NCSA Telnet for the Macintosh: A quick guide February 1993 This is a publication of University Computing Services, Indiana University WHAT IS NCSA TELNET?-------------------- NCSA Telnet for the Macintosh is a communications software package that allows you to access remote host machines (like the VAXes and IBM mainframes) interactively from any Macintosh computer connected to IUUs high-speed network. You can connect to several remote computers on the network simultaneously and transfer files to and from remote machines using NCSA TelnetUs built-in file transfer protocol (FTP). With NCSA Telnet you can, for example, log into your account on any one of the host machines on campus (e.g., aqua, jade, copper, gold), run applications on the remote host, transfer files between the host and your Macintosh, and capture data from the screen. WHERE CAN YOU USE IT?-------------------- NCSA Telnet can be found in all the UCS Macintosh public computing facilities on campus. For a list, see the pamphlet Where to compute at IU Bloomington, available at the Computing Support Center, IMU 061. STARTING UP-------------------- To use NCSA Telnet, you will need to have an account on the VAXcluster or other host machine. If you do not yet have an account, the Computing Support Center can set one up for you. Open the server icon by double-clicking it. (The icon should appear in the upper right-hand corner of your screen; you may have to move or close any open RwindowsS in order to see it. If the icon is dimmed, it is already open.) Next, double-click the Communications folder. To start NCSA Telnet, double-click the icon of the node to which you wish to connect (e.g., Amber, IUIS, Rose). A startup dialog box will introduce NCSA Telnet and disappear. At this point, you will be prompted to log into the host machine using your user ID and password. If you donUt see an icon for the node you want, double-click any node icon. Then, instead of logging into that node, follow the directions in this pamphlet under RStarting a new session.S GETTING HELP-------------------- For detailed help, a complete manual is available for reference at any public computing facility where NCSA Telnet is installed. Manuals can also be purchased at the IU Bookstore in the Indiana Memorial Union. STARTING A NEW SESSION-------------------- Select ROpen ConnectionS from the File menu to open a new connection (session) to a remote host. A connection dialogue box appears. Enter the name of the host machine in the Session Name box. Enter any name in the Window Name box (this will appear in the session windowUs title bar). Click the OK box. NCSA Telnet attempts to establish a connection to the host (this might take several seconds). After the connection is established, a session window appears, and the host machine prompts you for a login name and password. In some cases, NCSA Telnet can take a long time to open a connection. To abort the connection attempt, select the connection from the Connections menu. A dialog box appears showing the connectionUs status. Click RAbort.S MULTIPLE SESSIONS-------------------- With NCSA Telnet for the Macintosh, you can have connections open simultaneously to several hosts. You can also have several sessions open simultaneously on a single host. You can open and close connections independently of each other as well as switch between these connections. Under the Connections menu, NCSA Telnet maintains a list of connections that are open or being opened. A separate window is opened for each connection. The connection you are currently using is called the current session, and its window appears frontmost on the desktop. Characters typed at the keyboard are sent to the current session. SWITCHING BETWEEN SESSIONS-------------------- When more than one session window is visible on the desktop, you can switch to a different session by clicking in its window. Alternatively, you can select a session name from the Connections menu. The one you select becomes the current session and its window is placed frontmost on the desktop. ENDING AN NCSA TELNET SESSION-------------------- To close a connection, log out using the appropriate procedure for the host (e.g., on UNIX or VAX/VMS hosts, type: logout). Once you are logged out, NCSA Telnet automatically closes the connection to that host. This does not affect other connections that may be open. If a host crashes while you are working or the session gets hung up, select RClose ConnectionS from the File menu to end the connection. A dialog box will appear, prompting you for confirmation. Click OK and NCSA Telnet will attempt to close the connection to the host. Use this only if you are unable to log out of the host properly. EXITING NCSA TELNET-------------------- To exit NCSA Telnet, first close all connections as described in REnding a sessionS in the previous column. Once all connections to remote machines have been closed, select RQuitS from the File menu. FILE TRANSFER USING FTP-------------------- NCSA Telnet for the Macintosh includes software that enables your Mac to act as a file transfer protocol (FTP) server. This makes it possible for you to transfer files between the Macintosh and remote hosts that support FTP. To use FTP, first make sure that RFTP EnableS is selected in the File menu (a checkmark should be present). STARTING FTP-------------------- To start an FTP session, you must be logged into the host machine in question (see RStarting upS in the first column). If you have not already done so, place in the MacintoshUs floppy disk drive the diskette you wish to transfer files to or from. You should be at the hostUs system prompt (e.g., $ on the VAXcluster and % on a UNIX machine), not within a menu environment such as the AIE. Select RSend FTP CommandS from the Network menu. The remote host responds by putting an FTP prompt on your screen. The prompt varies with the operating system of the host; VAX/VMS uses an asterisk (*) and UNIX uses ftp>. You are now ready to use FTP commands to transfer files. CLIENT VERSUS SERVER-------------------- Note that FTP commands may vary depending on the host system. In most systems, commands are entered at the FTP prompt as shown in the following sections. Check the manuals or online help for the host computer for more details on how to use its particular FTP commands. Keep in mind when you are transfering files that the remote host is the RclientS machine (the one that is requesting FTP services), and the Macintosh is the RserverS machine (the one providing FTP services). SPECIFYING THE TRANSFER DIRECTORY-------------------- On a Macintosh, when you open the icon for a hard drive, floppy disk, or file server, the first window you see displayed is the top-level or RrootS directory. Lower-level directories are represented as folders within the root directory. The directory that files are transferred to and from is called the transfer directory. Before transferring, you need to set the transfer directory on the Macintosh. Otherwise, FTP may not be able to find the files that are to be transferred to the host, and it will not put files from the host in the proper place on the Macintosh. From the File menu, select RSet Transfer Directory.S A dialog box will appear. Click the Drive button until the name of your floppy disk appears above the Eject button. If a folder and not the root directory is to be the transfer directory, click its name in the list at the left. Then click the RSet DirectoryS button. If you do not specify a transfer directory, FTP uses the root directory of the hard drive as the default. Since extra files are periodically removed from hard drives in the public computing facilities, be sure to set the transfer directory to your floppy disk before transferring files to the Macintosh. FILE TRANSFER MODE-------------------- ASCII mode, used to transfer text files, is automatically set when FTP starts up. If you need to transfer graphics or binary data files, reset the transfer mode by typing: binary at the FTP prompt. To transfer files that have been encoded in the MacBinary file format (including Macintosh application files and most Mac data files), select the RMacBinary EnableS option in the File menu. MacBinary transfer mode is only available when the FTP mode is set to binary as described above. To return to ASCII mode, type: ascii at the prompt. TRANSFERRING FILES-------------------- To transfer a file from the host to the Macintosh, use the RputS command at the FTP prompt (in the following examples, RfilenameS represents the name of the file to be transferred, and RextS represents the extension): put filename.ext If the file to be transferred is not in the remote hostUs current default directory, you will need either to reset the default directory or specify the fileUs full pathname. For instructions, see the user manual for the host in question. To transfer a file from the Macintosh to the host, use the RgetS command at the FTP prompt: get filename.ext If the RgetS and RputS commands seem backwards to you, remember that you are operating from the perspective of the host to get files from and put files onto your Mac. ENDING AN FTP SESSION-------------------- To end an FTP session, at the FTP prompt type: bye or exit or quit You may then start another FTP session or exit NCSA Telnet as described above. FILE CAPTURE-------------------- NCSA Telnet allows you to copy text from a session window for insertion into other session windows or documents created with other applications. Select the desired text from a session window by dragging the cursor over it. Copy it by selecting RCopyS from the Edit menu. Then position the cursor where the text is to be inserted and select RPasteS from the Edit menu. Many applications on the Mac also allow you to copy text from their documents, and this text can also be pasted into NCSA Telnet session windows. The number of characters that can be inserted into a session window is limited and varies among applications on the different hosts. You may also select text and print it. First select the text by dragging the cursor over it. Choose RPage SetupS from the File menu and specify the desired printing parameters. Then choose RPrint SelectionS from the File menu. TERMINAL EMULATION-------------------- Your Mac emulates a VT-type terminal (VT100, VT102) when using NCSA Telnet to connect to a remote host. The host operating system may not automatically recognize your terminal type. If your screen display appears jumbled or contains inappropriate characters, make sure the terminal type on the host is set to VT100 or VT102. To display and set the terminal type, consult the hostUs user manual or online help. For more information, the pamphlet RUsing NCSA Telnet with an extended keyboard for VT100 emulationS is available at the Computing Support Center (IMU 061). NCSA Telnet can also emulate a Tektronix 4014 monochrome graphics terminal. This mode can be used with host applications that produce Tektronix 4014 graphics images. NCSA Telnet automatically switches to Tektronix emulation mode when a Tektronix command is received from the host. Consult NCSA TelnetUs manual for more information on how to use the Tektronix 4014 graphics emulation mode. 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