Internet Resources on CMS

        By Dr. Philip Baczewski, Assistant Director of Academic Computing (baczewski@unt.edu)

        Internet tools are not new to the VM/CMS Academic Mainframe environment. For a number of years, we have been able to use FTP to transfer files and we've been able to connect directly to CMS using a TN3270 program under DOS, Windows, or Macintosh. The use of these basic Internet tools is documented in the "Introduction to CMS" handout available from Academic Computing Services in ISB 119. What you may not realize, however, is that there are Gopher, USENET News, and World Wide Web programs on CMS as well. We don't necessarily recommend CMS as your primary Internet access point, especially if you have access to an Internet-accessible microcomputer. If you spend a lot of time on CMS, however, and you do need to quickly access Internet information, several tools may be of help.

        Gopher

        Typing GOPHER on CMS will run the CMS Gopher client and connect you to the official UNT Gopher server. Navigating the Gopher menu structure is done easily by positioning your cursor over a menu item and pressing < ENTER >. If you press PF1 (< F1 > on most keyboards) you will see a help summary which explains the various PF key functions. You can open an alternate Gopher server by using the command GOPHER address, where addressis the address of your target Gopher server. Entering the command VMGOPHER, will take you directly to a Gopher server running on CMS. Among other things you will find on this server is the current CMS system news. For more information about using Gopher on CMS, type HELP GOPHER from the Ready; prompt.

        World Wide Web

        You can browse World Wide Web pages on CMS by entering the command, WWW, or WWW URL if you wish to open a URL other than that of the official UNT Web page. Since CMS is a text-only environment, you will not be able to see any graphics associated with a particular Web page, however, if your disk space allows, you can download graphics and binary files to your CMS 191 (A) disk and then download them to a microcomputer using a binary FTP file transfer. Links are selected by placing your cursor over highlighted text and pressing < ENTER >. Pressing PF1 (< F1 > on most keyboards), you can receive a help summary for the WWW program. <>You can also enter HELP WWW from the CMS Ready; prompt and then press PF1 to receive a detailed explanation of the WWW command and all its options.

        USENET News

        USENET news is available on CMS via a program call NNR. You can simply type NNR at the Ready; prompt and you will see a listing of all the top-level News hierarchies (comp, rec, soc, unt, etc.). Placing your cursor over a particular hierarchy name and pressing PF4 (< F4 > on most keyboards) will show you a list of the different groups in that hierarchy, and the same process again will show you a list of the individual messages within a group. NNR has context sensitive help. Pressing PF1 will show you the available commands for whatever screen you are currently viewing. You can also enter HELP NNR from the CMS Ready; prompt for a more detailed description of NNR's commands and functions.

        Once again, it is important to state that we do not recommend or support these CMS utilities as a primary Internet access point. For the CMS user who needs occasional quick access to Internet resources, however, these programs can be quite handy. For more information about Internet access from CMS, contact the Computing Center Support Services Help Desk at 565-2324, and they can refer you to an Academic mainframe consultant.

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