Digital Press, Bedford, MA, 1990, order number
EY-C204E-DP, and includes a 5.25-inch MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 diskette. Call
1-800-343-8321 (toll free, USA) to order. The technical reference by
Professor Joe R. Doupnik is in preparation.


NEW FEATURES OF MS-DOS KERMIT 3.0

1. Emulation of most features of the DEC VT320 terminal, plus many features
of the VT340.
2. International character sets in terminal emulation and file transfer.
3. Sliding window packet protocol.
4. Expanded support for local area networks.
5. Enhanced graphics commands in the Tektronix emulator, suitable for use
with mainframe WordPerfect versions 5 and 4.2.
6. Many other improvements.


1. VT320/VT340 EMULATION

MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 emulates the DEC VT320 terminal, international model, with
many features of the more advanced VT340/330 text/graphics terminals thrown
in. VT320 is the default terminal type for MS-DOS Kermit 3.0. Kermit
continues to offer emulations for the DEC VT52, Heath/Zenith-19, and DEC
VT100/102 terminals, as well as of Tektronix graphics terminals. Kermit's
VT320/340 emulation offers many capabilities beyond the VT102, including:

. A selection of character sets, with the ability to switch among them.
. Translation of the above sets to/form any of the five Code Pages.
. User-defined soft function keys, downloadable by the host.
. Tektronix 4010/4014 graphics with many extensions, including color,
"sixel" graphics, rectangle fill with various patterns, and more.
. Support of the DEC LK250 keyboard, a DEC LK201 keyboard for IBM-PCs
(via a special driver, LK250.*).

A new mechanism is provided for switching between 80 and 132 columns when your
display adapter supports this. Create two files, COLS80.BAT and COLS132.BAT,
in your current disk and directory or anywhere in your DOS PATH. These files
should contain the DOS commands required to put your particular display
adapter into 80-column and 132-column mode, respectively. They will be invoked
automatically if the host sends the VT100/200/300 escape sequences to change
screen width (for example if you SET TERMINAL /WIDTH=132 in VAX/VMS). Several
EGA boards known to Kermit will be switched automatically without these files.
You may also change the screen width manually by running these batch programs
either outside of Kermit or from within Kermit by using Kermit's RUN command.

Graphics screens may now be saved to disk files in uncompressed
Aldus/Microsoft TIFF 5.0 format (approximately 110K per EGA screen) by
invoking the keyboard verb \kdump (initially assigned to Ctrl-End) when the
graphic is on the screen, for importation into applications such as
WordPerfect 5.0, Pagemaker, Ventura Publisher, PC Paint, and Gem Paint. The
file names are TEKPLT01.TIF, TEKPLT02.TIF, etc.

MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 VT320/340 emulation lacks the following features:

. Smooth scrolling
. True double-width, double-height characters (these are simulated)
. Downloadable soft character fonts
. ReGis graphics (VT340/330)
. Dual sessions in split screens (VT340/330)
. A setup screen (use SET TERMINAL commands instead)
. Split speeds
. Local screen editing and block transmission (for security reasons)
. Answerback (also for security reasons)
. Selective erasure (a character attribute, used with formatted screens)
. And many of the exotic and rarely known features of the DEC VT340/330
series: mostly formatted screen and graphics operations highly specialized
to DEC hardware.


2. INTERNATIONAL CHARACTER SET SUPPORT

MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 supports translation between the PC's local character set
(Code Page) and ISO Latin Alphabet 1 (ISO 8859-1) during file transfer.
The relevant new commands are:

SET TRANSFER CHARACTER-SET { TRANSPARENT, LATIN1 }
SET FILE CHARACTER-SET { CP437, CP850, CP860, CP863, CP865 }

The default transfer character set is TRANSPARENT (that is, no translation is
done) for compatibility with previous releases of MS-DOS Kermit. The default
file character set is your PC's current code page, such as CP437, and that
is detected automatically.

These new commands allow you to transfer files containing accented and other
special characters with Kermit programs on computers that represent these
same characters using different codes, such as VAX/VMS, UNIX, Macintosh, IBM
mainframes, etc, when the Kermit programs on these computers also support
international text file transfer; new versions of C-Kermit for UNIX and
VAX/VMS, Macintosh Kermit, IBM mainframe Kermit, and others which support
this feature are in preparation. International file transfer is also useful
between two PCs that use different code pages.

The introduction of this new capability requires for the first time that
MS-DOS Kermit distinguish between text files (which MIGHT need translation)
and binary files (which should not be translated) during file transfer. This
is done using the new command:

SET FILE TYPE { BINARY, TEXT }

TEXT is the default. However, since the default text character set is
TRANSPARENT, binary file transfers should continue to work, even if you forget
to SET FILE TYPE BINARY in MS-DOS Kermit (but you must still issue this
command to other Kermit programs).

Various host-based international character sets are also supported during
VT320 terminal emulation, including 8-bit ISO Latin Alphabet 1, the DEC
8-bit Multinational Character Set, 12 different 7-bit National Replacement
Character (NRC) Sets, and several others. The command to select your
terminal character set is:

SET TERMINAL CHARACTER-SET xxx

where xxx is the desired name (for a list, type ? in place of xxx). LATIN1
and DEC-MCS are 8-bit character sets, intended primarily for use in the 8-bit
environment, meaning that the host uses 8 data bits, no parity. In MS-DOS
Kermit, you must SET PARITY NONE and SET DISPLAY 8 in order to operate in this
environment. In 7-bit-with-parity environments, MS-DOS Kermit will respond
to shift-in/shift-out codes for displaying 8-bit characters, but the method
for transmitting 8-bit characters to the host is host-dependent. Normally,
NRC sets are used in the 7-bit environment.

Kermit automatically translates incoming characters from the current
terminal character set (SET TERMINAL CHARACTER-SET) to the current PC code
page, and it automatically translates keystrokes from the current code page
to terminal character set. The default terminal character set is LATIN1
(Latin Alphabet 1). SET KEY assignments take precedence on a per-key basis.

3. SLIDING WINDOW PACKET PROTOCOL

For increased efficiency during file transfer across long-distance,
long-delay communication links such as public data networks, MS-DOS Kermit
3.0 includes sliding window packet protocol. This means that Kermit does
not have to wait for an acknowledgement for the current packet before
sending the next packet. The number of packets that may be sent before
acknowledgements arrive is called the "window size", and this may range from
1 to 31. A sufficiently large window size allows transmission of packets to
be continuous, and makes maximum effective use of the transmission channel.
The command to select the window size is:

SET WINDOW n

where n is a number from 1 to 31. The default window size is 1 for Kermit's
normal stop-and-wait operation. Window sizes greater than 1 can be used only
with other Kermit programs that support this option, including PRIME Kermit,
C-Kermit 5A or later (still in preparation), certain commercial programs, or
another copy of MS-DOS Kermit 3.0.

Sliding windows may be used in conjunction with long packets. The product of
the packet size and the window size may not exceed 2000.



4. LOCAL AREA NETWORK SUPPORT

MS-DOS Kermit 3.0 for the IBM PC, PS/2, and compatibles supports the following
local area networks and protocols:

. Netbios via SET PORT NETBIOS for PC-to-PC file transfers. Requires
a Netbios-based PC network (like IBM PC Network or IBM Token Ring) and
accompanying hardware and drivers.

. Netbios via SET PORT NETBIOS for PC to AT&T Unix systems over StarGroup
(formerly StarLAN) and for PC-to-host file transfer across any NetBios
compatible system. Requires a Netbios driver for your network interface.

. Novell Terminal Emulation Service (TES) via SET PORT BIOSx.
Requires Novell TES BIOS-Level COMx driver (e.g. COM1, COM2) that
intercepts BIOS interrupt 14H and controls the network interface, and
a host VAX running NetWare/VMS.

. Novell NASI/NACS V2 and compatible asynchronous communication servers,
via SET PORT NOVELL. Requires Novell or compatible network.

. DECnet-DOS, both LAT and CTERM interfaces, via SET PORT DECNET.
Requires installation of DECnet-DOS or DECnet PCSA.

. Ungermann-Bass Net/One Int 6BH via SET PORT UB-NET1.
Requires an Ethernet board with U-B Net/One drivers or compatibles.

. Intel OpenNET via SET PORT OPENNET, a NetBios implementation.

. IBM asynchronous communication servers accessed through IBM EBIOS,
via SET PORT BIOSx. Requires EBIOS Int 14H interceptor. Needs testing.

. 3COM Bridge Application Program Interace (BAPI) to asynchronous
communication servers via SET PORT BIOSx. Requires 3COM Int 14H
interceptor.

. 3COM BAPI, newer version which uses higher-numbered BIOS interrupts
particular to that interface, via SET PORT 3COM(BAPI).

. TCP/IP Telnet via SET PORT BIOSx. Requires vendor's Int 14H interceptor
to execute Telnet protocol, for example FTP Software's PC/TCP v2.04
(TNGLASS dated 6 Dec 1989 or later), or Interlan's TCP/IP Gateway for
Novell Networks.


Use ? in the SET PORT command to learn about additional fields such as node
names and passwords.

Connections established with SET PORT NOVELL can be controlled by invoking the
new Kermit keyboard verb \Knethold. First assign this verb to a key using SET
KEY (for example, "SET KEY \315 \Knethold" to assign it to the F1 key), then
press the key during terminal emulation. This will invoke a Novell menu to
select connections, select modem speeds, keep sessions on hold while starting
more sessions, and resume old sessions.


5. TEKTRONIX GRAPHICS

The name Tektronix may no longer be adequate to describe the new features
drawn from DEC VT340/330 and HDS 2000/3000 graphics terminals. Principle
additions are:

. Rectangle (border only) and pattern filled rectangle drawing commands.

. More preprogrammed line patterns, many rectangle fill patterns, both
include several host definable patterns. Fill patterns are tiling kinds
synchronized to the screen boundaries, for smooth joinery and easy
pattern overlaying operations.

. Host control of destructive space and backspace.

. User control of opaque or transparent character writing.

. Control of pixel basic operations such as write absolute, OR, XOR with
existing colors, including DEC VT340 ORing of color palette numbers.

. DEC Sixel graphics commands.

. Screen dumping in TIFF v 5.0 formats (class B for B/W, class P palette for
EGA and VGA screens), uncompressed. One file for each screen capture.

. Support of most common cursor steering and line/screen erasure escape
sequences of ANSI text terminals, scaled to the text terminal's screen
shape, so that text, Tektronix, and Sixel graphics can be mingled.

. Automatic switching from text terminal to graphics terminal upon receipt
of a Sixel Device Control String.

. Presence, use, and reporting of the 16 color and b/w palettes of the DEC
VT340/330 terminals. DEC characteristic of black always writes absolutely.

. Coloring commands acceptable in ANSI ESC [ 3x; 4x m format and in Device
Control Strings for both RBG and HLS (hue, lightness, saturation) systems.

. Reporting of the graphics screen size and number of colors upon host
request, an MS-DOS Kermit escape sequence in DEC private format.

. Support for mainframe WordPerfect 5.0 and 4.2 to view and edit figures
(pictures) and pages in graphics mode while preparing documents in text
mode. TIFF files from MS-DOS Kermit screens are directly readable into
WordPerfect (and several other packages).

. Terminal identification response of VT300 with Sixel and other attributes.

. Recognition of 8-bit control sequences, but truncation of other 8-bit
characters to 7-bit form. For this, parity must be NONE and DISPLAY 8-bits.

. Recognition of the ESC [ ? 34 h and l TerminalS and TerminalR MS-DOS
Kermit macro invokation sequences from the host.


6. OTHER IMPROVEMENTS

* Communications

. Support for advanced features of the PS/2's National Semiconductor 16550A
UART (serial communications) chip for improved performance.

. New SET DUPLEX { HALF, FULL } command includes support for RTS/CTS
handshake for use with half duplex modems, radio transmitters, etc.
RTS/CTS is used if DUPLEX is set to HALF and the DSR signal is present.

* Terminal Emulation (in addition to VT320/340 and Tektronix features
listed above):

. Expanded storage for rollback screens. If memory is available, Kermit
will allocate room for about 10 screens. More is available via the new
DOS environment variable, KERMIT: SET KERMIT=ROLLBACK 120, memory
permitting.

. Screen rollback is now instantaneous.

. New REPLAY command to replay a Kermit session log through the terminal
emulators.

. Transparent print now works properly in the presence of parity.

. New SET TERMINAL KEYPAD { APPLICATION, NUMERIC } command gives users
explicit control over VT terminal keypad mode. Formerly the keypad mode
could be changed only by escape sequences sent from the host.

. Visual bell for deaf users (SET TERMINAL BELL VISUAL) during terminal
emulation.

. Support for additional monitors and display adapters:
- Wyse-700 (graphics in several high resolution dimensions)
- ATT EGA VDC600 (automatic recognition of 80/132 column mode)
- STB VGA/EM, VGA/EM-15 boards (automatic recognition of 80/132 column mode)
- Other boards to or from 80/132 columns via COLS80.BAT and COLS132.BAT.

* Kermit Protocol (in addition to international character sets and sliding
windows, described above):

. Maximum file transfer packet size increased from 1000 to 2000 bytes.

. New server security features, including login/password, available via
DISABLE, ENABLE, and SET SERVER commands.

. Redirection of output of REMOTE commands to file or printer via
DOS redirection symbol (>), e.g. REMOTE DIRECTORY > PRN.

. Non-control versions of single-character file transfer interrupt commands
(X,Z,E,C) are now available.

. Many new options for SET ATTRIBUTES command, to control attributes
individually, for example SET ATTRIBUTES DATE OFF. Attributes now include
date and time, file size, file type, and transfer character set.

. MS-DOS Kermit server now recognizes REMOTE KERMIT SET commands.

. New REMOTE SET command, used to change settings on remote Kermit server.
Also supported by MS-DOS Kermit server. This is a new Kermit protocol
feature, as yet unsupported by other Kermit programs, but will be in future
releases of C-Kermit, IBM mainframe Kermit, etc.

* Miscellaneous Features and Commands:

. Space for macro names expanded from 500 to 1000 bytes. Space for macro
definitions was formerly 3000. Now it's dynamically allocated and will
use as much memory as can be found.

. SHOW commands added for many types of things (file, protocol, terminal,
memory, modem, statistics, etc).

. Keyboard verbs (like \Kexit) can now be embedded within keyboard definition
text strings and mixed with other keyboard verbs.

. New WRITE