Information Retrieval in Chemistry Chemistry-Related Anonymous ftp Sites F. S. Varveri Institute of Physical Chemistry, N.R.C. 'Demokritos', P.O. Box 60028, 15310 Aghia Paraskevi Attikis, Greece With such advances taking place, it is now a fact that computer networks have become the delivery vehicle for those wishing to be part of the greater time-sharing information society. Viewed from the user's standpoint, they are a powerful tool to employ, coming into being a gold mine for the serious investigator. The purpose of this article is part of our continuine .. effort' to Drovide chemists with the aw;ln!neis of the othenvise unava~lableunlque data, offered through the internet, free of charge for the academic user. Without having a n account on a remote site, the ability to transfer publicly available files from another computer connected to Internet can be accomplished by the use of anonymous ftp (I,2 ). The present work furnishes information on chemistw-related f t sites ~ that offer a varietv of information a n d i r e avnilabie on the internet; these s-ires cun be definitclv useful to both those interested in research and those invoived in any aspect of education.
Services on Internet The three major services of Internet were discussed in some length elsewhere ( 1 ) sending and receiving electronic mail (e-mail) logging to a remote computer to execute a task (telnet, rlogin) and transferringfiles from a local or remote site (ftp),either with a given password (regular ftp) or anonymously (anonymous ftp). If the user encounters any problems to navigate through the Internet, R. J. Smith of the University of Southwestern Louisiana has written some traininp sessions that are highly recommended to the novice user (3).
Anonymous ftp and File Transferring The user can be connected to a n Internet host from work or from home. At work, the user's end device can either be a work station, a terminal or a PC with a proper software package installed, connected to the mainframe. At home, the user needs a PC with a modem, installed communications software and a telephone line. With connections made and with proper software and protocols installed, the local host can then be connected to other networks. If the local host has the ftp facility installed and is connected to the Internet, then large amounts of available archives on a number of systems can be obtained. For the more advanced reader, there are two modes of network connection: Direct network connection: usually a desktop PC with network adaptor card connected directly to an Ethernet or other local area network (LAN), that is in turn connected to the Internet by a TCPiIP gateway In this case, a local host is not involved, and one does not need an account. One needs an ftp client program running on his desktop PC. The ftp session is
h his alticle is derived from the project 'Informatics in Chemistry', for our Institute, during the last two years. The project is still in pro872
Journal of Chemical Education
established directly between the remote host and one's desktop PC, so that software and files are transferred directly to the PC's'file svstem ( i.e.. hard disk). This is ideal when one 1s downliadlnglT softwaretl e ~ U I ~ I Y B Wthat 1 3 mended tl, be r u n on the desktop PC, Dumb termlnal orderktop PC runnmga termmal emulatmn program, connected to a local host (usually a mainframe or minicomputer) via a modem or RS-232 direct link. In this ease, the user does need an account an a local host. Also, an ftp client program running on the local host is required. The ftp session is established between the remote host and the local host, so that software and files are transferred to his local hosts's file system. This is ideal when one is downloading software that is intended to he run on the local host, but if one is downloading PC software, then an additional step has to he made to transfer the files from the local host to the desktop PC, usually by Kermit or Xmadem.
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When entering a n anonymous ftp site, most often one finds a file called 1s-lR (or 1s-1) containing a n index of the site's available files for transfer. There also is usually a directory called 'pub' (for public) where the most interesting files are stored. In Internet, files often are grouped in a n archive format and they might be compressed. When retrieving such files, for those that are of a non-text nature one must use the %inary' mode of ftp (command) before retrieval. Also, it is most important to realize the difference between a 'shareware'and a 'public domain'file. Both these files can be copied freely and distributed, but for the former the Droerammer exDects a nominal fee: whereas. does not expect any cornpen: for the latteE t h i sation for his or her work. Before ending this short discussion, it is necessary to mention the possibility and the right of the host machine to alter its ftp directory contents. Because information available on the network is rarely static, a site often can update andlor add files to its public directory.
Ftp in the Service of Chemistry Amone the manv databases available in Internet the 'archie' se&ee is outstanding and extremely valuable to the user (1, 4). Through the 'archie' service one can make a specific inquiry on a field of interest and locate host names and paths of those internet sites offering the needed file. Also, through subscription to the appropriate mailing lists, one can be aware of the abundance of archives offered. For the latter, a fine work exhibiting the use of ftp'ing in the service of chemistry is that of T.C. O'Haver of the University of Maryland (5).Since his file was too long, another short example will be given here, submitted to chemed-1 discussion list by S. K. Lower of the University of Simon Fraser (6). Subject: OrgTutor Demo Available for Downloading OrgTutor is a PCprogram that prouides drill and practice on organic reactions. This demo version consists of the module on alkene reactions; it covers 22 different reaction types on 2,200 singly-branched alkenes that are selected rnndomly. O r f i t o r was written bv Rov Butler o f Norwieh Uniuersitr ,. Northfield. . 1.7: and u o r s h u n o l the I ~ B C ' E in E Dwzs Dounluodtnhr t n f u r m u l i o n : Husf: f r ~ l h . c h t ~ n ~ . s f u ~l2h.lbY.4U.84, .c~t
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/publchemcai/orgtuto~zip,login as user *anonymous': use your e-mail id aspassword.
For t h e user who is willing to explore, a huge amount of shareware a n d public domain files a r e there to be downloaded. The task of searching, though, can be time-consuming. Recently, efforts have been made by colleagues to provide u s with useful collections of chemistry-related resources available, some of which are: Via anonymous ftp a t host leon.nrcps.ariadne-t.gr (143.233.2.11, in the directorypuWchemistry,onecanfindafreqtwntlg updated rnllectmn of essentlsl ,terns on resourced availnhle in rhrrniarry a n d related frelds. Also, a t m nrl nnvv.mil 128.611.1).21, rhr files ' P D-Science 1x1' and 'PDChemistry_91-9a' offer an excellent chemistry and sciencerelated compilation of public domain and shareware software for both MS-DOS and Macintosh computers (7); worth mentioning is the 'NetChem.Ed.txt2file that offers a good insight for the novice user 17). . . Additionallv. .. at host infomeister.osc.edu (128.146.36.5) in the directory publchemistly much important information, also, shareware andlor public domain software useful to any investigator is offered. ~
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Acknowledgment The author wishes to thank t h e administration of the
ARIADNE network for the use of their facilities, as well a s
l? Telonis of said network for helpful discussions. Literature Cited 1. VarverLF. S. J Cham Educ 1993.10.204. 2. Available by anonymova Rp from host Rp.temple.edu f155.247.165.991 in the directow lpuWxf&dp-net, files Rp.sample and ftpprimer 3. Smith. R. J. 'Navigating the Internet". Available for anonymous ftp from host Rp.surs.net (128.167.254.1791at directorylpubinidtraining. 4. Hintr, R.: 'What i r arehie? Available for anonymous Rp fmm hmt hydrauwoca il29.lOO.2.l3l atdirectoryrlibsoft, filename ARCHIE_GUIDE.TXT, 1991. 5. O'Haver, T. C.; "Rp sites", ehemed-lhwf (bitnet1 or chemed-lhwfccurvfedu firternetl mail* list, 1111.1992 and 11.12.1992; available by e-mail with mmmand to body.of.text 'get chemed-l log9211' from listservevwf (bitnet) or
[email protected] finfernetl.
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Volume 71 Number 10 October 1994
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