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| General
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| File Centre |
| The place where all your data is stored is called the File Centre. It is the central repository which all users access to view the listing of files stored, and to which they send, and from which they receive. |
| With everything in one place, it is easy to extract as much or as little information as necessary.
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| Swap between modes |
| During a session, you can swap between manual and auto as much as you wish. You can start in manual mode, see if there's anything unusual on your File Centre, then swap to auto mode to perform the day's tasks. Should you remember something while it is running, you can interrupt it, do the necessary, then let it carry on with the set of tasks from the beginning or where it left off. |
| Save time - tailor your usage to exactly what you need.
Remote sites can have the swapping disabled so that staff cannot run it in manual mode.
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| Unique Site ID |
| InterNEDI does not use a username/password combination for access control, but uses a Unique Site ID. This ID is a sort of "fingerprint" of the PC that is being used to connect, and is virtually impossible to duplicate. |
| Save money - stop people swapping passwords and allowing each other unauthorised access.
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| Super User and Super Group |
| The head user/system administrator/IT Admin boss or whatever you wish to call him, we call the Super User. There is also a Super Group, the members of which have some of the overall abilities of the Super User. More details on these further down. |
| Control is organised hierarchically - Super User saves time by delegating some functions to members of the Super Group.
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| Charge subscription |
| The Super User can specify a monthly subscription charge for his users, which can be tailored for each user individually. |
| Make money - charge your users. Different users can be put on different rates and discounts.
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| Charge for receiving and/or sending |
| Any member of the Super Group can specify a charge on a sent file which will be levied on all users who receive it. In addition, the Super User can specify a charge for any user to send a file. Charges can be tailored for each user individually. |
| Make money from users receiving and sending too.
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| Time Zones |
| All files have a time/date stamp enabling you to see when files were sent. This is displayable in one of three ways — GMT, sender's Local Time zone or your Local Time zone. |
| See exactly who did what when, even when spread around the world.
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| Country |
| All files are stamped with their country of origin. |
| So you know where your users are.
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| Compression |
| All files are transparently compressed when sent and then decompressed when received, to reduce transmission time. This can be switched off if necessary. |
| Save time - files are shorter, and it all happens without user intervention.
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| Personalised access control |
| Each user has his own set of permissions — they are not defined group-wide. The exception to this is the anonymous group whose members are unknown and cannot therefore be individually specified. |
| A group may not always be so homogeneous that they all need exactly the same permissions.
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| Disable anonymous users |
| Should you want no anonymous users to have access, they can be completely disabled, and will not even be able to log on to your File Centre. |
| If they don't form a part of your plan, keep them out !
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| User label |
| Users are identifiable by an email-type label. To send to a specific user, select him by his label. The sender of a file is identified by the same label. |
| Save time - easy to remember which label in the list refers to whom.
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| Group label |
| Groups are also identifiable by an email-type label. When you send to a specific group, select it by its label. When you look through the listing of files, the sender's group is identifiable by the same label. Group membership is maintained by the Super User — you do not have to worry about whether you have the latest, up-to-date list of group members. |
| Save time - easy to remember which label in the list refers to which group.
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| Runs on Windows 95 onwards |
| InterNEDI is a Windows-only package at present. We do our development on Windows XP, but test it all the way back to Win 95. |
| If your remote sites are running on older machines, no problem.
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| Demo mode |
| You can run a full-function demonstration of InterNEDI after you have installed it. You "pretend" to be one of four different users, and then run InterNEDI in auto or manual mode as if you were that user. It runs completely locally so you do not have to be connected to anything. |
| Save time - get familiar with the basics of InterNEDI without any registration.
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| Sending Files
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| To user, group, or all |
| When you send a file, you can select to send to a single user, a single group, or to all standard users at once. When sending to a group, simply specify the group name, not details of individual members of that group — these are maintained by the Super User. |
| Target your files to exactly who needs them.
Users save time by not having to maintain lists of group members, as with email.
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| Include/exclude anonymous |
| You can also include the anonymous group in your send — either to simply "see" the file in the listing, or to receive it as well. You can choose to send to the anonymous group only and not include any standard users. |
| You could let prospective customers "see" the files, without being able to receive them.
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| Single or multiple files |
| You can send a single file, or multiple files zipped together as a single file. The zipping happens transparently — just specify one or more files and the correct action will be taken. |
| Save time - no need to specify how the files are to be sent. The correct action is taken transparently.
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| Confirmation of receipt |
| You can specify that confirmation of receipt is sent back to you by each user that receives the file. When you next log on, all confirmations sent in the intervening period are displayed, and can be also saved to a history file that you can view later. |
| Keep track easily of who has and who hasn't received your file. With the history viewer get an overview of what's been happening, or drill down to find exactly what did happen.
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| Scrambling |
| You may specify a scrambling key if you wish the file to be scrambled for extra security. The receiver will need the same key to be able to unscramble the file. |
| Scramble sensitive files to stop anyone but the receiver seeing it.
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| Receiver can delete |
| You can specify whether the receiver/s can delete the file that you have sent. If you do not want them to, either you or a member of the Super Group will be the only ones allowed to delete it. |
| If a file must remain for many users to fetch, you can stop others deleting it, even if they normally have delete permission.
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| Send file to be executed |
| The Super User (only) may send a program file which is then executed at each site. He may specify the number of re-tries, in case the execution was not successful, and also whether the execution should be forced. See the explanations later, next to "Forced execution" in both automatic and manual, for further details. The Super User may also select whether the execution happens from within InterNEDI, or external to it. |
| Save time - fix or change things automatically at remote sites without going there or contacting each one individually.
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| After sending
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Monitor number of receives |
| Each time you log on after sending, there will be a number with your file showing the total number of times it has been received. This is shown whether you requested confirmations or not. |
| Save time - get a quick overview of how your file's doing without checking the history.
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| Receive confirmations |
| If you requested confirmations, the newly-arrived ones will be shown each time you log on, and can be saved in a history file. When viewing the history file you can select to see only specific file names/users/groups/dates or date ranges, thus allowing you to drill down to just the info you need. |
| Get an overview of what's been happening, or drill down to find exactly what did happen. |
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| Receiving
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| See which are already received |
| A record is kept of which files you have already received, either in this session or previous ones, and is displayed with each file, so you know what you've already got and what you need to get. This facility does not rely on the file name only, it looks at all info about the file, so does not get confused even when working with files with the same name. |
| Save time - don't receive the same file more than once. In automatic mode you can specify to ignore files already received.
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| See as much/as little as you wish |
| Any file that you can see belongs to one of four categories: It's either from you, or has been sent to you, to your group, or to all users. When you first log on all files are displayed, but with a single click you can reduce the number of categories displayed to any combination of these four. |
| Save time - view exactly as much or as little as you need to.
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| Cover Notes
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Add a cover note to a file |
| You may add a cover note, like a fax cover note, to any file that you send. This can be a short note or a long explanation running to many pages. When the receiver fetches the file, the cover note is displayed in a separate window in a large font as the file receive begins. |
| For instructions or notifications to staff, where email is not suitable, or will not be viewed. They cannot help but see a cover note !
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| Send a cover note only |
| You may send only a cover note, and no file. This then makes InterNEDI work similarly to email. |
| Use it for all instructions - even when there is no file to be sent.
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| Make the receiver read the cover note |
| If you really want to make sure that the receiver reads every word of the cover note, then you can specify a forced read. As the file starts being received, a large button is displayed asking the user to press it to read a cover note. If it is not pressed within 5 seconds, the button then alternates with a brightly coloured strobing display, and an audible message is played through the PC's speakers. This remains on the screen even after transfers are finished, even in auto mode. When the receiver finally does press the button, the cover note is displayed as a top-most window (it can't be minimised or overlaid with another window). From the length of the cover note, InterNEDI then calculates how long it should take the user to read it, and won't allow the user to dismiss it until that time has elapsed ! Short of grabbing the user round the neck and pointing him at the screen, this will ensure the cover note is read ! |
| For staff that keep saying : "I wasn't told about that !"
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| View the cover note only |
| If someone wishes to see the cover note for a file only without receiving the whole file, he may do so. In the case of a charged file, it will not count as a charged download. |
| Save time - view the cover note only without fetching the whole file.
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| History Viewer
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Keep log of all transfers |
| You can choose to keep a history of all your transfers (sends, receives and deletes) which can be viewed with a history viewer supplied with InterNEDI. With this facility, you can also pare down what is shown to just the entries that interest you. You can select the file name of interest, the transfer type (send and/or receive and/or delete), the specific user to whom/from whom you did the transfer, the group, and the date or range of dates that you want. For example, if you selected all files and all transfer types to/from a particular user, and then sorted it by date, you would get an instant history of all transactions with that user. This beats wading through email inboxes and outboxes trying to figure out who said what! |
| Save time - with a few clicks you can filter and sort to find exactly the records you need. You will wonder why email programs don't do this !
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| Keep log of all confirmations |
| You can keep a history of all confirmations received. They are displayed in a similar manner to transfer history above, and the filtering to show just the ones you wish to see works the same too. |
| Save time as with viewing transfers.
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| Super User
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Menu-driven setup utility |
| The Super User uses the InterNEDI Setup program to define and modify all users and groups. He does this offline, and when he is finished, the changes are automatically uploaded to his File Centre and the new set of permissions is immediately in operation. |
| Save time - it is all done locally, and then is uploaded in a single operation.
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| Controls all operations |
| The Super User decides who has what permissions, who belongs to which groups, and what the anonymous group is allowed to do. He sets the monthly subscription fee (if any), and only he sends program files for remote execution. If KrantzKloof Software is doing your invoicing and/or billing, he also maintains the lists of users for sending back to us so we know who to bill. |
| The buck stops here !
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| Types of permission |
| The Super User can allocate permissions to any user as follows:
- Is this user allowed to send to a specific user?
- Is this user allowed to send to a specific group?
- Is this user allowed to send to all users?
- Is this user allowed to send to the anonymous group?
If this user is allowed to send to anyone at all, then the following permissions can also be set:
- Is this user allowed to "see" files that he himself has sent? (Please note that "see" means simply to view the listing of a file, and is not the same as receiving it.)
- Is this user allowed to receive files that he himself has sent?
- Is this user allowed to delete files that he himself has sent?
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| With many users all needing different sorts of access, they can all be accommodated.
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| Sees all |
| The Super User may see, receive and delete any file on the system. If a user wishes to send a file without the Super User being able to read it, he has to scramble it. |
| The Super User really does run the show !
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| Receives execution reports |
| After sending a program file for remote execution, the Super User receives report/s about the execution from each site where it has been done. If he has selected to save confirmations, these are stored and may be viewed with the history viewer in the same way as "keep log of all transfers" above. |
| Keep an eye on remote program executions - which have been done successfully, which are still trying, which have now failed.
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| Super Group (which includes the Super User)
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Sees nearly all |
| A member of the Super Group may see, receive and delete any file on the system, except for files that have been sent only to a specific member of the Super Group, or are from one member of the Super Group to another specific user only. |
| The Super User's sidekicks - they help him out, assist with various tasks.
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| Set upload charges |
| Any member of the Super Group may send a file with a charge on it. This will be levied on all users who receive it. |
| To stop just anyone putting a charge on a file.
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| Features specific to automatic mode only
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Network/Dial/Dial for backup |
| When connecting, InterNEDI can be instructed to connect via your local network, or it can dial up using the InterNEDI ISP supplied by us, or it can dial up using your own ISP, or else use your network, but then fall back to your or our ISP if your network fails. |
| Connect any way you like. If your network is down, then it can try dial-up. The data must get through !
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| Comprehensive error reporting |
| During a session, if an error occurs, it is shown on the screen for 10 seconds. At the end of the session a detailed report is shown on the screen for 10 seconds as well. If you are watching it at the time, you can stop the timer and take as long as you want to inspect it. Details of the outcome of each task are also left in the task file and can be inspected at any time thereafter. |
| You're never in the dark - you can see what's happening if you're watching an automatic session, and you can check afterwards to see what did happen.
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| Specify many files either with wild cards or else individually |
| When instructing InterNEDI what to send, as well as sending a single file, it can also send any number of files specified by a wildcard, or else up to 100 files individually specified. |
| Specify your files to send any way you like.
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| Files written as specified name, or original name |
| When receiving a single file, it can either write it out to the name that you specify, or else to the name that the file had originally, before it was sent. |
| Specify how to receive your files any way you like.
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| Ignore file if already received in a previous session |
| You can instruct InterNEDI to skip receiving a file if it has been received in an earlier session. Thus it only receives the file if it has been updated since the last time this user logged on. |
| Save time - why receive the same file again ?
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| Delete file after receipt |
| You can instruct InterNEDI to delete the source file after successfully receiving it. |
| Reduce clutter in the list of files. If it's done its job, get rid of it immediately.
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| Receiving — if more than one file with the specified name |
| If InterNEDI has been instructed to receive a file, and there is more than one file with that name on your File Centre, you can select from a few options: that InterNEDI receives them all, receives the earliest only, the latest only, or skips the entire task. |
| Increased reliability - receive files in the way that the software that processes them further can handle.
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| Sending — if more than one file with the specified name |
| If InterNEDI has been instructed to send a file, and one or more files with the same name exist on your File Centre already, you can select that InterNEDI overwrites them all, or leaves them and adds this file, or skips the entire task. Leaving them there allows them to queue up until they can be received. |
| Tailor things to what your application needs.
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| Deleting old files |
| When instructing InterNEDI to delete file/s, you can specify that it deletes them only if they are older than a specified number of days (1 to 30). |
| Keep older files as backup for as long as you decide they need to be kept.
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| Run external programs after each task |
| For each task, you can specify an external program to be run after it has completed. You can even specify different programs to be run, depending on whether the task succeeded or not. |
| Process received files, possibly for sending in the following task.
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| Forced execution |
| When the Super User sends a program file for execution, he can specify that it be force executed. In that case, in Auto mode, even if no task has been specified for receiving the file, it will be downloaded anyway and executed without intervention. If it executes successfully (returns error code 0), InterNEDI will not execute it again in subsequent sessions. If it returns an error code other than 0, InterNEDI will execute it at the end of each following session until success, or until it reaches the maximum number of retries that was specified when the Super User sent it. |
| Forgot to set the automatic tasks at remote sites to look for a program to run ? No problem.
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| Features specific to Manual mode only
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| Feature |
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| Why this is useful
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| Who-am-I? |
| In case you forget your station in life, there is a "Your Details" button that will tell you your user label, group label and permissions. |
| Forgetful ? Who you are is a click away !
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| Comprehensive error reporting |
| Any errors that occur during the session have extensive and meaningful error messages that help you rectify the problem. We don't do cryptic error messages such as "File error". What does that mean? We tell you where the error occurred and how to fix it. |
| We tell you as much as we can. It reduces the number of support calls for us !
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| Forced execution |
| When the Super User sends a program file for execution, he can specify that it be force executed. In that case, in Manual mode, if you don't go and receive the file yourself, InterNEDI will, at the end of your session, ask you whether it can go and fetch it. If you say yes, it will do so and then execute it. If you say no, it will carry on asking you at the end of each session until the file is removed or you say yes. |
| You are able to block a program sent for execution if you want to.
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| Miscellaneous
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| Feature |
| Description |
| Why this is useful
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| Multi-threaded architecture |
| InterNEDI is a multi-threaded program designed for quick response at all times. |
| Save time - no long waits for response.
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| Automatic upgrades |
| When new versions of the InterNEDI software become available, your copy is automatically upgraded by KrantzKloof Software. In Auto mode this just happens. In Manual mode, it requests whether it may go and do the upgrade. |
| Save time - no having to go and download and install the new version.
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| Pay for what you use |
| You only pay for the logons/transfers/megabytes that you actually use in any one month. |
| Save money - pay only for what you use.
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| Feedback |
| We really like to know what our customers think of the software and the service, so we have a feedback feature built into the software itself. Click on a button, enter any comments you like, and they will automatically come right back to us. They can be anonymous if you prefer. |
| Tell us like it is - we can take it !
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| File Centre and ISP's managed transparently |
| The File Centre and ISP's supplied for your use as part of the service are arranged in such a way that even if things like phone numbers, server names etc. change, the changes are propagated through the system automatically and you carry on as if nothing had happened. You don't have to alter any settings, all the changes happen transparently to you and your users. |
| Save time - no reconfiguration necessary.
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