...an unofficial site
for the Apple Macintosh Users
of American Airlines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
• Where are the instructions to ZTermAA?• What do I do with Zterm now that I've downloaded it?
• Do I need a Compuserve account to access PCFOS?
• Can I access PCFOS on the web?
• How do I download a bidsheet?
• How do submit a bid selection made in Bidpro using ZTerm?
Where are the instructions to ZTermAA?
Click here for instructions on installing with OS 9. The ZTerm files you download from here also include these instructions.. There is a file named AAInstructions in the ZTermAA folder. Much of this applies to the OS X version as well. The application setup is the same - only the placement of the scripts folder changes...
For OS X, installation gets a little more complicated. Not hard but you need to find and read the instructions that David Alverson (the program's creator) gave you in his ReadMe file. It tells you where to put your scripts. You need to download both the application and the scripts which are available from my download page on this site (the Classic/OS 9 version download has the scripts bundled within it).
The first thing you need to do is make sure that you have Stuffit Expander. The file that you've downloaded is "compressed" and needs to be "decompressed". You can go to the Download page and find a link to Stuffit Expander. Once ZTermAA is expanded and ready for use, you should see a folder with multiple files in it. One of the most critical files is the "AA Instructions" file - this tells you how to set up the program. Most of the problems occur when your browser is not set up to automatically launch the Expander application after a download. You can manually get Expander to work on the ZTerm file by "dragging and dropping" the compressed ZTerm file over Expander's icon. This tells Expander to do what it can to the file being dropped on top of it.
If you don't understand "drag and drop" - then its time to open the introductory manual that you got with your Mac. It's one of those most basic things you should learn...like how to shift gears in a car...you can drive around town in first gear all day long...but would you really want to?
No. However, you do need a local Compuserve access phone number. PCFOS has eliminated the need for an account with Compuserve (which was free before anyway - as long as you didn't use their services). They still use Compuserve's network of phone numbers...this is a good thing, because it's a very big network (US, UK, Europe, Asia...).
Yes. WebPCFOS is now an option for us. There are a few ways to do this. The most elegant is to download the Citrix Client Software for OSX and run the sabre connection file. David Gorell posted this on the mAAcUser eGroup. site on Mar 1, 2004.
In case you haven't seen it yet, you can now access Sabre from OS-X without
having to use a web browser or JAVA. Citrix makes a standalone application
called Citrix ICA Client that can open a connection to Sabre using a file
that is available at AAPilots.com. This is a much cleaner connection than
the Explorer/JAVA connection. It also allows normal copying of screen data
without any excess carriage returns.
Here is what you need to do:
1. Download and install the Citrix ICA Client (Version 6.30.323) for OS X
from:
www.citrix.com/site/SS/downloads/details.asp?dID=2755&downloadID=3250
2. Using Safari, go to www.aapilots.com Home Page->TOOLS, and click on the
Full Screen SABRE link. This action will cause a "Citrix ICA Connection
File" named something like"sabAA082701tcp.ICA" to download to your download
folder.
3. Double Click on "sabAA082701tcp.ICA" and the Citrix ICA Client
Application will launch and open a Full Screen SABRE connection after a
short delay (the delay depends on the user load on Web SABRE - sometimes,
just like in IE, you cannot get in.)
4. You can store the Citrix Client folder in your Applications Folder and
you can rename the Connection File to something like "SabreConnect" and
store it anyplace convenient. (I put an alias of the connect file in my
Dock)
Note: Some have reported that the download of the connection file worked
with the OS X Safari Web Browser but it did NOT work with Microsoft Internet
Explorer.
[thanks to Gregg Boggs for discovering this and posting the above info on
APA C & R]
Ok people...listen up! Re-read line 3.
You are not going through a web browser. You are not using MS Internet Explorer (although you could). You are not using Safari (although you can fool them with some added tricks and get this to work as well). You are using the Citrix Client software that you downloaded. That is an application that runs the .ica file that you can get from the the locations listed above. It will open a window and after some time, will connect you to SABRE. Remember, we are in OS X now as well.
Personally, I suggest you stick with ZTerm unless you really cannot afford a phone call to Compuserve. Zterm has much less overhead, is faster, cheaper, and more reliable than running the WebPCFOS portal. With a 1.25 GHz G4 and a cable modem, I find WebPCFOS somewhat sluggish compared to using ZTerm with a 56k modem.
There are other issues.
1. I have not been able to get WebPCFOS to print or been able to copy text from the portal. If you have discovered how to get this to happen on a Mac please email me.2. You must sign in manually (vs. ZtermAA which will sign in automatically).
3. You cannot use the PTC function (ie PTCHI2) which allows you to get the entire message in one command.
In short, using WebPCFOS is very much like going to work and using a terminal in your operations. You lose all the intelligence of the computer and software as the portal screen reverts back to dumb terminal mode.
A real blast from the past!
Nice if you are away from home, but not something you would want to use on a daily basis. If it is toll call from home to Compuserve and the rates are high, then I suggest you get away from the big 3 phone companies and find someone reasonable.
There are so many ways to get bid sheet today that I don't really think anyone needs to know this any more.
¥ Download the bidsheet in "Sheets" from PCFOS ... a format that can be read by any word processor. Click here for the detailed instructions (requires Adobe's Acrobat Reader).¥ Download the bidsheet in "Data" from PCFOS ... this is compressed (arced) data that requires two other applications to read. One is a decompressor called ArcMac and the other, any Bidding Program. All the bidding programs come with a decompressor or "de-arcing" program. This is the most complicated method but useful if you have many trips to sort through. Getting the data is as easy as following the instructions above for "Sheets". You just pick the "Data" format when asked by PCFOS.
¥ Download the bidsheet in Adobe's Public Document Format (PDF). These files look just like the real thing - they are literally exact copies of the paper bid sheets in electronic form.
¥ Have them email it to you.
Pilots can go to the American Airlines Flight Department web site for PDF formatted bidsheets. The Allied Pilots Assoc. provides the bidsheets for pilots in HTML format. That's the native format that your web browser (Netscape Navigator, MS Internet Explorer, etc.) uses. That's the format you see here on this page. The cover sheets are also available in PDF format.
Flight Attendants can get the bidsheets in PDF format from the AA Flight Services web site.
