

                PsiCode v1.0
                ============
 

 About PsiCode
 -------------
 PsiCode is a UUencode/UUdecode utility  for
 the Psion 3a/3c.

 Uuencode/decode  (UNIX-UNIX  encode/decode)
 is one  of  the  'industry  standards'  for
 attaching files to e-mails, and is found in
 all common e-mail programs.
 UUencode/decode, also  called  UUcode,  was
 developed  initially  for  UNIX   machines,
 where system administrators needed to  send
 files to each other  via e-mail. The  files
 are 'UUencoded' by the sender, sent via  e-
 mail,   and   then   'UUdecoded'   by   the
 recipient.

 PsiCode now brings  you the flexibility  of
 UUencode to  your  Psion.  You  can  easily
 encode and attach files  to an e-mail  file
 in one simple step.

 PsiCode also lets  you UUdecode and  detach
 files from  any  UUencoded e-mail  you  may
 receive (after  all,  what good  is  encode
 without decode?!).

 If you use  your Psion for  e-mail, then  a
 UUencode/decode utility is a must!

 Licence Agreement - IMPORTANT
 -----------------------------
 Before using  PsiCode,  you must  read  and
 agree with  the terms  of the  accompanying
 file LICENCE.TXT.

 Features
 --------
 * Very fast.  Main encode/decode  functions
 are written in C.

 * Compatible  with most  existing  UUencode
 programs. Tested with UNIX  UUencode/decode
 (Sun release 4.1), UUlite for MAC,  WinCode
 v2.7.2g, WinZip v6.2, Netscape v3.0.

 * Fully automatic  decode. UUdecodes  files
 from any source (Psion, MS-DOS, UNIX, MAC),
 and even  decodes  files encoded  with  the
 older Psion  UUcode  program.  Any  invalid
 Psion filenames (ie: from UNIX systems) are
 automatically renamed.

 * Finds up to  50 embedded UUencoded  files
 and   allows   individual   files   to   be
 extracted.

 * Ignores all  UNIX directories and  always
 tries to recover the proper file name  when
 decoding.

 * User-selectable en- and decode filenames.
 You are prompted to enter a new filename or
 you can accept the proposed name.

 *  Attaches  files  to  ReadCIS  MAILxx.OUT
 files, automatically UUencoding them in the
 process. A great feature for sending  files
 with ReadCIS.

 * Detaches files  from ReadCIS *.CIS  files
 (ie: MAIL!.CIS),  automatically  UUdecoding
 them in the  process. A  great feature  for
 receiving files with ReadCIS.

 *  Can  append  any  two  files   together,
 regardless of file type or size.

 *  Selectable  maximum   line  length   for
 ReadCIS users  who  need to  limit  encoded
 files line lengths to 50 characters.

 *  Selectable  Psion/MS-DOS,  UNIX  or  MAC
 UUencode file types.  Useful when you  know
 what platform the recipient has.

 *  All  preferences   and  last   directory
 accessed are memorised between use.

 * Psion-compliant menus  and dialogs.  Uses
 standard hotkeys and  menu layout for  easy
 intuitive usage.

 * Built-in online  help for  all menus  and
 dialogs.

 * Small program size (only ~7 k).

 Archive Contents
 ----------------
 When you  unpacked the  archive you  should
 have found these files...

  LICENCE.TXT        User licence agreement
  README.TXT         This documentation file
  PSICODE.OPA        Main application file
  PSICODE.DYL        Library file
  PSICODE.HLP        Help file (optional)

 Installation
 ------------
 PsiCode will install and  run on the  Psion
 series 3a and  3c, and should  also run  on
 the Siena (Oct 96: still untested).

 1. Create a  new directory on  any disk  to
 hold the  PsiCode files  - I  recommend  an
 \APP\PSICODE\ directory.

 2. Copy 'PSICODE.OPA' and 'PSICODE.DYL'  to
 the PsiCode directory.

 3. If you want to install online help, copy
 'PSICODE.HLP' to the PsiCode directory.

 4. Install PsiCode  from the System  screen
 with Psion-I  or  select "Apps  |  Install"
 from the menu (for English Psions).

 Using PsiCode
 -------------
 Encode file
 ***********
 This will  UUencode  any file  (the  source
 file). You are prompted to enter a filename
 for  the   UUencoded  file.   The   initial
 directory displayed is "\" and the prompted
 filename for the UUencoded file is the same
 disk/dir/filename as  the source  file  but
 with a .UUE extension.

 Decode file
 ***********
 This searches  through  the  chosen  source
 file for embedded UUencoded  files - up  to
 50  files  can  be  found.  A  dialog  then
 appears   allowing   you   to   select   an
 individual file to  decode. If no  embedded
 files are detected,  the error message  "No
 begin line" appears. If a file  encountered
 during the  search  has  an  invalid  Psion
 filename then the file  will be renamed  to
 BADNAME.xxx,   (xxx   =    001   to    050,
 sequentially numbering each invalid file).
 The preference  "Search until"  can  select
 whether the source file should be  searched
 through until either "All files found" (all
 embedded  UUencoded  files  are   detected,
 search goes right to the end of the  source
 file), or "First file found" in which  case
 PsiCode will stop searching  as soon as  an
 embedded UUencoded file is detected.

 Attach file
 ***********
 This can attach any file to an e-mail,  and
 has been specifically designed to work with
 ReadCIS.  The  file  to  Attach  is   first
 UUencoded and then appended to the selected
 MAILxx.OUT file. CompuServe  will allow  up
 to 2MB per e-mail,  so the only  constraint
 with attaching a file  is the memory  space
 on your Psion.
 Required   Memory    Space:   During    the
 attachment process two temporary files  are
 made in the root directory of your  default
 disk:  the  first  file  is  the  UUencoded
 version of the source file, and the  second
 is a copy of the destination file. Only  on
 a successful  attach will  the  destination
 file  be  overwritten,  which  avoids   any
 partially attached files should you run out
 of memory space during the attachment. Free
 space required to attach  a file = (2.66  *
 <source file  size>)  +  <destination  file
 size>.

 Detach file
 ***********
 This  does  exactly  the  same  as  "Decode
 file", but uses  \CIS\*.CIS in the  initial
 Decode   dialog.   This   is   specifically
 designed to work  with ReadCIS, and  allows
 you to easily select the MAIL!.CIS file  to
 Detach from.
 The  preference  "File  detection"  applies
 exactly the same way as in Decode.

 Append file
 ***********
 You can append  any two files  of any  type
 and size  together. The  Append feature  is
 designed to  allow you  to append  existing
 UUencoded files  to  MAILxx.OUT  files.  No
 checks on the file content are performed  -
 it is up  to you to  ensure that the  files
 being appended  are  compatible  with  each
 other (ie: it  does not make  any sense  to
 append a Sheet file to Agenda).

 Using With ReadCIS
 ------------------
 If a  WRAP80.ON switch  is set,  CompuServe
 will download  mail  messages  set  with  a
 maximum line length of 80 characters, which
 is  fine  for   PsiCode.  However,  if   no
 WRAP80.ON  switch  is   set  then   ReadCIS
 normally requests mail with a maximum  line
 length of 50  characters, which can  result
 in corrupted  UUencoded  files due  to  CIS
 thinking the  UUencoded  data is  text  and
 trying to wrap lines. If you are sending  a
 UUencoded file to a ReadCIS user, then  you
 should ensure that the maximum line  length
 is set  for  no more  than  44  characters,
 otherwise the formatting of the file may be
 damaged.
 For this reason, 44 is the default "Maximum
 line length".

 Limitations
 -----------
 * Maximum number of text lines that can  be
 read when  searching for  embedded files  =
 32767. If the  lines average 80  characters
 this results  in  a maximum  file  size  of
 32767 *  80  = 2621360  bytes.  Considering
 Psion memory  size this  limitation  should
 not be a problem.

 * Maximum detectable files when decoding  =
 50.  This  limitation  is  forced  by   the
 dCHOICE maximum length  of 255  characters.
 The  amount  of   filenames  that  can   de
 detected in practice is somewhat less as it
 is dependent upon the  total length of  all
 of the embedded filenames.

 * Maximum CompuServe e-mail message size is
 2MB  (for   text   messages).   Considering
 typical file size  and also memory  storage
 constraints of the Psion, this should never
 be a problem.

 Change history
 --------------
 v1.0 28 Oct 1996
 * Initial release.

 To Do
 -----
 *  Control-Help  and  maybe  even  Control-
 Psion-Help support
 * Handling of UUencoded files split  across
 multiple or single files, especially  with.
 ReadCIS and ftpmail.
 * MIME (base64) format encode and decode
 * Autodetect a  ZIP file  after Detach  and
 then Unzip it via Unzip.img or Funzip.
 * Delete  UUencode  data from  source  file
 after a Detach operation.

 Author
 ------
 Jochen Siegenthaler
 100127.3167@compuserve.com
 Zurich, Switzerland
 28 Oct 1996