>To: ``Glen Carlzen``
>TID: IMAIL-386 1.70+ PK32
> -=> Quoting ``Glen Carlzen`` to paul marwick, [02 Sep 99  05:01:57] <=-
>
> `C> Failure to read "Self-Extracting Archives", if you mean that it
> `C> runs the files, then I disagree with you.  But to VIEW (F3) an *.exe
> `C> file works fine or as it should.  If you mean placing the curser on the
> `C> file and hitting  key I wouldn't call that a BUG.  I would call
> `C> that "Running the program" as it should.  IF you do the same on any
> `C> other OS it would be expected to do the same thing.
>
>No, that's not what Paul means. F3 is a viewer for (largely) text files,
>tho it will also view binary files with some small sense gleaned. What
>Paul means is the special function invoked by ^A for viewing the
>directory of the files within selfex files (self extracting archives).
>If you point to a selfex and hit ^A you are supposed to see the same
>thing that you do for (for example) a *.ZIP with the  key. The
>problem with the ^A function is that in about 90% of the selfex files
>that I have tried, I get a 'Oops, that is not an archive I recognize' or
>some such msg. Since most of the archives that we have been getting from
>IBM, as in the Comm/2 4.61, Java 1.1.8, et al; have all been coming down
>the pike as selfex's, it would be handy to peek inside with ^A and
>extract the README file. But ^A fails on every damn one of those files.
>The only ones it ever seems to work on are those for which I do not need
>the README. }^:

     Your explination now makes sense to me.  I can now see a reason you would
want this function.  How to do It I don't know.  Now that you have explained
it
I would like this as well.  I have just been doing it the old HARD way.
Unpacking the whole thing and going through files one by one.

Thanks :)

Glen
The Animal

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