Welcome to Netscape Communicator Professional Edition

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Welcome to Netscape Communicator Professional Edition

These release notes cover information specific to Netscape Communicator Professional Edition 4.01 through 4.06 for all available platforms.

All of the items that apply to Communicator Standard Edition also apply to the Professional Edition. If you have not done so already, be sure to review the Standard Edition release notes at one of the following sites:

For: Windows

For: Mac OS

For: UNIX

Topics covered in these notes for the Professional Edition include:

Where to Find More Information
What's New in This Release?
Known Issues
Netscape Mission Control

If you find problems or want to report bugs, click here.

Where to Find More Information

You can find additional information about Communicator in the following ways:

From the Help menu, choose Help Contents.
From the Help menu, choose Product Information and Support.

WHAT'S NEW IN THIS RELEASE?

This section summarizes the features of the Communicator Professional Edition components.

Netscape Communicator Professional Edition includes all of the components of the Standard Edition, plus adds three other components:

Calendar

Enterprise calendaring and scheduling
Group scheduling function
Free-time searches on local and remote servers
Delegation of schedules
Support for vCalendar, the standards-based Internet calendaring format
HP Palmtop support for Windows

IBM Host On-Demand

Easy-to-use TN3270 host emulation
Multiple persistent sessions
Mapped 3270 keyboard function keys

AutoAdmin

AutoUpdate, which provides the automatic secure scheduled distribution (download and installation) of Netscape Communicator components and plug-ins
AutoConfig, which enables the centralized configuration and automatic scheduled updating of client preferences and user interface

To take advantage of the AutoAdmin component, you must have the Netscape Mission Control product, as explained later in these release notes.

KNOWN ISSUES

Java is not available in this release on Mac 68k-based systems (Java is available on PowerPC-based systems).
Unix only: It is highly recommended to use the Caldera version of Linux, especially if you will be using the vCalendar plug-in. This plug-in does not function correctly on the Red Hat version of Linux.
SmartUpdate does not work on Mac 68k-based systems.

NETSCAPE MISSION CONTROL

Netscape Mission Control is an easy-to-use collection of tools that allow an administrator to customize, distribute, install, and administer Netscape Communicator Standard and Professional Editions. When combined with Netscape Communicator Professional Edition, Netscape Mission Control reduces the total cost of ownership by enabling centralized management of distribution, installation, and ongoing updates throughout the enterprise.

Configuration Editor

This tool is an easy-to-use graphical editor that defaults or locks preferences. Defaulting preferences relieves end-users from having to know the exact configuration required for intranet use. If a preference is locked, the end-user is unable to change it. This eliminates the chance of misconfiguration, thus reducing the burden on a help desk. Features include:

Centralize management and control of configurations (works in conjunction with Netscape Communicator Professional Edition's AutoConfig feature).
Define and enforce a consistent configuration across the enterprise.
Predefine Netscape Communicator preferences to lower support costs.
Lock Netscape Communicator preferences for security management.
Custom-brand Netscape Communicator with your animated logo.
Tailor menus and buttons of the user interface to your requirements.

Also included in the Mission Control product are:

Netscape Signing Tool

The Netscape Signing Tool lets you create a package of plug-ins, Communicator components, or other files in a format that can be downloaded and installed automatically. "JAR" stands for "Java archive," which is a standards-based format for secure automatic downloads and installations.

In addition to creating an archive package in an appropriate format, you can use the JAR Packager to digitally sign and compress the files in the archive. Digitally signing the files in the archive allows the user who downloads it to confirm your identity and to be sure that the files have not been tampered with since they were signed.

Mission Control also includes command-line tools that enable you to sign in-line JavaScript.

Install Builder

Install Builder is a tool that enables you to incorporate all of your customizations for Windows 16-bit or 32-bit platforms into an installer that is appropriate for the media type that you will use to distribute Communicator. Install Builder runs on 32-bit Windows systems only. Instructions are provided that enable administrators to create a modular installer through a manual process on Mac OS systems.

Dialup components

Mission Control includes tools and components that you can use to create a dialup version of Communicator. You can use the Account Setup Editor tool to modify the Account Setup user interface of the dialup version of Communicator.

Online HTML Documentation

In addition to describing how to use the tools provided with Mission Control, the online documentation provides a reference of JavaScript parameters and values for Communicator preferences and other configurable items.

Sample Netscape Communicator Configuration Files

The sample files illustrate how an administrator can use JavaScript to customize Communicator.

Contact your Netscape Sales Account Manager for further information about Netscape Mission Control.

Netscape Corporate Sales: 650/937-2555
Netscape Government Sales: 650/937-3678
International Sales: http://home.netscape.com/comprod/sales/international.html

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