Web Messaging Professional 98 for WINS, version F.2
Original archive name: WMP98F2?.ZIP

Author:       Earl Borah          earl.borah@bbs.chemek.cc.or.us
Home Site:    Chemeketa Online    http://bbs.chemek.cc.or.us

WMP98 Home Page:     http://bbs.chemek.cc.or.us/public/ring/sysop.htm#wmp
WMP98 Listserve:     http://bbs.chemek.cc.or.us/public/ring/subscribe.htm


ABOUT VERSION NUMBERS

Generally, new features will result in a version letter change, bug fixes
or documentation changes will result in a number change. So version C.8
would be the eighth revision of version C, while D.1 would be the first
revision of version D, so D.1 would be newer.

All versions are listed here in reverse chronological order -- that is,
the newest is at the top and the oldest is at the bottom.

VER - NOTES
---   -----
F.2 - 8/7/98
      Modified the AddressBook CGI to fix a mailing bug. In prior
      versions, if a user clicked on a link to send a message while
      viewing the full-page AddressBook listing, the "back" link that is
      displayed after a message has been sent successfully was not
      working properly.

      Modified several .wcx files to fix the "WCCODE Error: Invalid file
      number" message that was appearing on some systems when a user
      other than the sysop tried to view a message or use the spell check
      function.

F.1 - 8/3/98
      Modified the .zip archives to make WMP98 easier to install. The
      downside is that it's now harder to install only certain parts of
      WMP98 (the spell checker, but not the threaded messaging, for
      example).

      Modified the documentation to make it easier to follow -- the
      readme.txt file was broken into pieces, and this versions.txt file
      was modified somewhat as well.

      Fixed a bug in MSI's word wrap routine (executed when a new message
      is saved) that caused some lines to wrap beyond 76 characters. Word
      wrapping is now FAR more consistent!

      Modified the message_create.htm to have the message window display
      76 characters wide, to match the word wrap function (the old width
      was 77 characters).

      Added an option to toggle between "standard view" (the traditional
      DHTML view), "text view," and "web view" while reading messages.
      Text view will reveal all HTML codes within the body of the message
      (as well as non-HTML that the web browser incorrectly interprets as
      HTML codes, such as "<BG>" or "if 6 < 7 and 7 > 8"), without
      requiring the user to do a View Source, and should be helpful for
      messages that discuss HTML source code. "Web view" eliminates the
      fixed-width display and uses a more traditional font, which should
      be beneficial for messages that don't have line breaks and scroll
      off the right edge of the browser window in the other views.

      Both "standard view" and "web view" will attempt to locate email
      addresses and URL's in a message, and convert them to active links.
      The text of the original message should still appear as normal, and
      if there are any display problems the user can switch to "text"
      view to display the original message exactly as it was received.

      Added an option to the DHTML Personal Properties client to include
      individual preferences for a default view (see above item), so
      users can choose to always start in standard view, text view, or
      web view. They can still change their preference while reading a
      message, and their change will be remembered until they return to
      an index page.

      Added an option to the DHTML Personal Properties client to for
      systems running WINS build 443 or higher. Since this build is
      currently available only to the MSI beta team, documentation of
      this feature is not included -- once this build (or a newer build)
      is released on the AUP, it will automatically be activated for any
      WMP98 user who upgrades. Shortly after MSI released the update on
      the AUP, a new version of WMP98 will be released with documentation
      for this feature.

      When spell checking a message, HTML characters (such as <, >, and
      &) now appear properly on the preview page (similar to the "text
      view" option described above).

      Fixed a bug in the spell checker that caused messages including "&"
      codes (like &gt; -- used to display the > character in HTML) to
      error out after the user clicked on either button from the spell
      check page.

      If a user enters an invalid name in a conference set to "Yes, check
      for a valid name," then the message that is forwarded to the sysop
      now includes the invalid name the user entered in the TO field on
      the first line of the message. Without WMP98 installed, WINS will
      just forward the message to the sysop without any explanation or
      troubleshooting details.

      Users can click on a link while reading a message to add the sender
      or the recipient to their address book.

      Fixed all popup windows (including the AddressBook-related popup
      windows) so they will always appear on top when activated. In
      previous versions, if a user opened a popup window but didn't close
      it, then clicked on a link to open the popup window again, the old
      window that was probably behind the active window was used, and the
      user didn't see the changes -- now the popup window will force
      itself to the front when it's opened or changed, although users can
      still bring other windows in front of it if they wish.

      Users can edit their address book entries without having to delete
      them and enter them again.

      Sysops can perform maintenance on the AddressBook database, either
      locally through the DHTMLAB Config.EXE program, or remotely via web
      pages. Maintenance options include repairing the database, deleting
      entries from old users, deleting entries with invalid addresses,
      deleting duplicate entries, and compacting the database. The config
      program now has a field to specify what security profile should be
      allowed to run the utilities online ("SYSOP" is the default).

      Removed the .gif file that was added in version E.3, and modified
      the inbox.htm template -- now the inbox will place the words
      <Sender Unknown> if there is no sender found for the message, and
      the user can click on that phrase to read the message.

      Updated the REGISTER.TXT file -- if you have not yet purchased your
      copy of WMP98, make sure you use this latest file to register.

E.3 - 7/16/98
      Included a .gif file that was unintentionally left out of versions
      E.1 and E.2 -- now the inbox will place a clickable graphic next to
      the name of the sender of the message, so error messages from WINS
      that are generated without a sender are viewable by the user. This
      is a way to get around a bug in wcMail and/or wcSMTP.

      Added an updated message_conferences.htm that includes a link to
      the DHTML AddressBook.

E.2 - 7/11/98
      Created three versions of the WMP98 archive -- one with the full
      installation program for the AddressBook CGI (WMP98E2f.ZIP, approx
      size: 3.5Megs), one without the installation program but with the
      updated .exe files for the AddressBook CGI (WMP98E2s.ZIP, approx
      size: 130K), and one with only the files that have been updated
      since the previous version (WMP98E2u.ZIP, approx size: 85K). All
      future versions will follow this filenaming convention as well.

      Updated the installation program for the AddressBook CGI to make it
      simpler and make it a smaller download.

      Fixed a bug in the AddressBook CGI that kept Internet Explorer from
      refreshing the pages properly.

      Fixed a cosmetic bug in the AddressBook CGI on the page that listed
      the user's entries and allowed them to add or delete entries -- the
      previous version displayed extra white space and did not center the
      "Delete" button vertically within the table cell.

      Fixed a cosmetic bug in the template files that cause the popup
      window for the AddressBook CGI to appear incorrectly when the user
      selected it from next to the Carbon Copy box.

      Updated the documentation to include warnings about overwriting
      important files during the installation and added other information
      regarding the AddressBook CGI. Please read the documentation
      carefully, and report any errors or problems to the email address
      listed in the readme documentation.

E.1 - 7/7/98 - THIS VERSION WAS MADE AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY TO MEMBERS OF
      THE WMP98 LISTSERVE.

      Added the DHTML AddressBook to the CREATE.ZIP archive. This change
      involves some configuration issues -- be sure to review the
      README.TXT for important updated information.

      Added a popup version of the Easy Conference Selection addon to the
      CREATE.ZIP archive. Removed the old version of the addon from the
      archive (though it's still available as freeware). If you installed
      the old version of the addon, you should remove it by deleting the
      html-new message.wcx from your WINS directory (or backing it up in
      a different location).

      Added a feature so when a message is not sent successfully (if it
      is rejected as a duplicate, for example), the user is allowed to
      edit the message and attempt to send it again. This fixes a bug in
      the logic of the standard MSI DHTML messaging system.

      Multiple template files updated to reflect the addition of the new
      features listed above, as well as the bug fixes listed below.

      Fixed a bug in the new version of the Easy Conference Selection
      routine that caused conferences to be listed multiple times under
      certain circumstances. The bug still exists in the freeware version
      of this program, but is fixed in the included "popup" version.

      Fixed a bug that allowed messages to ALL to be marked private.

      Replies to messages now increment the reply counter for the
      original message.

      While reading messages in the inbox, the Next/Prev buttons are
      active. Note that for the sysop, these buttons will cause you to
      read messages that are not addressed to you -- these are really
      just conference 0 next/prev buttons! The thread/prev buttons are
      enabled as well, with similar functionality.

D.2 - 4/27/98
      Really, REALLY tracked down and solved the spell check problem with
      Microsoft Internet Explorer (MSIE). Even after the fix in version
      D.1, some MSIE 3.x users were still having problems using the spell
      checker when they replied to messages. This has been fixed, once
      and for all (or at least until we break it in a future release)!!
      The only change is an updated HTML-WEB MESSAGING PRO.WCX file in
      the CREATE.ZIP archive.

D.1 - 4/24/98
      Added an option for the user to turn spell checking on or off by
      default. Added explanation to CODES.TXT file on all the sysop's
      configuration options related to this addition. This update also
      requires the installation of one or two new .wcx files -- be sure
      to read the README.TXT file for the updated documentation on this
      change.

      Added an updated version of the DHTML Personal Properties client
      (to add support for the default spell checker setting) that is also
      more frames-friendly than ever before! Check out the configuration
      section of the README.TXT file for more information.

      Souped up the "prompt" page, when a user enters an invalid name in
      a conference where "prompt" is turned on. The system is now more
      aggressive in searching for a possible matching name, based on the
      first 4 letters in the first *AND* last name, for a maximum of 20
      suggestions (up to 10 for the first name and 10 for the last name).

      Finally tracked down and solved the spell check problem with
      Microsoft Internet Explorer (MSIE). It seems that MSIE does some
      rather strange, non-standard, and (worse of all) inconsistent
      things with CR/LF characters. This caused some rather "interesting"
      problems (version 3.x was worse than 4.x, but both had problems and
      behaved inconsistently). Netscape treated CR/LF characters
      consistently, which is why there were never any problems for
      Netscape users. The spell check routine has been rewritten to take
      MSIE's inconsistencies into account. This should now work properly
      for both Netscape and MSIE users, and users should not see either
      garbage characters when they read their messages nor errors when
      they try to send them.

C.4 - 4/20/98
      Fixed bug that caused messages to be sent when the user left the
      To, Subject, or Body of the message blank, even though the user was
      prompted to fill in the field. Once they filled in the field, the
      message would be sent again. Now, nothing is sent until the user
      has all the required fields filled out (which was what we intended
      in the first place).

      Fixed a bug that caused messages with file attachments to be sent
      to the sysop when the user originally entered an incorrect name,
      even if they were prompted to change it and changed it to a valid
      name (their change was not remembered). Now, messages with file
      attachments are handled properly.

      Added some troubleshooting code in an attempt to catch the MSIE bug
      (listed under "known bugs" in the readme.txt file). If your users
      say the spell check routine reported an error, let us know what web
      browser they were using (including version number), what ISP they
      were using, and the full text of the error message.

C.3a- 4/16/98
      Fixed template bug in MESSAGE_CREATE.HTM that caused replies to
      always be marked private, regardless of the original. This bug was
      introduced to the template in version C.3.

C.3 - 4/16/98
      Fixed bug that caused messages posted in a conference set to "No,
      do not check for valid name" to still be checked against the user
      list for a valid name. WMP98 now honors this flag properly.

      Updated threaded messaging module to make it clearer when the
      program is not registered. Previous versions simply made the
      "Thread Next" and "Thread Prev" buttons act like the normal Next
      and Prev buttons, but changed the page to look like the user was in
      thread mode. This caused a bit of confusion. This update displays
      an error message when someone other than the System Administrator
      tries to use the "Thread Next" or "Thread Prev" buttons and there
      is no valid registration key.

      Added a "Search" link to the Inbox template (included with the
      threaded messaging module) so users can find messages they wrote in
      conference 0. Users with sysop access to conference 0 can use this
      link to search the entire conference. The default MSI templates did
      not provide for either of these functions.

      Fixed minor bug in the MESSAGE_CREATE.HTM template. An extra hidden
      field was included, which probably would not cause problems but
      nevertheless did not belong in the template. The template in the
      Easy Conference Selection program was updated to reflect this
      change as well.

      Cleaned up the spell checking templates, so users don't have to
      scroll just to get to their message.

      Added item to "Known Bugs" section in the readme.txt file.

      Additional minor documentation changes.

C.2 - 4/2/98
      Fixed bug in the customized message_read.htm file that caused the
      "Thread Index" button to work incorrectly if the user had used the
      "Thread Next" or "Thread Prev" buttons to go past the newest/oldest
      message in the thread. This template file is the only change from
      version C.1.

C.1 - 3/23/98
      Version B was skipped to avoid the implication of being a "beta"
      version.

      Threaded messaging now ready for full release, after extensive
      testing on the Chemeketa Online site. This is a *FREE* addition for
      all registered WMP98 users!

      Threaded messaging module also includes fix for inconsistent inbox
      behavior -- in ANSI or wcNav, if you read a message from your inbox
      that was in a conference other than 0, it would vanish from your
      inbox and your high message pointer in the conference would NOT be
      changed. In MSI's HTML code, if you read a message from your inbox
      that was in a conference other than 0, it would vanish from your
      inbox and your high message pointer in the conference WOULD be
      updated to the message you just read. This had the practical result
      of making it appear you'd read messages that you hadn't. The
      threaded messaging module fixes this bug, EVEN IN THE NONREGISTERED
      VERSION, by making the HTML interface act consistent to the wcNav
      and ANSI interfaces for all your users. To activate this bug fix,
      you must install the threaded messaging component and use the
      included inbox.htm template file. To hide the threaded messaging
      features (in case you're using an unregistered copy of WMP98 so you
      can benefit from this fix for free), copy the standard
      message_read.htm to the http\template\WMP directory (instead of
      using the message_read.htm included in this archive).

      Added "Enhanced Inbox Notification Addon" archive, a free add-on
      for registered users of WMP98 (under the name "WMP Home.zip").

      Modified program and template files, so you can modify the entire
      template. It is now safe to use closing form, body, and html tags
      in a template. THIS REQUIRES ALL-NEW TEMPLATES, SINCE THE TEMPLATE
      FILES INCLUDED WITH VERSION A.x WILL NO LONGER WORK PROPERLY.

      Modified spell checking code -- on some systems, messages would
      occasionally show up with the first two characters of the message
      body mysteriously missing. This should fix that problem, and may
      slightly increase both memory usage and execution speed. I expect
      any such performance changes will be negligible.

      Spell checker will ignore any line that begins with "->" as the
      first two characters. Previous versions looked for "-> ", which
      caused problems when looking at a quote of a quote (which could
      start with a "->->" instead).

      WMP98 has been repackaged slightly. Using embedded ZIP files should
      make it easier for sysops to pick and choose which components they
      wish to install (for example, you can install the spell checker
      addon, but not the threaded messaging addon), and makes future
      growth and feature additions more manageable.

      Fixed bug in template MESSAGE_ATTACHMENT_OK.HTM that caused the
      backto link to break.

      If user types an invalid name and is given a list of suggested,
      valid names, the blank entry box is now selected by default.

      Switched all templates to use the variable name "attach" for a file
      attachment. Previous versions were inconsistent. WMP98 should
      accept either "attach" or "attachment", but "attach" is preferred.
      Future versions may no longer support "attachment".

      Added several documentation updates, including CODES.TXT.

      Added this "VERSIONS.TXT" file to the archive.

A.1 - 2/14/98
      Fixed typo in "ATTACH.HTM" template that caused "File not found"
      errors when uploading a file attachment.

A   - 2/13/98
      Initial release posted to Mustang Online, and on Chemeketa
      Online's home site.



Web Messaging Professional 98
copyright 1998, Earl Borah. All rights reserved