The Basics

Dis2pab is a utility that converts a VMS Mail distribution list to a Pine Address Book entry. It copies the addresses into your Pine Address Book and gives the entry the same name that the list had.

To use the utility to convert a distribution list file into an Address Book entry, follow the steps below.

1. Log in to your Cobra/Viper account.
2. At the $ prompt, type dis2pab filename where "filename" is the name of your distribution list. For example, if I had a distribution list named friends, I would type the following

   dis2pab friends

3. Open Pine and look in the Address Book. There should be an entry with the same name as your VMS distribution list that contains all the addresses from that list. If there is not, double-check that you typed everything correctly and try again.

The Details

• If the distribution list file is stored in a subdirectory, not your home directory, you will need to specify the path to the file as well as the filename. For example, if I had a .dis file named friends.dis in a subdirectory called lists I would type the following

  dis2pab [clopton.lists]friends

  If you aren't sure what we mean by "homedirectory" and "subdirectory" the file is probably in your home directory and you have nothing to worry about.

• Addresses found in the distribution list file will be incuded in the Address Book entry in the correct form for Pine to use. However, if the distribution list includes nicknames defined in your login.com file, these will not work in Pine's address book. You will need to replace them with complete addresses in Pine's Address Book after the conversion takes place.

• Using Pine
• VMS Pine Index
• How to do in Pine what you used to do in VMS Mail