Macintosh Internet Applications

A very comprehensive, but unorganized, list of Macintosh Internet applications is available from Apple.

Look for the Open Transport icon! It indicates applications which have an Open Transport native version. Open Transport v1.1 (for all Macintoshes) is part of System Software 7.5.3 (System Update 2.0).

• Eudora: For reading, writing, and receiving EMail, there's really only (two). Eudora Light is a freeware (!) package which has nearly every conceivable feature for dealing with EMail. Eudora Pro is a commerical package that gives you even more, including filters to sort your incoming mail and multiple signature files. The newest version of Eudora Light is v1.5.4, and of Eudora Pro is 2.1.4.

• NotifyMail: A perfect companion to Eudora (either version), NotifyMail, by Harvey Mudd graduate Scott Gruby, notifies you the instant a mail message arrives at your mail server. This can be useful for two reasons. First of all, you're always in contact, and, second of all, you don't have to keep incessantly checking your mail! NotifyMail lets you know as soon as mail arrives, and can even alert Eudora (or any of several other EMail programs) to collect your mail for you. You'll never wait for the mailman again! NotifyMail is $18.00 shareware, and less for educational users. The newest version is 3.0.2.

• Netscape Navigator: Netscape for Macintosh is one of the most popular web browsers around. It is free (!) for educational users and $39 otherwise. Version 2.0.2 has recently been released for all Macintosh users, and "Atlas" (version 3.0) is available on an open-beta-test basis.
• If you're not an educational user but would still like to get free software, I recommend Microsoft Internet Explorer. Believe it or not, this time Bill Gates did something right! IE v2.0 was written by experienced Mac programmers. It uses Internet Config (the Internet information manager by Peter Lewis), supports QuickTime movies without a helper application, and takes much less RAM than Netscape.

• ProTERM Mac, by Intrec Software, is a full-featured telecommunications program for the Macintosh. It supports not only Telnet, but also modem-based connections to bulletin boards and online services such as GEnie or CompuServe. It is commercial, with a list price of $80.00. The latest version is 1.0.33; you can download a patch from this link to update older versions of ProTERM.
• NCSA Telnet, like Mosaic (see above), is published by the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. It supports only telnet, not service-based connections (in other words, you can't use it to dial GEnie or CompuServe, or your friend's local bulletin board system). However, it has the distinct advantage of being free. Version 2.6 is the newest fully supported version; 2.7 is available on a beta-test basis (Note that 2.7b4 is the last version ever; the project has been discontinued).

• Anarchie (in the UK?): Anarchie, by Peter Lewis, is a combination Archie/FTP client. It allows you to search the Internet for a specific filename or partial filename as well as download a file whose complete location is known. Anarchie is $10 shareware, and the most recent version is 1.6.0.
• Fetch: Fetch gives a nicer graphical interface, in my opinion, to FTP than does Anarchie, but it lacks the ability to search for a file, which can really come in handy. Version 3.0.1 has recently been released to the public. Fetch is $25.00 for commercial use; free for educational or non-profit use.

TurboGopher: TurboGopher is a comprehensive freeware Gopher client for the Macintosh. Version 2.0.3, the newest, is now Open Transport native! This is the nicest implementation of gopher I've seen on any platform.

Finger: Peter Lewis's finger client. For a modest $10.00 shareware fee, Finger allows you to do finger searches and whois lookups from your desktop. Version 1.5.0 is the newest available.