W3C Reference Library Distribution


	(c) COPYRIGHT MIT 1995.
	Please first read the full copyright statement in the file COPYRIGH.

This is the README file which you get when you unwrap the W3C Reference Library distribution files. Each package contains source code for building the Library and the example applications. The set of W3C Web applications is currently:

Handling the Distribution Files

A distribution file contains the source code and documentation for the Library and the example applications. You can get the distribution files from the Library top page All distribution files are available as compressed tar files, gzipped tar files, or as zip files. For the compressed tar files, first uncompress and untar the file w3c-libwww-X.X.tar.Z where X is the version number, for example 4.0:

	uncompress w3c-libwww-X.X.tar.Z

	gunzip w3c-libwww-X.X.tar.gz

Then untar the file by typing

	tar xf w3c-libwww-X.X.tar

For the zip files, type the following:

	unzip w3c-libwww-X.X.zip

Installation

Please look at the special installation documentation

Reference Library (libwww)

The W3C Reference Library is a general code base that can be used to build clients and servers. It contains code for accessing HTTP, FTP, Gopher, News, WAIS, Telnet servers, and the local file system. Furthermore it provides modules for parsing, managing and presenting hypertext objects to the user and a wide spectra of generic programming utilities. The Library is the basis for many World-Wide Web applications and all the W3C software is build on top of it. The Library is a required part of all other W3C applications in this distribution.

The Library documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	Library/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Line Mode Browser (www)

The W3C Line Mode Browser is a simple character based client. It is developed for use on dumb terminals and as a test tool for the Common Code Library. It can be run in interactive mode, non- interactive mode and as a proxy client. Furthermore it gives a variety of possibilities for data format conversion, filtering etc. It is primarily intended as a test-tool for quick access to the Web or used in batch jobs.

Installation is very simple as the application can run without any particular setup. You can specify your own HOME PAGE using the WWW_HOME environment variable. Remember toy setup a NNTPSERVER environment variable before you try to access a news server.

The Line Mode Browser documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	LineMode/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Mini Server (webd)

The W3C Mini Server is a cross platform server frame work that can be used as a basis for writing portable servers. It is NOT a full server - only a frame! It is developed in C and serves as an example of a server application using the W3C Reference Library.

The Mini Server documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	MiniServ/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Command Line Tool (w3c)

The W3C Command Line Tool is a cross platform command line tool for accessing the Web. It is developed in C and serves as an example of a client application using the W3C Reference Library and as a test-tool for quick access to the Web from scripts, cron jobs etc. It gives a variety of possibilities for data format conversion, filtering etc. It is primarily intended as a test-tool for quick access to the Web or used in scripts, cron jobs etc.

The Command Line Tool documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	ComLine/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Mini Robot (webbot)

The W3C Mini Robot is a cross platform command line tool for accessing the Web. It is developed in C and serves as an example of a robot application using the W3C Reference Library and as a test-tool for quick access to the Web from scripts, cron jobs etc. It is primarily intended as a test-tool for quick access to the Web or used in scripts, cron jobs etc.

The W3C Mini Robot documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	Robot/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Socket Listen Tool (listen)

The W3C Socket Listen Tool is a cross platform tool for debugging what is being sent over the wire. It simply listens on a socket and forwards everything to stderr or whatever is available on the actual platform. It is developed in C and serves as an example application using the W3C Reference Library

The W3C Socket Listen Tool documentation is included in the distribution file and you can find the top page at

	Listen/User/Overview.html

You can also use the online documentation

Got Problems or Comments?

If you encounter problems, would like to feed back suggestions good ideas etc. then please send a mail explaining your problem and the version of the W3C software to libwww@w3.org

Have fun!


Henrik Frystyk Nielsen, libwww@w3.org @(#) $Id: Date Author State $