ShowCIM for Windows 1.0

What is it for ?

ShowCIM for Windows allows you to convert e-mail, forum messages and all other types of files from the CompuServe Information Manager® (CIM) filing cabinet into plain text. It can be used with both the Windows and DOS version of CIM.

CIM files are in a binary format and can not be read without a specialized program (such as WinCIM). If you convert them into text files using ShowCIM for Windows you can edit them with any text editor or word processor and insert them in your documents.

ShowCIM for Windows can also be used to convert CIM files to a format that can be imported into most database managers, such as MS-Access® or Borland Paradox®. Thus you can archive your electronic correspondence in a very efficient way with all the powerful tools of your database software, such as filters or search functions, to manage it.

How to use it ?

Create a list of source files (usually from the CIM filing cabinet) to be converted. You can add files to the list by clicking on the '+' icon at the right side of the source file list. A file selector dialog is displayed, in which you can select a source directory and file. To delete items from the source file list select the items and click on the '-' icon.

Choose the destination path for the converted files. You can either choose to create a single file in which all converted mail is stored or to create separate output files for each input file. In the latter case you can choose to either use the source file name and extension for the destination file or to use an alternate extension, which you can enter.

You can also choose to append the output to a possibly existing destination file. Otherwise an already existing destination file with the same name and extension is overwritten and its contents are destroyed.

Choose the parameters according to what you want to extract from the source files and how you want your output to be formatted. Some parameters can be used in connection with others and some will automatically switch off other conflicting options when selected. If 'Database export' is selected for instance, all other options except the ANSI/OEM selection are switched off and the values for line length and left margin are disregarded. The options are:

The 'Left margin' must be in the range between 0 and 20 and the 'Line length' must be between 65 and 255 characters. These values are used to format the message text in the output file if 'Automatic line wrap' is enabled. Otherwise no line wrap is performed for the message text, which is particularly useful if the output is edited with a word processing software that provides it's own automatic line wrap (such as MS Word®).

The 'ANSI' and 'OEM' radio buttons define the character set to be used for the output files. ANSI mode must be used for a Windows use and OEM for a DOS use of the exported text files.

The 'Generate header' and 'Generate message' buttons can be used to include the CIM header information and/or the actual message text in the output file. They can be used independently.

The 'Maximum header info' option is only available if 'Generate header' above is selected and includes more detailed header information in the output.

The 'Generate message map' has effect only on forum thread files. It generates a message map for each thread file. The message text is not exported with this switch. However, the 'Generate header' and 'Maximum header info' options can be used to format the header.

The 'Database export' option provides a way to format the output in 'delimited text format' which is commonly used to import ASCII data into database managers. With this option you can convert your filing cabinet messages into a temporary file which you can then import into a database manager  such as MS Access® or Borland Paradox®.

Database export format

About CIM files...

There are five CIM file types:

- E-Mail messages (*.plx) - Electronic mail, sent directly from one CIS address to an other.
- Forum messages (*.msg) - A single message from a forum message board.
- Forum threads (*.thd) - A group of messages with the same subject downloaded from a forum message board.
- Display articles (*.art) - Miscellaneous information retrieved from CIS; e.g. "What's new" articles, program descriptions, articles from some of the news services etc.
- News stories (*.nws) - News stories downloaded from the Executive News Service (ENS).

Authors...

Conversion program by Joerg ARNU, the initial author of ShowCIM for DOS. (Berlin, Germany, CIS-ID: 100326,564)

Windows interface by Gildas QUINIOU. (Paris, France, CIS-ID: 100432,500)

Thank you for using ShowCIM for Windows.
Any comments, suggestions or bug reports are appreciated.


Format of the 'Database export' option
Database export format

Here are some information about the output format used with the 'Database export' option.

The output is generated in 'delimited text format'

One line, terminated by <CR+LF>, is generated for each message

The first line contains the field names, the second line the first data set, etc.

The file format is either DOS (PC-8) or Windows (ANSI) depending on your choice with the ANSI/OEM radio buttons

The field delimiter character is " (quotes)

The field separator character is , (comma)

The date format is MM/DD/YY (Month/Day/Year)

The time format is HH:MM:SS (Hours:Minutes:Seconds)

All fields are generated for all CIM file types, but some fields are empty for some types (see table below)

Separate data sets are generated for each message in a forum thread

Repeated messages within a forum thread file are printed only once

Separate data sets are generated for each recipient of an E-Mail with multiple recipients. However, the message text is printed for the first recipient only. The Message Body field of the immediately following data sets for additional recipients is empty.

The message text is output as stored in the CIM file with no additional line wrap. It may, however, contain <CR+LF> sequences from the original formatting. The length can be up to 64k bytes.

The "-character within a message text etc. is converted to a sequence of two "-characters for compatibility with the field delimiter (see above). When imported into a database it is automatically converted back to a single "-character.

In the data set for a forum thread message the fields 'Message ID' and 'Parent ID' contain numeric values (32 bit integer) which are internal ID's from the .THD file. They can be used to restore the tree structure of a forum thread from it's messages stored in a database. 'Message ID' is a unique identifier for the message within a thread and 'Parent ID' is the Message ID of the direct parent of the message (the message to which the current message is a reply).

The following table shows the field names and which fields contain information for the different file types:


Classic File & Directory selector
The source file & destination path selector

What is it for ?

This dialog box helps you locating either source files you want to process or destination path where converted files will be created depending on which button you have used in the main window to display this box...

Going through drives and directories

You can easily go through drives and directories by choosing the right drive in the combo box at the bottom and double clicking in the directory list to open/close a directory. When closed it displays a '+' if it contains other directories. When opened it displays a '-'. You can also use the keyboard and press the '+' or '-' key to open/close the directory selected.

Selecting source files

In the source file selector  a list of files contained in the directory chosen is displayed at the right side according to the chosen filter (see below). In this file list, you can select the files you want to process. You can make multiple selections in the list. If you want to select all files matching the filter, just click the OK button without selecting any file.

Choosing a filter

A filter is a means to display only a part of the files in the selected directory (e.g. only thread files). You can choose the filter you want in the combo box at the right top of this dialog box. You will find a list of filters for each CIM file type with a short explanation. The last item allows you to display all files (*.*).

Selecting destination directory

When you have selected the destination directory for your output files as described above just click the OK button.

Using the file viewer

Enabled only in the registered version, the file viewer can display the contents of a CIM file up to 32 KB (longer files are truncated).


CIM File Cabinet based selector
The File Cabinet based source file selector

What is it for ?

This dialog box helps you locating source files you want to process... It's a File Cabinet based selector. This means that it uses the CIM index files to display folders and messages using their full description as in CIM utility in place of directories and files names.

Selecting source files

A list of messages contained in the folder chosen is displayed at the right side. In this message list, you can select those you want to process. You can make multiple selections in the list.

Using the file viewer

Enabled only in the registered version, the file viewer can display the contents of a CIM file up to 32 KB (longer files are truncated).