1 Overview
   Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME)

   The MIME utility is a standalone, user-mode, nonprivileged utility
   that provides MIME interpretation and composition editing. 
   Messages in the VMSMAIL MAIL files can be extracted into text files
   and then be read and interpreted using MIME.  MIME formatted text
   files can be composed using MIME, and then sent using VMSMAIL to
   OpenVMS and other systems that have a MIME utility or MIME capable
   MAIL application. 
   

2 Composing_Messages
   MIME provides basic composition commands that allow you to create a 
   text file in MIME compliant format: NEW, OPEN/DRAFT, ADD, EDIT.

   Use the NEW command, which runs the editor specified in the VMSMAIL
   user profile, to create a text message. You are prompted for a
   filename if one is not specified.

	MIME> NEW [filename]

   Or you can use the OPEN/DRAFT command to continue editing a previous
   MIME message that was composed and saved.

        MIME> OPEN/DRAFT [filename]

   Then use the ADD and REMOVE commands to add attachments (or parts)
   to the message or to remove them. Attachments are such as binary
   image files, sound files, and compound documents, and also text.

        MIME> ADD filename /CONTENT_TYPE="image/gif" /ENCODING=base64

	MIME> REMOVE n

   Where "n" is the attachment number. Use the LIST command to list
   attachments and their characteristics.

   Lastly, execute the SAVE command to write the composed outgoing
   MIME text file.

	MIME> SAVE 

   Note that the MIME command SHOW FILE_TYPES lists the file types
   and their default settings for the  ADD command. Other optional
   file types: the file extension, its Content-Type/subtype, and the
   encoding to use,  are defined in MIME$FILETYPES.DAT file. 

   For more help, see the ADD command and SHOW FILE_TYPES 
   MIME$FILETYPES.DAT command.

2 Extracting Attachments
   A message is opened for read access in one of the following ways:

	$ MIME filename.xxx

	MIME> OPEN filename.xxx

   MIME decodes the attachments (or parts) of the MIME encoded mail
   message when opened, storing them as temporary files in your defined
   MAIL directory. 

   If the file is opened with the OPEN command, MIME automatically lists
   the attachments of the MIME encoded mail message. You can also list
   the attachments and their characteristics (content-type/subtype,
   encoding scheme, file name ...) with the following command:

	MIME> LIST

   Attachments, such as binary .JPG images, documents, spreadsheet
   files, audio, DECsound, and text attachments, can be extracted into
   their native file format using the following MIME command:

	MIME> EXTRACT /ATTACHMENT=n [filename]
   
   Where "n" is the attachment number listed with the MIME LIST command.
   The filename is optional, unless MIME cannot determine the file name
   from the attachment information. In that case, MIME will prompt you
   for a file name. The attachment is stored as a file in the default
   directory.

   See HELP EXTRACT for more information. 

2 Getting_Started
   The MIME utility is a tool for reading MIME-formatted messages that 
   are delivered in VMSMAIL messages.   SMTP/MIME based mail systems, 
   such as the Compaq TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS mail system, deposit 
   incoming MIME-formatted messages  into the VMSMAIL message store.  

   To read and extract binary attachments in such messages, use 
   VMSMAIL to extract the message into a text file; then run the
   MIME utility to interpret its contents.  

   This approach would allow MIME to be easily backported and used
   on previous versions of OpenVMS, without changing the existing
   VMSMAIL environment.

   On some SMTP/MIME mail systems, the message headers can be moved 
   from the beginning of the message, where they would normally
   appear, to the end of the  message, as a convenience  to the
   reader. Unfortunately, this makes it impossible for MIME
   interpreters such as  the MIME utility to interpret the contents
   of the message. If SMTP  messages are reformatted in this
   manner, see the system administrator  about disabling this
   feature so that SMTP headers appear in their  original position
   at the beginning of the message. For Compaq TCP/IP  Services for
   OpenVMS, you can disable this feature using the SET 
   CONFIGURATION SMTP/OPTIONS=TOP command.

2 Restrictions
   The MIME utility does not fully integrate with the VMSMAIL
   user interface to send MIME messages over the internet. You can
   use VMSMAIL to send MIME messages created and saved with the MIME
   utility. Those messages can then be interpreted using MIME at the
   destination OpenVMS host or with a MIME capable reader on another 
   system platform. 

   However, MIME messages sent with Compaq TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS 
   may not be interpreted by MIME programs other than the OpenVMS MIME 
   Utility. That is unless the version of TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS
   is later than V5.0A, or the latest TCP/IP updates have been applied. 

   As of TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS version V5.0A, a known problem
   exists where an extra NEWLINE character corrupts the MIME message
   sent with SMTP. This will be corrected in the next release of
   TCP/IP Services for OpenVMS.

2 Viewing_Messages

   MIME operates as a standalone utility  to interpret MIME-formatted 
   messages received by VMSMAIL. Use the VMSMAIL command EXTRACT/NOHEADER 
   to extract a MIME-formatted message received by VMSMAIL into a text
   file.

	MAIL> EXTRACT/NOHEADER filename

   A message is opened for read access in one of the following ways:

	$ MIME filename.xxx

	MIME> OPEN filename.xxx

   The OPEN command opens and decodes the message file, in preparation
   for file viewing.

   Use the MIME READ command to display the file. 

	MIME> READ

3 Notes_on_Content-types

   Not all attachments (content-type/subtypes, such as .DOC and .XLS),
   can be displayed with the OpenVMS MIME utility. OpenVMS MIME
   displays only the attachments that have been defined and have a
   native OpenVMS viewer application installed and associated with
   that defined content-type/subtype.

   Example OpenVMS native viewer applications include NETSCAPE to
   display .HTML and .HTM attachments, and Freeware X-VIEW application
   to display image types .JPG, .GIF, and .JPEG subtypes.

   Also note that foreign commands must be defined for invoking these
   native viewer application images. This is so OpenVMS MIME can pass
   a filename (string) representing the attachment to the viewer
   application, for example:

	NETSCAPE :== $ SYS$MANAGER:NETSCAPE-EXPORT-ALPHA-V303C4R-JAVA-GOLD.EXE

	XV == "$ SYS$LIBRARY:XV.EXE"

   Content-types/subtypes are defined internally by OpenVMS MIME and
   in optional MIME$MAILCAP.DAT files.

   The MIME command SHOW CONTENT lists the content types of files 
   that can be displayed with the READ command. Other optional types
   are defined in MIME$MAILCAP.DAT file.

	MIME> SHOW CONTENT_TYPE

   See the READ command and SHOW CONTENT MIME$MAILCAP.DAT command for 
   more information and its security implications.