CROSS POINT (shortened usually XP) is an text-oriented Mailprogramm for different mailbox nets like the Z-net, FidoNet and the MausNet. Beyond that XP controls also Internet Mail and Usenet news, this both over UUCP and by means of external Clients over minutes POP3/SMTP and NNTP. XP is thereby also in times of graphic user surfaces an adequate Mail and newsreader, which can be used under almost all well-known operating system platforms.

Program purpose

CROSS POINT a so-called POINT program was original, i.e. a software for automated sending and receiving from private and public reports to a mailbox computer. POINT programs are optimized to regard on-line times of the user as briefly as possible on the one hand, in order to minimize on-line and/or telephone charges, on the other hand, in order to free the voice grade channel of the mailbox as other users again. To the dispatch lining up messages were sent and received messages were downloaded. Afterwards the connection was separated. This procedure was usually once daily accomplished.

History of the development

The program developed 1992 as a successor of Quickpoint first as Shareware for the operating system DOS. CROSS POINT v1.0 was a pure POINT program for the Z-net and data exchange minutes ZConnect. At the end of of 1992 was published the version 2.0, those beyond that still FidoNet, MausNet, MagicNet and QuickMail supported. CROSS POINT was thereby the first POINT program, which co-operated as standard equipment and without converters with almost all at that time relevant mailbox nets, additionally which can be installed. In the bloom time of the mailbox nets in the middle of the 90's it was special the POINT program furthest common with distance, in the German FidoNet.

Since version (August 1993) CROSS POINT controls also Internet Mail and Usenet news over minutes UUCP. With various Freeware packages (e.g. UKA_PPP or UKAD for DOS and/or VSoup or UKAW for Windows), which in the CROSS POINT original version over batch files and in the further developed versions over an interface particularly for this implemented is merged, can one also over TCP/IP connections minutes POP3/SMTP and NNTP use and in such a way arbitrary Mail and new servers in the Internet access.

In December 1999 the author Peter Mandrella released the source texts of CROSS POINT under its own license, the follow-up versions developed on their basis remained however (first still) registration requiring. In February 2001 the source texts in an additional license were then placed under the GNU general Public License (GPL); the compulsory registration for versions developed further under this license was void. Already under the past license advancements begun had the choice to maintain these (and thus both compulsory registration as well as the names "„CROSS POINT "“) to change and thus the program no more "„CROSS POINT "“to call not be able or to the GPL (it was against liable to pay the costs Lizenzierung of this mark registered by Peter Mandrella).

On initiative of the Maintainers of FreeXP (at that time still OpenXP/16) Peter Mandrella waived the compulsory registration in June 2003 then also for the versions developed under the original license, so that the former Shareware is independent of the valid in each case source text license now both Freeware (in the sense from no longer liable to pay the costs) and free software (in the sense of freely accessible source texts).

The price of the multi-net ability

Probably the characteristic of CROSS POINT, unique in the net world to unite and support practically both all (formerly) relevant mailbox nets and current Internet/Usenet standard under a roof, does not only have advantages.

By user surface and documentation almost continuous the original Z-net-terminology ("„board "“instead of "„newsgroup "“, "„PM "“instead of "„Mail "“, "„TO "“instead of "„Posting "“) draws itself, and the message in a data base for all net types uniformly in the ZConnect format is put down and must therefore (except with the direct exchange with ZConnect mailboxes) in both directions a Konvertierer go through.

Although the good and detailed documentation describes and confronts the specific conceptualnesses of the individual net types, some CrossPoint Usern succeed in again and again causing by the use of strange and mismatching terms with the remaining participants amusing to lack of understanding. Problematic particularly in rather technically oriented forums is also the not filtered rendition of ZConnect Headerzeilen, which are to a large extent unknown e.g. in the RFC area (Usenet). Here some Usern in the own and in the interest of all sometimes a larger expertise would be to be wished over and to adaptability to the net-specific customs.

The conversion of messages of most different technical standards of and in the ZConnect format is therefore not always completely problem-free a complex task and. Particularly with the MIME standards in the RFC area earlier CROSS POINT versions did obviously in parts heavily. Here however the follow-up versions developed further since release of the source texts made clear progress and to be able (particularly in case of FreeXP) in the direct comparison with some other Mail and newsreader meanwhile than quite exemplary to apply.

Since the internal structures and the source text of the program do not make the multi-net ability evenly simpler and clearer, this affects also restraining the development speed. Almost any change e.g. within the range message dispatch attains full growth itself to a complex affair, can to unexpected side effects lead directly and must therefore at high expenditure for selbige be examined.

Successor

After the release of the source texts developed different advancements (most under the original license, one under the GNU GPL) as well as postage run gene on other systems. The advancement of the version lines FreeXP and XP2 standing under "„the old "“license takes place further under the name "„CROSS POINT "“, while under the GNU GPL developed further version OpenXP may not use this no more. All versions carry the contraction XP, which is already since version 1.0 the common abbreviation for CROSS POINT in their (if necessary additional) name however.

Since the conventional mailbox nets play in the meantime no considerable role more, above all the development of the abilities of XP as Mail and newsreader for Internet/Usenet is the center of attention with the advancement. All further developed XP-versions are (however in differently high measure) MIME and multi-partable, support depending upon version a differently large number of character sets (inclusive UTF-7/8), while the last original version v3.12d of the original author Peter Mandrella offers nothing from all that and therefore from today's viewpoint for the Mail and new its set in the Internet/Usenet any longer be recommended cannot and there also no considerable spreading has more.

The source texts of all further developed versions are publicly available, either over a version management system such as CVS or SVN, or they are offered as complete package for the Download. Current developments are:

FreeXP (DOS, Windows)

Originally of OpenXP in January 2002 taken over and independently first 16bit-Zweig resumed under the name OpenXP/16; the change of name took place in July 2003 among other things because of the since then valid Freeware status and the clearer conceptual demarcation to OpenXP. Not least because of the complex operated advancement of the Nachrichtenkonvertierers "„UUZ "“the version with the highest degree at RFC conformity and due to additionally implemented functions such as MIME multi-part dispatch and "„Reply ton universe "“, more numerously nose-fixed and well-known stability probably at present also the most frequently assigned XP-derivative.

OpenXP (Windows, Linux)

The only well-known advancement under the GNU GPL (32bit). OpenXP would have the best conditions and perspectives by the complex conversion to 32bit-Code actually, suffers however at this time still under a multiplicity of (also critical) nose, which let the daily employment appear primarily advisable for experiment-joyful users at present.

XP2 (DOS)

of the OpenXP project, since 2002 there however no new public beta version and the advancement are 2000 developed Fork "„rests "“after official Lesart. Because of the functions still missing in FreeXP "„MsgID Request "“and "„HdrOnly "“enjoys XP2 with some users still a high acceptance, particularly in co-operation with the XP2-kompatiblen and of FreeXP developed "„Enhanced UUZ "“. A Freeware version of XP2, in which the restrictions of the registration-requiring version deactivated and/or would have been removed, does not exist.

Literature

• Rena tangent, padeluun, Peter Mandrella and others: Mailbox brought on the point. With Zerberus and CROSS POINT to the citizen nets. Bielefeld 1998, ISBN 3980218260 (out of print)

Related links

• CROSS POINT (original version)
• FreeXP
• OpenXP
• XP2

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