VMS FAQ (INTRO)

What is the scope of comp.os.vms?

The comp.os.vms newsgroup is the primary newsgroup for discussion of Compaq's OpenVMS operating system and the computer systems on which it runs. Questions about layered products which run on OpenVMS are also welcome, though many of them (in particular, language compilers and database systems) have more specific newsgroups. If a question has some relationship to OpenVMS, it belongs here.

INTRO2.

What other newsgroups carry VMS-related information?

The vmsnet.* hierarchy, run by DECUS, contains several newsgroups of interest, including vmsnet.misc and vmsnet.alpha, the latter being mostly devoted to Alpha topics. There's also vmsnet.sources (and vmsnet.sources.d) to which sources for or pointers to freeware are posted. See the separate What is VMSNET monthly posting for further details.

The comp.sys.dec newsgroup carries discussions about Compaq systems acquired from Digital Equipment Corporation.

INTRO3.

What is INFO-VAX?

INFO-VAX is a mailing list which is bidirectionally gatewayed to the comp.os.vms newsgroup. This means that postings to comp.os.vms get automatically sent to INFO-VAX subscribers and messages sent to the INFO-VAX list are automatically posted to comp.os.vms. INFO-VAX can be a useful way to participate in the newsgroup if you can't access the group directly through a news reader.

An important point to keep in mind is that propagation delays vary, both within the newsgroup and with INFO-VAX mailings. It's possible that postings may not be delivered for several days and some may appear out of order.

INTRO4.

How do I subscribe to or unsubscribe from INFO-VAX?

The address for subscription requests, as well as notes intended for the moderator, is Info-VAX-Request@Mvb.Saic.Com.

Subscription requests are handled automatically by a mail server. This mail server ignores the subject line and processes each line of the message as a command. The syntax for subscribing and unsubscribing and setting digest or non-digest modes is:

SUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX (ADD is a valid synonym)
UNSUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX (REMOVE, SIGNOFF, and SIGN-OFF are valid synonyms)
SET INFO-VAX DIGEST (to receive in Digest format)
SET INFO-VAX NODIGEST (to receive each message individually)

Case is irrelevant and attempts to fetch a copy of the mailing list will be rejected (I consider the information to be confidential). Any message not understood by the mailserver will be forwarded to a human (allegedly) for manual processing.

				[Mark.Berryman@Mvb.Saic.Com]

If you are on Bitnet, send a mail message containing the text SUBSCRIBE INFO-VAX to LISTSERV@(nearest listserv system). To unsubscribe, send a message containing the text SIGNOFF INFO-VAX to the same listserv address.

If you are on the Internet in the UK, send a message containing the word SUBSCRIBE (or UNSUBSCRIBE) to info-vax-request@ncdlab.ulcc.ac.uk.

INTRO5.

How do I submit a question or a response? What is etiquette?

If you are using a news reader, post your question to comp.os.vms. If you want to submit through INFO-VAX, send the message to Info-VAX@Mvb.Saic.Com.

Before posting, please use available local resources, such as the manuals, HELP and this FAQ first. Also make a point of reading the release notes for the product you're using, generally placed in SYS$HELP. Often you'll find the answer, and will save time and effort for all concerned. (And you won't "annoy the natives"...)

When posting, please consider the following suggestions:

Include a valid e-mail address in the text of your posting or in a "signature" appended to the end. Reply-to addresses in headers often get garbled.
If you are submitting a question, please be as specific as you can. Include relevant information such as processor type, product versions (OpenVMS and layered products that apply), error message(s), DCL command(s) used, and a short, reproducible example of problems. Say what you've tried so far, so that effort isn't duplicated. Keep in mind that there's not yet a telepathy protocol for the Internet. The more detailed your description, the better that people can help you with your question.)
If responding to a posting, include in your reply only as much of the original posting as is necessary to establish context. As a guideline, consider that if you've included more text than you've added, you've possibly included too much. Never include signatures and other irrelevant material.
Be polite. If the question isn't worded the way you think is correct or doesn't include the information you want, try to imagine what the problem might be if viewed from the poster's perspective. Requests for additional information are often better sent through mail rather than posted to the newsgroup.
If you have a problem with Compaq (or any other vendor's) product, please use the appropriate support channel. Don't assume that newsgroup postings will get read, will be responded to by the appropriate developers, or will be later followed up on...
If you are posting from a web browser, news reader or if you are posting via email sent to INFO-VAX, please turn off MIME, vcard, attachments, and other mechanisms that assume anyone reading the post has the corresponding capability - use the text-only option of your web browser, news reader, or mailer. Usenet is traditionally a text-only medium, and many comp.os.vms participants will use tools that have this support disabled, or that do not have this support. If the message uses MIME or attachments or such, the text of your message will be buried in a large pile of gibberish, and some tools will send multiple copies of the text within a single posting.
Before posting your question to the comp.os.vms newsgroup or sending your message to the INFO-VAX list, also please take the time to review available etiquette information, such as that included in the following documents:
```
  ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/primer/part1
  ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/faq/part1
  ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/emily-postnews/part1
  ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/writing-style/part1
  ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/usenet/posting-rules/part1
```
This information will document the etiquette of newsgroups, as well as providing you with the knowledge the vast amount of newsgroup-related information that is readily available to you, and where to find it...
Please DO NOT POST SECURITY HOLES OR SYSTEM CRASHERS.
Rather, please report these problems directly to Compaq. (Why? So that Compaq has a chance to resolve and distribute a fix before other customer sites can be affected. Most folks in the newsgroups are honest and deserve to know about potential security problems, but a few folks can and will make nefarious use of this same information. Other sites will hopefully return the favor, and not post information that will potentially compromise your site and your computer environment.

INTRO6.

What is DECUS?

DECUS, the Digital Equipment Computer Users Society, is a World Wide organization of Information Technology professionals interested in the products, services, and technologies of Compaq and related vendors.
Membership in the Chapter is free and provides participants with the means to enhance their professional development, forums for technical training, mechanisms for obtaining up-to-date information, advocacy programs, and opportunities for informal disclosure and interaction with professional colleagues of like interest.
For further information, see the separate monthly What is DECUS posting, or refer to the US DECUS WWW server at http://www.decus.org or the Canadian DECUS WWW server at http://www.decus.ca/ .

INTRO7.

What archives of comp.os.vms/INFO-VAX are available?

Everything posted since 1990 is archived and available at: ftp://crvax.sri.com/info-vax/

					[Arne Vajhøj]

INTRO8.

Who are the corporate contacts for OpenVMS business issues?

The following folks are the Compaq corporate contacts for OpenVMS business issues, listed in descending order from the Comoaq Corporate President to the OpenVMS Vice President (VP).

Michael Capellas: Compaq President and CEO
Michael.Capellas[-at-]Compaq.Com
Bill Heil: VP, Business Critical Servers Business Unit
Bill.Heil[-at-]Compaq.Com
Don Harbert: VP, High Performance Server Division
Don.Harbert[-at-]Compaq.Com
Rich Marcello: VP, Open Systems Software Group
Richard.Marcello[-at-]Compaq.Com

These folks will obviously respond best to cogently-worded OpenVMS corporate business issues. These folks are not appropriate contacts for any OpenVMS technical support issues or support requests, nor for any other non-corporate-related, non-business-related issues.

                                         [Atlant Schmidt]

Back