Menu items
Netscape Handbook: Table of
Contents
- File
- Send Mail/Post News (File/Mail Document
dialog)
- Document Information (File/Document
Information dialog)
- Edit
- View
- Go
- Bookmarks
- View Bookmarks (Bookmarks dialog)
- Options
- Window Styles (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Link Styles (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Fonts (Options/Preferences panel)
- Colors (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Mail (Options/Preferences panel)
- News (Options/Preferences panel)
- Cache (Options/Preferences panel)
- Network (Options/Preferences panel)
- Applications (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Directories (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Images (Options/Preferences panel)
- Security (Options/Preferences panel)
- Proxies (Options/Preferences panel)
- Helper Applications (Options/Preferences
panel)
- Directory
- Help
- Pop-up Menu
File
- New Window
Creates a new window with the same history items as the
previous window while bringing the oldest page in the history (usually
the home page) to screen.
- Open Location...
Produces a dialog box that lets you enter a Uniform Resource
Locator (URL) to bring the specified page into the content area.
Every page has a unique URL that identifies its protocol, server, and
file pathname.
- Open File...
Lets you select a file to open from a dialog box.
- Save As...
Creates a file whose content is the content area of the current
Netscape page. A dialog box lets you select the file's format.
- Mail Document...
Produces the Send Mail/Post News dialog box that lets you
send a mail message and page attachment to an e-mail address you
specify. If you have not specified the name of your mail (SMTP)
server and your own e-mail address in the appropriate fields of the
Mail panel, you'll receive a dialog box telling you that you
must do so for mail or news postings to be sent.
- Document Information
Produces a read-only dialog box stating the current document's
title, location (URL), date of last modification, character set
encoding, and security status. Secure documents specify the type of
encryption used and certificate data. The certificate states the
version, serial number, issuer (identity of the certifier), and
subject (identity of the server). The certificate uses abbreviations
for: Country (C), State or Province (ST), Organization (O),
Organizational Unit (OU), Locality (L), and Common Name (CN).
- Page Setup... (On Windows: a button in the Print...
dialog box) (Not on UNIX)
Produces a dialog box that lets you specify printing
characteristics associated with the current page.
- Print...
Prints the content area of the current Netscape page. A dialog box
lets you select printing characteristics. In addition to
Print, the Windows platform offers a Print Preview menu
item to display the layout of a printed page.
- Print Preview (Windows only)
Shows a representation of a printed page on screen.
- Close
Closes the current Netscape page. On Windows, exits the Netscape
application when you close the last page.
- Exit (On Macintosh: Quit)
Closes the current Netscape page and exits the Netscape
application.
Send
Mail/
Post
News (File/Mail Document
dialog)
This dialog box is produced by choosing the File/Mail Document
menu item. The dialog may also be produced by clicking on a link or
button designed to initiate e-mail, and is the same dialog used to
post articles to newsgroups.
Fields in the dialog work as follows:
- Your e-mail address (as stated in the Mail panel) is
displayed in the From field.
- Enter the e-mail address of the intended mail recipient in the
Mail To field.
- Enter the name of the newsgroup you wish to post to in the Post
Newsgroup field. If you're posting from a newsgroup listing or
article, this field is preset with the name of the newsgroup.
- Enter a description of the e-mail or posting in the Subject
field. If you're sending mail or posting from news articles, this
field is preset with the name of the current page.
- Any file you've attached is shown in the Attachment field.
- Enter a message or include the text of the current page in the
large message field. If you're sending mail, this field is preset
with the current page's URL. If the Mail panel specifies a
text file containing your signature, the signature is appended.
Buttons in the dialog work as follows:
- Press the Attach button to send a separate document along
with the e-mail message. The button produces a dialog box with radio
buttons for choosing a Document Text, Document Source,
or File attachment. The File alternative offers a
Browse button for selecting a local file.
- Press the Quote Document button to import the text of the
current page into the message field. The imported text is appended to
any other content in the field and each line is preceded with a
greater-than (>) symbol.
- Press the Send button to distribute the mail into the
network and close the dialog box.
Document
Information (File/Document
Information dialog)
This dialog identifies elements of a document that help you establish
the document's authenticity and other security characteristics. In
the upper portion of the dialog, the document's title, location,
modification date, and encoding information are presented. The lower
portion of the dialog consists of a panel detailing the particulars
of a document's security status.
To interpret the security status of a document, you should verify that
the information you see in the dialog box:
- Is consistent with your knowledge of the party with whom you are
communicating.
- States that the document is secure or insecure.
- Designates for secure documents the type of encryption used in the
transmission and the certification of the server.
If a document is insecure, the security information panel notifies you
that encryption is not used and there is no server certificate. If a
document is secure, the security information panel notifies you of
the encryption's grade, export control, key size, and algorithm type,
and, in a scrolling field, the server certificate presents coded data
identifying the:
- Certificate version and serial number
- Issuer of the certificate
- Subject (organization) that is being certified
To ensure you are communicating with the organization you want,
examine the subject of the server certificate. The organization
should identify itself with the name and location you expect.
Like documents, certificate information is protected by encryption to
ensure authenticity and integrity. You can interpret the coded data
as follows:
- Country (C): two-character country code
- State or Province (ST): unabbreviated state/province name
- Organization (O): legal, registered organization name
- Organizational Unit (OU): optional department name
- Locality (L): city the organization resides or is registered in
- Common Name (CN): the server's fully qualified host name (such as:
hostname.netscape.com)
Edit
- Undo
Reverses the last action you performed, if possible.
- Cut...
Removes the current selection and places a copy on the
clipboard.
- Copy
Places a copy of the current selection on the clipboard.
- Paste
Puts the contents of the clipboard into the current Netscape
page at the position of the selection marker.
- Clear (Macintosh only)
Removes the current selection.
- Select All (Macintosh only)
Creates a selection composed of the entire contents of the area
occupied by the selection marker.
- Find...
Produces a Find dialog box that lets you specify a
word or phrase to locate within the current Netscape page. Pressing
the Find button begins the search. If a match is found, the
text is selected and, if necessary, scrolled to a visible position in
the content area. If the Match Case option (Case
Sensitive on Macintosh and UNIX) is checked, a match can only
occur when the use of uppercase and lowercase letters is the same;
otherwise a match can occur regardless of case. If the Up
option (Find Backwards on Macintosh and UNIX) is checked, the
search proceeds from the selection bar toward the beginning of the
page; otherwise (Down is checked;Find Backward is
unchecked) a search proceeds from the selection bar toward the end of
the page. If a search reaches the end or beginning of a page
(depending on the direction of the search), a dialog box asks whether
or not to continue the search to the beginning or end of the
document.
- Find Again (Not on Windows)
Searches for another occurrence of the text specified
after using Find.
View
- Reload
Brings a fresh copy of the current Netscape page (from
cache or, if changed, source) to replace the one originally loaded.
The reloaded page displays any changes made to the source page from
the time of the original loading.
- Load Images
Displays the images of the current Netscape page. Typically,
images automatically load into pages. However, if the Options/Auto
Load Images menu item is unchecked when a page loads, a small
icon is substituted at the position of each image. Choosing Load
Images replaces all of the small icons with their corresponding
images. Images are loaded from their source files, however the page
is not reloaded (links to images are not updated from the source
page).
- Refresh (Not on Macintosh)
Brings a fresh copy of the current Netscape page from
local memory to replace the one originally loaded. The refreshed page
does not display changes made to the source page from the time of the
original loading.
- Source... Produces a View Source dialog box (or
opens a viewer application) showing the current page in the textual
format of HTML (HyperText Markup Language). The HTML source text
includes the commands used to create the content and content style of
a single page. The dialog box contains a read-only listing, though
the text can be selected and copied to an application with editing
capabilities. On Windows, the source text is displayed in a dialog
box without the option to save. On Macintosh, the text is stored in a
temporary file and displayed using the Macintosh's generic text
application capable of saving the file (if no text application is
available, a dialog asks you to save or delete the text file). On
UNIX, the text is displayed, along with the document title and URL,
in a dialog box that offers a Save button. The Save
button allows you to save the source listing in the same manner as
the File/Save As menu item. On all platforms, you can specify
an application of your choice to view the source text (bypassing the
dialog box or generic viewer). The Applications panel (choose
Options/Preferences/Applications) offers a View Source
field and Browse button to specify the location of the viewing
application you wish to use as the default viewer.
Go
- Back
Brings the previous page in the history list. A history list is a
reference to a hierarchy of pages you have viewed.
- Forward
Brings the next page in the history list. If you have used
Back or a history menu item to bring back page B, then
Forward brings the page ahead of B in the history list. The
Forward command is only offered after using Back or a
history item.
- Home
Brings the Netscape home page to the screen.
- Stop Loading
Halts the connection in progress that is bringing a page to the
screen.
- View History...
Produces a History dialog box that lists, in two columns,
the title and URL of each page you have seen as you "most recently"
descended from the home page. (For example, if you go from page
Animal to page Cat to page Calico, then back to page Animal and
traverse the path Animal to Dog to Spaniel, your history maintains
only the most recent Animal-Dog-Spaniel lineage.) The history list is
sorted with the most recently viewed pages at the top. One item in
the list is always selected. Pressing the Go to button brings
the selected page back to the screen. So does double-clicking on an
item. Pressing the Add to Bookmark button puts the selected
page into the bookmark list.
- History item 1
Brings the first page in the history list (each menu item
is a title of a page).
- History item 2
Brings the second page in the history list (and so on,
each menu item is a title of a page).
Bookmarks
The Bookmarks menu provides fast and easy access to your
favorite pages. Initially, the menu displays only the two items that
help you add and modify pages in a bookmark list. However, as you add
a page to a bookmark list, the title of the page (or any other name
you wish to supply as a bookmark title) is appended as a menu item.
Selecting the title brings the page to your screen.
Bookmarks are maintained in lists, each list is represented by a
bookmarks file. You can maintain multiple bookmark lists, each with
its own set of titles linked to favorite pages, though only one
bookmark list can be active at a time. The menu item View
Bookmarks produces a Bookmark List dialog box offering
options that allow you to build and maintain one or more bookmark
files. Any changes you make to the active bookmark list (the one
currently available through the Bookmark List dialog box) are
saved and available the next time you start Netscape.
You can organize and customize items in the Bookmarks menu
through the Bookmark List dialog box. Bookmark menu items can
be arranged hierarchically. The dialog box permits you to create a
hierarchy by defining header items in the list, then inserting
bookmark items indented (in outline form) below each header. The
Up and Down buttons (arrows on the Macintosh) control
the line position and indention of items. An item indented one deep
in the bookmark list appears as a submenu of the header in the menu.
An item indented two deep in the list appears as a submenu of a
submenu, and so on. Each indentation of an item in the bookmark list
corresponds to the item's hierarchical sublevel in the menu. You can
also exchange bookmark lists with other Netscape users by using the
Export Bookmarks and Import Bookmarks buttons.
- Add Bookmark
Adds the title of the current Netscape page to the list of
pages in the bookmark file.
- View Bookmarks...
Produces a Bookmark List dialog
box that allows you to create and modify bookmark files.
- Bookmark item 1
Brings the first page in the bookmarks list (each menu item is
a title of a page).
- Bookmark item 2
Brings the second page in the bookmarks list (and so on,
each menu item is a title of a page).
View
Bookmarks (Bookmarks dialog)
The Bookmark List dialog box produced by choosing the
Bookmarks/View Bookmarks menu item offers offers numerous
options and information. Note: you must press the Edit>>
button (More Options on the Macintosh) to access the full set
of options.
- A field lists the bookmarks in the active bookmarks file. You
can select any one item in the list to view information about the
selected bookmark and to begin editing the list.
- Press the Add Bookmark button to insert the current page
title directly below the current selection in the list. If the
current selection is a header item, the page title is inserted below
and indented to the right of the header.
- Press the Go To button to bring the page specified by the
current selection in the list. If the current selection is not a page
title, the button is dimmed.
- Press the View Bookmarks button to create a new
Netscape page containing the list in HTML format. You can save the
page using the File/Save As command.
- Press the Export Bookmarks button to produce a dialog box
for saving the active bookmarks file. The file is saved as an
HTML-formatted page. Enter a file name of your choosing, then press
OK (Save on Macintosh) to create a bookmarks file. You
can exchange bookmark files with other users by using the Export
Bookmarks and Import Bookmarks buttons.
- Press the Import Bookmarks button to produce a dialog box
for inserting a bookmarks file (an HTML-formatted page) into the
active bookmarks file. Choose the bookmarks file from the dialog box,
then press OK (Open on Macintosh) to insert the
bookmarks after the last bookmark of the active list.
- Select an item from the Menu Adds After (Add Bookmarks
Under on Windows) pop-up menu to specify the head position for
new page titles added through the menu bar. Subsequent selections of
the Add Bookmark menu item adds the title at the end of the
list or after the specified header.
- Select an item from the Menu Start With (Bookmarks
Menu on Windows) pop-up menu to specify the head position for
displaying items under the Bookmarks menu. Subsequent
selections of the Bookmarks menu show the entire list or only
those items in the hierarchy of the specified header.
- Press the New Bookmark button to insert a new item
(temporarily titled New Item) below the current selection in
the list. Enter the bookmark title that you wish to use in the
Name field and the new item's URL in the location field, then
click in the list (or press another button) to complete the
insertion.
- Press the New Header button to insert a new header below
the current selection in the list. Enter the name of the new header
in the Name text field, then click in the list (or press
another button) to complete the insertion.
- Press the New Separator (New Divider on Macintosh)
button to insert a line below the current selection in the list.
- The Name text field contains the name of the current
selection in the list. You can edit the name in the field to supply a
bookmark title of your choice. Click in the list to complete the
edit.
- The location field contains the URL of the current selection in
the list. You can edit the URL in the field. Click in the list to
complete the edit.
- The Last Visited text shows the date that the current
selection in the list was last viewed.
- The Added On text shows the date that the current
selection was added to the list.
- The Description text field contains any text you wish
to supply about the current URL selection in the list.
- Press the Up button (arrow on Macintosh) to move or
indent the current selection in the list. Typically, pressing the
Up button swaps the positions of the current selection and the
item directly above the current selection. However, the Up
button behaves as follows: if the current selection is a header, the
header and its sub-items move as a single item; if the item directly
above the current selection is indented to the right of the current
selection, pressing the Up button indents the current
selection.
- Press the Down button (arrow on Macintosh) to move the
current selection in the list or reverse the current selection's
indentation. Typically, pressing the Down button swaps the
positions of the current selection and the item directly below the
current selection. However, the Down button behaves as
follows: if the current selection is a header, the header and its
sub-items move as a single item; if the item directly below the
current selection is positioned to the left of the current selection,
pressing the Down button moves the current selection one tab
stop to the left (reverses a single indent).
- Press the Find button to search for items in the bookmark
list (both titles and URLs) that matches text you enter in the
Find field. The search begins at the current selection and
searches downward. The search is not case sensitive. When a match is
found, the item is selected. If the match is in a URL, the URL is
also selected. Pressing the Find button again searches for the
next occurrence. If an item is found under a folded header, the
header's list is automatically unfolded and the found item selected.
- The Edit button (More Options on the Macintosh)
expands the Bookmark List dialog box to its full set of options.
- The Done Editing button (Fewer Options on the
Macintosh) limits the Bookmark List dialog box to its minimum set
of options.
- The Copy Item button creates a duplicate of the current
selection and positions the new item directly below the original.
- The Remove Item button deletes the current selection from
the list.
Options
Window
Styles
(Options/Preferences panel)
- Select one of three radio buttons Pictures, Text, or
Pictures and Text to determine the appearance of the toolbar
buttons. The default is Pictures.
- Select one of two radio buttons Blank Page or Home
Page Location to determine the first page to appear when starting
Netscape. The Home Page Location choice is followed by a text
field for you to enter the location (URL) of the page you wish to
designate as the startup page. The default is Home Page
Location with the text field containing the URL of the Netscape
application's home page.
- On UNIX, choose one of four radio buttons, Small,
Medium, Large, or Huge, for the font style in
the content area. On Windows and Macintosh, font alternatives are
offered in the Fonts panel.
Link
Styles
(Options/Preferences panel)
- Check Links are: Underlined to make text links in the content
area highlight with underlining. The default is checked.
- Select one of two radio buttons Followed Links: Expire
After or Expire Never, or press the Expire Now
button, to determine the expiration of followed links. The color of
an followed link reverts to the color of an unfollowed link at the
time of expiration. The After choice is followed by a text
field for you to enter the number of days after which a followed link
reverts to an unfollowed link. The Never choice specifies that
followed links never revert to unfollowed links. Pressing the
Now button causes followed links to revert to unfollowed links
immediately. The default is After with links expiring after 30
days.
Fonts
(Options/Preferences panel)
(On Windows and Macintosh only)
- Each character set from the For the Encoding pull-down menu
is associated with a proportional and fixed font pair. You can view
or modify the association for any encoding by choosing the encoding
name from the menu, then choosing items from the proportional and
fixed font pull-down menus. For example, the default encoding,
Latin1, is associated with the proportional font Times 12 and the
fixed font Courier 10.
- Press the Use the Proportional Font button to choose a font
and font size (pop-up menus on Macintosh) for the display of the
primary type of text in the content area. Most pages display text in
a proportional font. You can make a selection for each encoding.
- Press the Use the Fixed Font button to choose a font and
font size (pop-up menus on Macintosh) for the display of the
secondary type of text in the content area. Fixed font text is used
in editable fields and certain paragraphs preformatted by the author
of a page. You can make a selection for each encoding.
- Choose an item from the Default Encoding pull-down menu to
specify the character set to use when the document does not specify
an encoding or the document-specified encoding is not available. The
proportional and fixed fonts associated with the default encoding are
designated using the other Font panel items.
Colors
(Options/Preferences panel)
(On Windows and Macintosh only)
- Select one of two radio buttons Let Document Override or
Always Use Mine to determine if a page's background can be
substituted for your background. Choose the default, Let Document
Override, to permit the background display transmitted with a
page. Choose Always Use Mine to use your own Default,
Custom, or File background only.
li>Check in any of the Custom boxes to specify your own color
choices for links and text. Default colors are used for unchecked
boxes.
- Click in the Links box and press the Choose Color
button (color box on Macintosh) to select the highlight color of text
links to pages you have not yet seen. The default is blue.
- Click in the Followed links box and press the Choose
Color button (color box on Macintosh) to select the highlight
color of text links to pages you have already seen. The default is
purple.
- Click in the Text box and press the Choose Color
button (color box on Macintosh) to select the highlight color of text
links to pages you have already seen. The default is black.
- Select one of three radio buttons Default, Custom,
or File to specify how the background of a document should be
presented on your screen. Choose Default to use the standard
gray background. Choose Custom and press the Choose
Color button (click in the color box on Macintosh) to select a
background color of your choice. Choose File and press the
Browse button to select an imager file to serve as your
document background.
Mail
(Options/Preferences panel)
To send any e-mail, the Netscape application must make the appropriate
connection to the mail server. E-mail is distributed by a SMTP
(Simple Mail Transport Protocol) server. Enter the name of the SMTP
server in the Mail (SMTP) Server field (ideally, a local mail
server if available). If you do not know the name of your SMTP
server, ask your service provider or system administrator.
For others to reply to your mail, you should enter your name and
e-mail address in their respective fields. This information
accompanies each correspondence you send.
- Text in the Mail (SMTP) Server field designates the host
name of your (Simple Mail Transport Protocol) mail server.
- Text in the Your Name field provides provides your name
to recipients of your e-mail.
- Text in the Your E-mail field provides your e-mail
address to recipients of your e-mail.
- Text in the Organization field allows you to add a company
or group name to your e-mail.
- The Signature File field shows the name of a file
containing the signature you can have appended to your mailings and
news postings. Click Browse to select this file.
News
(Options/Preferences panel)
You must specify a news server to interact with Usenet newsgroups. If
you don't know the name of your news server, contact the service or
administrator providing you with your Internet connection.
- Text in the News (NNTP) Server field designates the host
name for the news server.
- Lists the location of the News RC Directory. This file
holds newsgroup subscription information. Click its Browse
button to identify a new location. (Not on Macintosh; News RC file is
in the System Folder/Preferences/Netscape folder.)
- The field containing 100 within Show 100 Articles at a
Time (Maximum number of articles to show on Macintosh) can
be replaced with a number that limits how many news articles are
displayed from the news server (the larger the number, the slower the
display).
Cache
(Options/Preferences panel)
- The Memory Cache field specifies the size in kilobytes of
the memory cache. Press the Clear Memory Cache Now button to
empty the cache immediately. The default is 2000K. (On Macintosh,
memory requirements are specified in the application's Get Info box.)
- The Disk Cache field specifies the size in kilobytes of the
disk cache. On Windows, the default is 5000K. On Macintosh, the
default is 1M (1000K) and you can use buttons to adjust the size.
Press the Clear Disk Cache Now button to empty the cache
immediately.
- Lists the disk Disk Cache Directory location. (On
Macintosh, click Browse to select a new location.) Click on
buttons to change the disk cache size or clear the disk cache now.
- Select one of three radio buttons to check the network for
document revisions Once per Session, Every Time, or
Never. By checking for revisions, Netscape knows to bring an
updated page from a network server rather than a potentially stale
page stored in the cache. Choosing the default, Once per
Session, causes a network verification of any page only once
during the time you start and quit the application. Choosing Every
Time repeatedly checks for HTML changes when you request a page, at
the cost of slower performance. Choosing Never performs no
verifications, thus a page available in cache is always brought from
cache.
Netscape performs cache maintenance when you exit the applications. If
you find that exiting takes longer than you wish, you might remedy
the problem by reducing the size of the disk cache.
If you find that pages that should be in cache are taking longer to
appear than they should, make sure the Verify Documents button
is not set to Every Time. The verification requires a network
connection that takes time. As an alternative, you can always obtain
document revisions by pressing the Reload button. A reloaded
document is brought from the network server and not the cache.
Network
(Options/Preferences panel)
- The Connections field specifies the maximum number of
network connections. The default is 4.
- The Network Buffer Size field specifies the number of
kilobytes allotted in memory for network data transmissions. On
Windows, the default is 1K. On Macintosh, the default is 2K.
Applications
(Options/Preferences panel)
You can also specify the folder to store applications that support
Netscape. Whereas helper applications provide a page with multimedia
presentation capabilities (according to MIME type), supporting
applications provide Netscape with connection and page formatting
utilities. Click on the field's adjacent Browse button (not on
UNIX) to identify a new application location.
- Lists the location of the Telnet Application. Telnet
provides the means to connect to and interact with another computer
using standard Internet protocols.
- Lists the location of an application to View Source (if
required by your platform). The source viewer application displays a
page's text embedded with the HTML formatting commands.
- Lists the location of the TN3270 Application. TN3270 is
used for Telnet connections to IBM mainframes.
Directories
(Options/Preferences panel)
- Lists the location of the Temporary Directory. Before a
helper application executes, Netscape temporarily stores application
files onto disk. After the helper application is exited, Netscape
deletes the files.(On Macintosh and UNIX, click the Browse
button to select a new default folder if, for example, your default
disk is short on space and you want to store temporary files in an
alternative location.)
- On Windows and UNIX, lists the location of the Bookmark
File. Click its Browse button to select a new default
folder to hold the bookmark list file (bookmark.htm on
Windows). On Macintosh, the bookmark list file, Bookmarks.htm,
is in the folder: System Folder/Preferences/Netscape.
Images
(Options/Preferences panel)
- (Not on Macintosh) Select one of two radio buttons Dither
to Color Cube or Use Closest Color in Color Cube to
display images using dithering or substitution to most closely match
the computer's available colors. Dithered images may offer a closer
match to an image's intended colors, but take longer to display.
- Select one of two radio buttons While Loading or After
Loading to display images incrementally while the image is
transmitted or all at once after the transmission. The While
Loading option provides the benefit of feedback as the
transmission progresses. On a fast network, the After Loading
option may complete the load slightly faster. The default is While
Loading.
Security
(Options/Preferences panel)
The security check boxes dictate whether you receive a
dialog box notification when entering a secure document space,
leaving a secure document space, viewing a document with a mixed
security status, or submitting a form with an insecure submit
process. If a check box is checked, the notification dialog can be
issued; otherwise, the dialog is bypassed.
Proxies
(Options/Preferences panel)
Ordinarily, the Netscape application does not require proxies to
interact with the network services of external sources. However, in
some network configurations the connection between the Netscape
application and a remote server is blocked by a firewall. Firewalls
protect information in internal computer networks from external
access. In doing so, firewalls may limit Netscape's ability to
exchange information with external sources.
To overcome this limitation, Netscape can interact with proxy
software. A proxy server sits atop a firewall and acts as a conduit,
providing a specific connection for each network service protocol. If
you are running Netscape on an internal network from behind a
firewall, you will need to ascertain from your system administrator
the names and associated port numbers for the server running proxy
software for each network service. Proxy software retains the ability
to communicate with external sources, yet is trusted to communicate
with the internal network.
A single computer may run multiple servers, each server connection
identified with a port number. A proxy server, like an HTTP server or
a FTP server, occupies a port. Typically, a connection uses
standardized port numbers for each protocol (for example, HTTP = 80
and FTP = 21). However, unlike common server protocols, the proxy
server has no default port. Netscape requires that for each proxy
server you specify in a Proxy text field, you also specify its
port number in the Port field.
- Text in each Proxy field designates the host name of each
protocol's proxy server. (Often, a single proxy server handles the
three major protocols: HTTP, FTP, and Gopher.)
- A number in each adjacent Port field identifies the
connection used by the proxy server.
Text fields for proxies and ports are offered for FTP (File Transfer
Protocol), Gopher (browser), HTTP (HyperText Transport Protocol),
Security (Secure Sockets Layer protocol), and WAIS (Wide Area
Information System), and SOCKS (firewall bypass software). The text
field No Proxy on: lets you bypass the proxy server for a
specified local domain. For example, if you specify:
HTTP Proxy: aserver.netscape.com Port: 8080
No Proxy on: netscape.com
then all HTTP requests for the netscape.com host server go from
Netscape directly to the host (not using any proxy). All HTTP
requests for other servers go from Netscape through the proxy server
aserver on port 8080, then to the host.
Helper
Applications
(Options/Preferences dialog)
The Netscape application brings files to your computer using various
server protocols such as HTTP, NNTP, SMTP, and FTP. Each protocol may
support different file formats. Netscape has the built-in capability
to read (interpret and display on your computer) several formats
including the HTML format used by HTTP servers. When the Netscape
application retrieves a file with a format that Netscape itself
cannot read, the application attempts to use an external helper
application capable of reading the file. Netscape uses a
Preferences dialog box to allow you to examine and configure
how a file's format maps to a helper application. The dialog box
contains several fields and buttons to specify MIME file types (a
method of differentiating file formats using a suffix appended to a
file name), helper applications, and associated actions.
- A scrolling text field lists the helper applications available to
the Netscape application. Each line of the text field contains
information about one helper application. By clicking on a line in
the text field, you can see and modify preferences for the selected
helper application in the area below the scrolling field.
- Enter a File Type in a text field.
- Enter a Subtype in a text field.
- Enter Extensions in a text field.
- Pressing the New Type button produces a New Type
dialog box with two text fields for you to enter a MIME file type and
MIME file subtype. Clicking the OK button of the New
Type dialog verifies the data and, if valid, adds the file
information to the list.
- The application name and its file type is listed. Click the
Browse button to select a different application.
- (Macintosh only) Choose the application's default file type from
the File Type pop-up menu.
Select one of four radio buttons Save, Launch
Application, Use Browser as Viewer, or Unknown: Prompt
User to designate the action performed by the helper application.
- Use Browser as Viewer (Use Netscape as Viewer on Macintosh
and UNIX) opens the downloaded file in Netscape's content area.
- Save produces a dialog box for saving a file to disk after
the file is downloaded.
- Unknown: Prompt User causes a notification to the user.
- Launch Application opens the selected application using the
downloaded file as its document.
Directory
- Welcome!
An welcome message with links to help you get started on your use
of Netscape and your exploration of the Internet.
- What's New?
A timely page leading you to the new information appearing every
day on the Internet.
- What's Cool!
An intriguing page guiding you to the more interesting offerings
on the Internet.
- Go to Newsgroups
The newsgroup subscription page to help you learn about and access
newsgroups.
- Netscape Marketplace
A directory of online services and content offerings from Netscape
server customers.
- Internet Directory
A master directory of Internet sites and other Internet
directories.
- Internet Search
A directory of Internet search engines that you can use to find
specific information or a particular page, either by searching page
titles, subject fields, document content, or other indexes and
directories.
- Internet White Pages
A directory of services to assist you in locating the names and
e-mail addresses of Internet users.
- About the Internet
General information about the Internet with links to pages that
explain Internet concepts.
- Netscape Communications Corporation
Information about the company, including news, products, services,
and people.
Help
- About Netscape...
Version, copyright, and license information about the Netscape
software.
- Handbook
The online version of the documentation with links to chapter
contents and index entries.
- Release Notes
New feature information and tips for using a specific version of
the software.
- Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to common questions on a variety of Netscape topics.
- On Security
Questions and answers about Netscape's security features and links
to additional technical information about Netscape's implementation
of Internet security.
- How to Give Feedback
A feedback form for you to fill-in and send your comments,
requests for features, bug reports, and other information to
Netscape.
- How to Get Support
Information on the support programs offered by Netscape and the
Netscape e-mail addresses that current customers can use to obtain
support.
- How to Create Web Services
A page with links to help you explore opportunities for creating
and serving your own documents on the Internet using Netscape
software.
Pop-up
Menu
On Windows and UNIX, clicking the right mouse button produces a pop-up
menu with the following items. On Macintosh, holding down the mouse
button produces the pop-up menu. The pop-up menu is particularly
useful when pressing the mouse button over a link or image.
- Back (Same as Go/Back item)
Brings the previous page in the history list.
- Forward (Same as Go/Forward item)
Brings the next page in the history list.
- Open this Link
Brings the specified page.
- Add Bookmark for this Link
Creates a bookmark for this page in the bookmark list.
- New Window for this Link
Brings the specified page into a newly opened window instead of
the current window.
- Save this Link as...
Saves to disk (instead of bringing to screen) the specified page.
- Copy this Link Location
Copies the location (URL) of the specified page to the clipboard.
- View this Image
Brings the specified image.
- Save this Image as...
Saves to disk (instead of bringing to screen) the specified image.
- Copy this Image (Macintosh only)
Copies the specified image to the clipboard.
- Copy this Image Location
Copies the location (URL) of the specified image to the clipboard.
- Load this Image
Displays the specified image. (Replaces an image icon with the
corresponding image like the View/Load Images menu item.).
- Bookmarks (Windows only)
Displays the bookmark list in a pop-up menu.
Netscape Handbook: Table of
Contents
info@netscape.com
Copyright © 1994, 1995 Netscape Communications Corporation.