From:	SMTP%"VMSGopher-L@trln.lib.unc.edu" 26-JUL-1994 15:25:04.67
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Subj:	Re: Gopher client question .....

X-ListName: Gopher for VMS implementation and testing
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Date: Tue, 26 Jul 1994 14:26:04 -0400 (EDT)
From: Foteos Macrides <MACRIDES@SCI.WFEB.EDU>
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Subject: Re: Gopher client question .....
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Andrew C. Stoffel <ASTOFFEL@a1.plymouth.edu> wrote:
>I'd like to be able to go to a specific item on/in (?) a gopher server by 
>referencing its' path.
>
>The Gopher client gives me the following info....
>
>Usage: gopher [-sSbDr] [-T type] [-p path] [-t title] [hostname port]+
>     -s      secure mode, users without own account
>     -S      secure mode, users with own account
>     -p path specify path to initial item
>     -T type Type of initial item
>     -i      Search argument (for -T 7)
>     -b      Bookmarks first
>     -r      Remote user
>     -D      Debug mode
>
>So taking this I do a
>
>gopher "-p path_to_my_object"
>
>and I don't get anything....
>
>How does one use the path parameter in the VMS client ? Has anyone tried it ?
 
	Someday we should add a CLI interface for VMS, because the Unix-style
interface is not "intuitive" to VMSers, and some of the "rules" differ when
passing arguments to a C program versus DCL.
 
	Do not quote a series of arguments, or they will be treated as one
long argument.  Only quote upper- or mixed-case arguments to preserver their
casing (opposite from DCL).  Recognize that all of the arguments are assigned
defaults, so you must include all that differ from their default.  The default
object type ("-T") is 1 (directory listing).  If the object is not a directory
listing, you must include that as well.  The "path" should be a complete
"selector", i.e., its first character is the type, followed by the path, per
se.
	E.g.:

$ gopher "-T" 0 -p 0path_to_a_text_file

$ gopher "-T" 0 -p 0gopher_root:[_about]_about sci.wfeb.edu

	In the modified v2.0.16 client (and eventually in v2.0.17), Alan
Coopersmith has added a -u switch for using a URL (which you have to learn
how to construct, but once you do are a lot easier to get right than a
series of -switch value arguments, e.g.:

$ gopher -u gopher://host[:port]/<type><selector>

$ gopher -u gopher://sci.wfeb.edu/00gopher_root:[_about]_about

$ gopher -u gopher://cm16.crl.aecl.ca/77$version

	It also supports ftp, http, telnet and tn3270 URL's (but for ftp
it still needs a slash to indicate a directory, which is not needed in the
official URL specs):
 
$ gopher -u ftp://niord.shsu.edu/gopher/

				Fote

=========================================================================
 Foteos Macrides           Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology
 MACRIDES@SCI.WFEB.EDU     222 Maple Avenue, Shrewsbury, MA 01545
=========================================================================