10/17/84 The Multics Mail System The Multics Mail System allows you to communicate with other users on the system through the exchange of messages which are stored in mailboxes. The mail system provides several types of addresses to be used to identify the authors and recipients of a message. For more information about messages and addresses, type: help message_format.gi mail_addresses.gi The mail system provides a subroutine interface, a simple command for sending and printing mail, and several more sophisticated mail processing subsystem which are available as unbundled software. Each of these portions of the mail system is breifly described here. The subroutine interface: The mail system subroutine interface provides all of the necessary functions to allow a subsystem or application program to create, transmit, receive, and print messages. This interface consists of the subroutines mail_system_ and mlsys_utils_. The mail_system_ subroutine provides access to the primitive functions of the mail system (eg: transmitting and receiving messages); the mlsys_utils_ subroutine provides many commonly used utility functions (eg: message printing). The subroutine interface is documented in the Multics Programmer's Reference Manual (order number AG91) and the Multics Subroutines and I/O Modules Manual (order number AG93). Standard commands: The standard Multics product includes three mail system commands/active functions: mail, have_mail, have_messages. The mail command is an extremely simply interface which allows a user either to print all the mail in a mailbox or to send a message to other users. However, due to its limited syntax, the mail command can not access all features of the mail system such as the mail table or mailing lists. One of the mail processing subsystems, described below, should always be used instead of this command. For more information on the mail command, type: help mail The have_mail and have_message command/active-functions indicate whether mail or interactive messages are present in a given mailbox and are intended mainly for use in start_up exec_coms. For more information on these commands, type: help have_mail have_messages The Extended Mail Facility: The three commands print_mail, read_mail, and send_mail comprise the Extended Mail Facility product. This product is documented in the Extended Mail Facility User's Guide (order number CH23). The print_mail command is an easy to use command which simply prints each message in a mailbox and then asks you if you wish to delete it. This command is designed to be used in place of the mail command for reading mail as the mail command only provides you with the option of deleting all of the messages in the mailbox. For more information, type: help print_mail The read_mail command is a powerfull interactive subsystem which allows you to peruse the messages in a mailbox. Requests are provided to summarize, print, delete, reply to, forward with optional comments, and save individual messages. Powerfull message selection capabilities are also included to allow you, for example, to print all the messages in a mailbox that were created in October 1982 by any one of a list of individuals. For more information, type: help read_mail The send_mail command is an interactive subsystem which allows for the creation and tranmission of messages to one or more individuals, distribution lists, or combinations thereof. It is possible to edit the message before transmission using the editor of the user's choice. For more information, type: help send_mail The Executive Mail Facility: This product is a menu-driven mail processing subsystem designed for use on video display terminals. Executive mail implements most of the functions of read_mail and send_mail but in a more structured environment. This facility is documented in the Executive Mail Facility User's Guide (ordner number CX20). The Emacs mail subsystem: Two subsystems -- RMAIL and Send-Mail -- are available within the Emacs video editor product. The RMAIL subsystem provides the same functionality as the read_mail command but uses an Emacs buffer to display the messages in the mailbox. The user may then use Emacs' pwerfull screen management facilities to read and/or reply to the message. The Send-Mail subsystem provides the same functionality as the send_mail command but allows the user to construct the message within an Emacs buffer where all the text manipulation facilites of Emacs are readily available. RMAIL and Send-Mail are documented in the Emacs Text Editor User's Guide (order number CH27). The Mail Table: The mail table is a system-wide database which provides a translation between an arbitrary character string and a mail system address. The mail table contains an entry for each person registered on the system using their Person_id (and alias) as the name of the entry. Thus, the mail table allows a user to send mail to another user without having to know on what projects that user is registered. In addition, the mail system provides the user with commands to change the address stored in his mail table entry and to display the address stored in any mail table entry. For further information on the mail table, type: help mail_table.gi Including your full name in outgoing mail: All messages sent by the mail system include a header which contains, among other items, the addresses of the author(s) of the message; this list of authors is known as the From field. By default, when you send a message, the mail system places your Person_id in the From field of the message. However, the Person_id alone may not be sufficient for the recipients of your message to realize that you are the author of the message. In order to make your identity clearer, the mail system provides the capability to include your full name along with your Person_id in the From field. The mail system looks in your default value segment for a variable named "full_name._". If this variable is present, the mail system includes its value as your full name in the From: field of any messages that you send. You can use the value_set command to set and/or change the value of this variable; however, if you change its value, the mail system doesn't use the new value until you create a new process. For more information about the use of value segments, type help value_set value_list For example, the user Palter would use the command line value_set full_name._ "Gary M. Palter" to supply his full name to the mail system. Any messages sent by Palter after executing this command would then contain the From field From: Gary M. Palter rather than the default From field From: Palter ----------------------------------------------------------- Historical Background This edition of the Multics software materials and documentation is provided and donated to Massachusetts Institute of Technology by Group BULL including BULL HN Information Systems Inc. as a contribution to computer science knowledge. This donation is made also to give evidence of the common contributions of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Bell Laboratories, General Electric, Honeywell Information Systems Inc., Honeywell BULL Inc., Groupe BULL and BULL HN Information Systems Inc. to the development of this operating system. Multics development was initiated by Massachusetts Institute of Technology Project MAC (1963-1970), renamed the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence in the mid 1970s, under the leadership of Professor Fernando Jose Corbato. Users consider that Multics provided the best software architecture for managing computer hardware properly and for executing programs. Many subsequent operating systems incorporated Multics principles. Multics was distributed in 1975 to 2000 by Group Bull in Europe , and in the U.S. by Bull HN Information Systems Inc., as successor in interest by change in name only to Honeywell Bull Inc. and Honeywell Information Systems Inc. . ----------------------------------------------------------- Permission to use, copy, modify, and distribute these programs and their documentation for any purpose and without fee is hereby granted,provided that the below copyright notice and historical background appear in all copies and that both the copyright notice and historical background and this permission notice appear in supporting documentation, and that the names of MIT, HIS, BULL or BULL HN not be used in advertising or publicity pertaining to distribution of the programs without specific prior written permission. Copyright 1972 by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Honeywell Information Systems Inc. Copyright 2006 by BULL HN Information Systems Inc. Copyright 2006 by Bull SAS All Rights Reserved