[gopher] Re: Gopher for dummies

["R.A.Pavlov" <webmaster@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi,
in the simplest case you just put files (with descriptive names:) in your
gopher directory and they become available via gopher.
 
> But is not clear to how to make an menu page. Text and links to
> documents, provide a discription to those directorys. 

SDF runs Pygopherd now and that's very cool because this server supports
both popular gopher link file formats - .links and .names files from
original UMN gopherd and gophermap files from Bucktooth. To my mind,
.links syntax is extremely cumbersome and irregular, it is described
e.g. here

gopher://gopher.quux.org/0/devel/gopher/pygopherd/SVN/doc/pygopherd.txt

Gophermap file syntax is very simple and it's described here

gopher://gopher.floodgap.com/0/buck/dbrowse%3ffaquse%201

> How can you add an
>  search function (Veronica?)

That's a problem with script execution at SDF because gopher server runs
in chrooted environment; atleast I haven't had much success with it.
Also, non-trusted users can't run perl so you'll have to write a search
system in sh %))) There's WAIS installed but it's hard to integrate it
with gopher. Also, the original veronica script (atleast the one I was
using on my former gopher server) runs on a special port from inetd so 
you have to set up your own gopher server to run it.

> Is there sofware special for making a gopher site? I use GNU/linux.

In fact, gopher is designed in a way so simple that you won't need any
special development tools except for a text editor :)
 
> It seems there is also a hidden file ".links" that contains information.
> 
> I am looking for an overview of the different instructions that exist
> that you can use for a gopher site. Like there is for www by use of an
> index of the html-makeup options and how to use it.
> 

The links above (especially pygopherd manual) should help you.
 
> Greetings,
> Walter Vermeir
> 
> 

-- 
Yours, etc.
        Roman A. Pavlov

gopher://sdf.lonestar.org/1/users/rp