answer(1) General Commands Manual answer(1)
NAME
answer - phone message transcription system
SYNOPSIS
DESCRIPTION
The interactive program helps you to transcribe telephone (and other) messages into electronic mail.
The program uses your personal alias database and the system alias database, allowing you to use aliases to address the messages.
Options
supports the following options:
Prompt for phone-slip-type message fields.
Allow addresses that are not aliases.
Operation
begins with the prompt. Enter a one-word alias or a two-word user name ("Words" are separated by spaces.) The user name is converted to
an alias in the form where f is the first character of the first word, lastword is the second word, and all letters are shifted to lower-
case. For example, is converted to the alias
Without the option, the specified or converted alias must exist in the alias databases. With the option, if the processed "alias" is not
in the alias databases, it is used for the address as is.
The fully expanded address is displayed.
With the option, you are asked for typical message slip data:
Enter the appropriate data. You can put just an or nothing after the pertinent dash prompts, or you can type longer comments. Whatever
you enter becomes part of the message. Lines with no added text are omitted from the message.
Finally, you are prompted for a message. Enter a message, if any, ending with a blank line. The message is sent and the prompt is
repeated.
To end the program, enter any one of or at the prompt.
EXAMPLES
User input is in normal type.
With No Options
This example shows a valid alias, an invalid user name, and a valid user name. In the invalid case, the converted alias is displayed in
square brackets.
With the -u Option
If you enter the previous error is treated differently.
With the -p Option
If you enter the phone-slip prompts are added. The three lines with no added text are deleted from the message.
FILES
User alias database data table
User alias database directory table
User alias database hash table
User alias source text
System alias database data table
System alias database directory table
System alias database hash table
System alias source text
Outbound mail message edit buffer
AUTHOR
was developed by HP.
SEE ALSO
elm(1), newalias(1).
answer(1)
