The FTP control has several significant enhancements which make it even easier to use, and incorporates a work-around for a serious flaw in the Microsoft IIS software that would leave files locked after a file transfer. Some of these new features are:

• Automatic directory parsing. No longer do you have to parse the directory output from an FTP server. The control now recognizes the three major directory formats (Windows, UNIX and VMS) and automatically parses the listing for you. In addition, the control also supports an extension to the STAT command which returns information about a single file (including the date, size, permissions and file owner) without incurring the overhead of a complete directory list.

• Proxy server support. The control now supports four specific types of proxy servers (including the popular Gauntlet and InterLock servers) as well as a user-defined proxy type that can be used to connect with virtually any kind of FTP server.

• Multiple file retrievals. You can now specify wildcards to transfer multiple files at one time between the local system and remote server.

The Mail Message (MIME) control has been enhanced to support additional multipart message types, and is more tolerant of those messages created by mail clients that do not conform to the standards outlined in RFC 2045. Some additional features are:

• Clipboard support. The control can now read messages from the clipboard and store messages to the clipboard. When used in conjunction with the POP3 and SMTP controls, it is now both easier and faster to load and parse messages.

• Attaching mail messages. The control now supports the message/rfc822 content type and inline content disposition which is used to attach one mail message to another.

• Support for message digests. You can request that the control generate a unique message digest, using the MD5 hashing algorithm described in RFC 1321. The control also supports the optional Content-MD5 header field.

The NNTP control now supports saving and posting messages from the clipboard, and can be used in combination with the enhancements to the MIME control listed above.

The POP3 control has been updated to support additional authentication types, the ability to retrieve a message and send it directly to a file or the clipboard, and support for several POP3 extensions. Some of the new features are:

• Clipboard support. The ability to retrieve a message and store that message in a file or copy it to the clipboard using the new StoreMessage method. This can be used in conjunction with the MIME control, enabling a message to be easily retrieved and parsed with a minimum of code. A Progress event is fired as the message is retrieved from the server, allowing the application to provide feedback to the user.

• APOP authentication. If supported by the server, the client can now use the APOP authentication method that eliminates the need to send cleartext passwords over the network.

• Change passwords. The control now supports the ability to change the account password for the specified user if the mail server supports the poppass protocol.

• Retrieve specific message headers. If the mail server supports the XLST extension, the control can now return the values of specific header fields (such as Subject, From and Date) without requiring that the client retrieve the entire message header.

• Send mail messages. The control can now also be used to send e-mail messages if the server supports the XMIT extension.This enables the client to send a formatted message directly through the POP3 server, without requiring a connection to an SMTP server.

The RAS ActiveX control has been updated with over twenty new properties and five new methods that give an application complete control over phonebook entries (connectoids) and the dial-up networking session. Please note that these enhancements only apply to the 32-bit ActiveX control. Some of the new features are:

• Create phonebook entries. Completely new phonebook entries, also called connectoids, can be created using the control, without displaying any kind of user interface. The application has complete control over entries such as the network protocol, assigned IP address, nameserver addresses, encryption, passwords, and many others.

• Update existing entries. Any of the new properties may be modified for an existing phonebook entry, and that entry may be updated with the new values. Using the properties and methods to create, update, delete and rename phonebook entries, you can even write a complete phonebook management application.

• Create temporary entries. The control can be used to create a temporary entry that only exists during the time the connection has been established. This is useful if you want your application to connect a specific dial-up networking server, but don't want to require that the user pre-configure their system or create any permanent entries in their phonebook.

The SMTP control now supports extended options (ESMTP) and delivering messages directly from a file or from the clipboard, integrating it with the MIME control. Some of the new features are:

• Clipboard support. Messages can be read directly from the clipboard and sent to an SMTP server. This allows the control to be easily combined with the MIME control, and eliminates the need to create temporary files for message composition.

• Simplified message delivery. A new method called SendMessage provides a simplified interface for submitting a message. The message, either in a text file or stored in the clipboard, can be sent to directly the mail server. Another method called AppendMessage allows the contents of a file or the clipboard to be appended to a message that is already being composed. A Progress event is triggered as the message is being delivered, allowing the application to provide feedback to the user.

• Delivery status notification. This option, also known as return receipt, tells the server to mail notification back to the sender when the message has been delivered, or when an error has occurred.

• Sender authentication. This enables the client to authenticate itself when it submits a message to a server that supports the AUTH option.

• Message sizing. When sending messages, the client can now use the SIZE option if supported by the server. This is used to indicate to the server the size of the message, which allows the server to accept or reject the message based on it's size before the client begins submission.

• Immediate delivery. If supported, the control can now use the SESSION option to request that a message be delivered immediately, rather than being queued by the mail server.

The SocketWrench control now makes it easier to read and write binary data, including numeric data, as well as support for additional socket options and other advanced features. Some of these new features are:

• Reading and writing numeric data. New properties and methods for reading and writing 16-bit and 32-bit integer data have been added, along with a new property to specify the byte order.

• Reading and writing byte arrays. The new ReadBytes and WriteBytes methods allow the client to easily read and write byte arrays. Because both of these methods use variants, they are also ideal for scripting languages that cannot handle non-variant method parameters.

• Binding to a specific address. A new property and method allows the control to bind the socket to a specific IP address and port. This can be useful for client sockets on a multihomed system (a system that has more than one network adapter) that need to bind to a specific adapter.

• Support for immediately sending packets. A new property, called NoDelay, allows the client to specify that packets written to the socket should be sent immediately.

The terminal emulation control has been enhanced with improved ANSI emulation, as well as support for VT100 and VT220 escape sequences and keymaps. Some of the new features are:

• Additional emulations. In addition to the ANSI emulation, the control now supports VT100 and VT220 escape sequences, as well as some VT320 sequences. A number of SCO console specific escape sequences are also supported.

• Graphics mode. The emulator now supports alternate character sets, including the graphics (line drawing) and UK character sets.

• Color support. The escape sequences for color are now supported. Available in the ANSI and VT220 emulations, this allows foreground and background colors to be set independent of the default colors. In ANSI emulation, color escape sequences for the SCO color console are also recognized.

• Default keymaps and application mode. In addition to the ANSI keymap which defines the escape sequences for the function and cursor keys, two additional keymaps have been defined. The VT100 keymap provides default sequences for F1-F4, the cursor keys and the keypad. The VT220 emulation provides sequences for F1-F12, the cursor keys and the keypad. Both VT emulations now support both keypad and cursor key application mode.