This directory contains the complete source code and a compiled
example of a PH directory service extension for WinPMail v2.0 and
later.

PH is a protocol developed at the University of Illinois which allows
the retrieval of information about a system's users by sending simple
textual queries. To use the PH extension, make sure that PH.FFF is in
the same directory as WINPMAIL.EXE. If you have a PH server you
regularly use, edit PH.FFF and change the "Form data" line to contain
that server's name or IP address. Load the extension by double-clicking
it in WinPMail's "Extensions" window.

Accessing PH services is easy; make sure that the host name is correct,
then enter the name of the person about whom you want information. Click
the "Query" button and WinPMail will attempt to establish a connection
to the PH server running on the host you have named. Any matches to your
request will be displayed in the result window.

To use the e-mail address of a person found this way, open a new mail
message, perform the search, then double-click on the address in the
result window to select it and press "Paste" to copy the result into the
addressing field of the message.

Because the format of the PH directory service is not very well-defined,
there is no standard set of information you can expect to see in response
to a successful query - the format of the data returned depends on the
way the server has been configured.

Finally, PH is not a standard service - not every system will necessarily
support it, so if you get errors, or if you get no information about a
person you know exists, it may mean that the host you have named is not
running a PH server. Ask the system manager on the machine whether PH is
supported or not.

