Backtalk Administration Guide:

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1. Log into the administration account

   See the logging in instructions.

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2. Goto the conference edit page.

   There is a link on the administration page labelled "Edit a Conference". Click on this.

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3. Specify the conference to be edited.

   You will be shown a form containing one box. Enter the name of the conference that you want to edit here and kill the button labeled "Edit It".

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4. Specify the new conference mode.

   The form that comes up next will include checkboxes for all conference modes currently supported by Backtalk - currently "open", and various variations on "closed" and "fishbowl". Check whichever you want and then click on the "Change Settings" button.

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5. Edit the user list

   If you chose one of the options that allows you to designate which particular users or groups of users may access the conference, then you may want to set up the initial user list (or you may want to leave that to the fairwitness to do).

   After changing the conference mode, you'll get a screen describing the new settings, and if the conference requires a user list, there will be a clickable "Edit this conference's user list" link. Alternately, you can use the "Edit a Conference's User List" link on the main administrative menu.

   Following either of these links will get yo to the "Edit User List" page. On the top part of the form you will be able to check which of the currently defined groups of users should be able to access the conference. On the Bottom of the page, you will be able to type in login ID's of individual users who should be able to access it. Click "Update" to make your changes.

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Opening or Closing Conferences From Unix:

To open or close Backtalk conference, follow the following steps. (The checkboxes below perform no function - they are just for your convenience.)

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1. Log onto the Unix conference administration account.

   This is the account that owns all the conference files and the backtalk program itself.

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2. change directory to conference directory

   Each conference has a directory where all its files are kept. There is a pointer to this directory in the conflist file. The location of the conflist file depends on how your system is configured.

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3. Edit the conference config file

   Inside the conference directory, you will find (among other things) a file named config. This is the file we need to edit to open or close the conference. A typical config file looks like this:

       !<pc02>
       .martian1.cf
       0
       marvin,carter
       0
   

   The fifth line of this contains a numeric code which tells if the conference is open or closed. That line may be missing in which case the conference is open. There may be some other lines after these. We need to change the value in the fifth line (or add the line if it doesn't exist).

   The possible values that can be used here are:

   0	all users may read and post [default]
   4	only users in the ulist or glist may read and post
   5	only users who know the password may read or post
   6	only users who are in the ulist or glist and know the password may read or post
   8	all users may read and post (but item files not directly readable)
   20*	only users in the ulist or glist may post / all may read
   21*	only users who know the password may post / all may read
   22*	only users who are in the ulist or glist and know the password may post / all may rea

   * Picospan doesn't support fishbowl conferences (though Yapp does), so if you want to be compatible with Picospan, modes 20, 21, and 22 are unusable.

   So all you have to do is change the fifth line of the conference config file to one of the other values in this table.

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4. Update the conference ulist and glist file

   For conferences with modes 4, 6, 20, or 22 there is a list maintained of which users may enter the conference. This is in two files, one named ulist, the other name glist, both of which are in the same conference directory as the config file. The ulist file simply contains the Backtalk login names of the users who may join, listed one per line. Similarly the glist file contains the names of Backtalk user groups who may join, listed one per line. You can use either or both files.

   If you are opening a formerly closed conference, you may want to delete these files (though you don't have to).

   If you are closing a formerly open conference, you may want to create them and edit them to contain initial lists of users and groups. Or you can just leave it to the fairwitness to do this through the Backtalk interface. (Note that the fairwitnesses of a conference can always join a conference even if they are not in the ulist or glist.)

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5. Change the conference password

   For conferences with modes 5, 6, 21, or 22 there is a password stored in a file named secret in the same conference directory as the config file. It simply contains the password, stored in plain text. Obviously, this file should not be read permitted.

   If you are opening a formerly closed conference, you may want to delete this file (though you don't have to).

   If you are closing a formerly open conference, you may want to create it, making sure to permit it mode 644. Or you can just leave it to the fairwitness to do this through the Backtalk interface (fairwitnesses and conference administrators will see a "Change Password" button on the conference home page). If there is no secret file on a conference whose mode is 5, 6, 21, or 22, then no password will work to get in. However, the fairwitnesses of a conference can always join their conference without giving a password, so they will be able to get in to set the initial password.