From: mack@isl.Stanford.EDU (mack)
Subject: Ho Ho Ho, Santa Claus is here with a partial FAQ!!
Organization: Stanford University
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 92 21:00:27 GMT



Many greetings,

After weeks of delay, I have finally with the help of many others put
together a rough draft of what will eventually become the much needed
FAQ file for SCI. Without further due, I will enclose the current
draft. I should mention that it needs a lot of work. Some of the
information is missing (e.g. complete address of Iranian interest
section in Washington DC), and there are perhaps some incorrect
information in there. There is also a lot of incomplete information,
especially in regards to the anonymous ftp site. Those will be
included in the coming days (and weeks :-). Feel free to make comments
and/or additions to it so I can include them in the future drafts.

    Sincerely,
    --mack


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Subject: FAQ: soc.culture.iranian - Intro [monthly]

                      Introduction to the

   Soc.Culture.Iranian Frequently Asked Questions (with answers)

The charter of SOC.CULTURE.IRANIAN is to serve as a discussion group
for issues related to Iran and Iranian things. This monthly posting of
frequently asked questions (FAQ), with answers, is intended to prevent
the recurrence of specific questions or types of questions that are
either unanswerable, or are asked seemingly weekly. The information
contained here is based on the best postings from the net on these
subjects, and thanks are due to the netters who provided them.
Information from international sources would be a welcome addition.

As with any newsgroup, it is best to read it for a few weeks before
posting anything, in order to see what topics are currently being
discussed.

If you want to add delete or change any information in this FAQ,
please email to:

    mack@isl.Stanford.EDU

with "Iranian FAQ" as subject.

Whenever possible, please include include the entire paragraph before
and after modification, this will help me in avoiding misunderstanding
when applying your suggestions.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Contents of this FAQ:

    1q. Where is the anonymous FTP site for soc.culture.iranian?
        What's available there?

    2q. Where is/how can I contact the closest Iranian
        consulate/embassy/interests secion?

    3q. What are the Persian word processors? What are some of their
        features? Where can I get them? How much do they cost?

    4q. What are the radio frequencies and broadcast times of Farsi
        speaking radio programs and/or programs originating from Iran?

    5q. How do I tranfer money to/from Iran?

    6q. What is the latest on military service/exemption?

    7q. Where can I find a Persian restaurant?

    8q. What are the various Iranian magazines and newspapers, and
        how can I subscribe to them?

    9q. Where can I find Persian songs and music?

   10q. How do I watch a video cassette that was made in
        Iran/US/Europe? Where can I convert such videos from one
        system to another?



-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The answers:

    1q. Where is the Anonymous FTP site for soc.culture.iranian?
        What's available there?

    1a. Tehran.Stanford.EDU [36.28.0.189] is the main ftp site
        for soc.culture.iranian. A lot of useful information can be
        found by browsing through it. Whenver anonymous ftp is
        mentioned in this file, it is impled anonymous ftp to
        tehran.Stanford.EDU. A partial list of what's available on
        Tehran follows. [this list is nowhere close to being complete
        --mack]

        - gif files 		
                Directory: /pub/Iran_Lib/gif
                Keeper/Maintainer:farhad@tehran.stanford.edu,
                                  anoosh@mips.com

                o persian miniature drawings/paintings
                o photos
                o old/new maps of iran
                o get and read README and Image.TOC under /pub/Iran_Lib

        - Old/New issues of NOOR in postscript format
                Directory: /noor
                Keeper/Maintainer: farhad@tehran.stanford.edu
                                   nasser@unet.net.com

                o get and read README_NOOR file in the above directory


        - ISI (Informatic Society of Iran)
                Directory: /pub

                o get and print the postscript file isi_intro.ps
		
        - SIP (Society of Iranian Professionals)
                Directory:
                Keeper/Maintainer: mahyar@netcom.com
                                   mack@isl.stanford.edu

                o get and read xxx in the above directory

        - persian name list
                Directory:
                Keeper/Maintainer: mack@isl.stanford.edu

                o xxx contains about xxx Persian names in alphabetical
                  order. Especially useful for naming babies.

        - list of persian restaurants world-wide
                Directory:
                Keeper/Maintainer: mahman@mdi.com
                                   mack@isl.stanford.edu

                o xxx in the above directory contains addresses, phone
                  numbers, price range, and comment on quality of
                  the food about xxx Persian restaurants worldwide.

        - recipes of Persian dishes:
                Directory:
                Keeper/Maintainer: mack@isl.stanford.edu

                o the recipe for many dishes are available in the
                  above directory.


    2q. Where is/how can I contact the closest Iranian
        consulate/embassy/interests secion?

    2a. In United States:

            [address missing --mack]

            (202) 965-4990 to 94

            Here's what a netter had to say about their service:

            => Thanks to all those responded to my earlier request
            => with regard to passport renewal. I contacted the
            => Iranian Interest Section in D.C. (202) 965-4990 to 94 
            => and was kindly connected to an automatic fax facility
            => that sent me the forms I requested (via the touch-tone
            => interface). I was both surprised and delighted with the
            => service and the speed of transmition, i.e., as soon as
            => I hang up, the forms were coming out of my fax machine!
            => This service is available even outside the regular
            => business hours of the interest section (take advantage
            => of discount long distance times!) You can also send the
            => interest section a fax with your requests, messages,
            => etc. at (202) 965-1073.
            =>
            => These are some of the three-digit codes that might be
            => of interest to this newsgroup. (use these codes to
            => punch in the form you want to order) You can get a
            => complete list of these codes by using the 700 code (is
            => 700 the lucky number? :^)  ) 
            =>
            => 100  tamdeed, tajdeed, or tafkeek gozarnameh  
            => 900  similar to option 100 for students with green card
            => 055  similar to option 100 for students with F-1
            => 427  information about military service
            => 903  approval of student visa
            => 054  approval of student documents
            => 600  buying Iran-Air tickets
            => 901  request for exit stamp for students with F-1
            => 902  "   "   "   "   "   "   "   "   "   "   green card
            => 300  "   "   "   "   "   "  for people with green card

    3q. What are the Persian word processors? What are some of their
        features? Where can I get them? How much do they cost?

    3a. We have a fairly comprehensive input from: 
        Kees van 't Hoff, CWI, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
        Here goes his contribution: (many thanks Kees)

        --------------------------------------------------------------

        Good idea!!!
        
        I have been away quite a while myself, but I am back again, so
        I'll post my list about word-processing which could be
        included in such a FAQ-list.

        Latest change: Prof. Lagally's LaTeX macro's latest release
        (2), incompatible with previous releases.

        The list that hopefully says it all about farsi word-processing.

        Please feel free to make (or mail me) any corrections and/or
        additions to the list.


        MAC:

            AlKaatib:
                Is a right-to-left editor and comes with an Arabic
                font, in any case bitmaps. Is supposed to run under
                MultiFinder. You type your text in AlKaatib, and then
                copy and paste it into your favorite application
                (MacWrite, MS-Word, Excel etc.)
                Personally, I've used version 1.0 from an illegal copy
                back in 1986 for a while, but did not really like the
                concept, so I never bought it.
                Price: $199.00 retail; Alkaatib
                       $199.00 retail; Alkaatib Laser Font (PostScript)
                       $299.00 retail; Tawfiq Laser Font Family (postScript)
                       $199.00 retail; Ferdosi Laser Font (Postscript)
                Availability: Eastern Language Systems
                              39 West 330 North
                              Provo, UT 84601
                              1-801-377-4558
                According to recent news, the Mac line is no longer
                supported, but just the MS-DOS line.

            WinText:
                Is a mixed left-to-right, right-to-left wordprocessor.
                It uses AIS (Arabic Interface System) or PIS (Persian
                InterfaceSystem), the Apple systems for use with the
                Arabic script (see below). 
                I have been playing around with a demo-version and was
                quite impressed. However, I have heard rumours that it
                does not like large documents, but never seen real
                proof of this.
                The price was too steep for my intentional use (just
                personal correspondence).
                Price: 2200 FF (french francs), approx. $350-$400.
                       (Last year's price)
                Availability: WinSoft
                              34 Boulevard de l'Esplanade
                              38000 Grenoble
                              FRANCE
                              tel: (33) 76875601
	
            Patrick Jost's shareware Persian/Arabic text processing
            capabilities.
                I have no idea about this, but he announced his
                package on soc.culture.arabic last year.
                Price: shareware, $15 (US-price)
                Availability: Patrick Jost
                              12228 Venice Boulevard #495
                              Los Angeles, CA 9006
                              jost@coyote.trw.com

            Nisus:
                Nothing as of yet, but they have announced that they
                will have an Arabic version in october, based on Nisus
                3.06.
                Price will probably around $350, but maybe an academic
                rebate ala normal Nisus.
                Availability: Contact Paragon (+44) 81 642 2255)
                              or fax: (+44) 81 642 4621 (in Europe)
                              I don't know any numbers in the US)
                I have heard it is out by now.

            PIS, AIS:
                The interface systems by Apple for the Arabic script,
                AIS and PIS, are as far as I know only available
                through APDA (Apple Programmers Developers
                Association). You can find them on their CD-ROM's
                (latest version: 6.0.7).  Companies like WinSoft can
                give you the interface system for an additional price,
                when you buy their products.


        PC's:
            There must be quite a few of them around, but being a
            DOS-illiterate, I have no idea about them, apart from a
            shareware one (posted by Ala), and an announcement I saved
            from comp.text and soc.culture.arabic.

            INTEXT:
                Available through ftp: vmd.cso.uiuc.edu
                name: ipfs
                passwd: mark
                command: quote acct iran
                command: binary
                command: get INTEXT.ZIP
                and you have the unzippable (PKUNZIP) version. 

            Multi-Lingual-Scribe:
                Wordprocessing program supporting 5 to 10 different
                languages, including arabic. Works with matrix and laser
                printers.
                Price: ?
                Availability: Gamma Productions
                              710 Willshire Blvd, suite 609
                              Santa Monica CA 90401
                              Tel: 213 3948622
                This info is two years old, so don't sue me if it does not
                proof to be correct!

        Various systems:

            TEX:
                There are at least two TEX packages I know of. Since TEX
                runs on different platforms, you could probably move it
                almost anywhere.

            ARABTEX:
                This is Prof. Klaus Lagally's LaTeX extension for Arabic
                writing. It consists of three packages: the actual Arabtex
                package, the MetaFont package (for those interested), and
                the style files used by Arabtex. Most recent version: 2
                (spring 1992). The latest version has better support for
                Farsi. It worked wonderfully for me, both on my
                Sparcstation and on my Mac (with OzTeX, also a free
                package).
                Price: free
                Availability:
                    anonymous ftp: ymir.claremont.edu (134.173.4.23) (USA)
                    tex.babel.arabic.macros-lagally and
                    tex.babel.arabic.fonts-lagally
                    or
                    ifi.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de (129.69.211.11) (Europe)
                    pub/arabtex
                    or
                    nuri.inria.fr (128.93.1.26) (Europe)
                    /TeX/tools/arabic
                    or
                    mail to FILESERV@SHSU.BITNET
                    and include the lines:
                    SENDME ArabTex.TEX
                    SENDME ArabTex_MF
                    SENDME ArabTex_STYLE
                    in your mail to get the complete package.

            PARTEX:
                A package also known as ATEX, as far as I know by Terry
                Regier (regier@cogsci.berkeley.edu). The drawback is that
                it needs a filter before you call LaTeX, but the filter is
                relatively simple and easily adjustable. Also it uses
                Yannis Haralambous (France) fonts, and I don't know
                whether these are still available in the public domain. He
                used to mail them to interested people, and I have a copy,
                but I don't know whether I have any rights to distribute
                them (see below).
                It worked fine for me however.
                Price: free
                Availability:
                    anonymous ftp: ymir.claremont.edu (134.173.4.23)
                    tex.babel.arabic.atex
                    or
                    icsi-ftp.berkeley.edu
                    pub/ai/atex/atex.tar.Z
	
            SCHOLARTEX:
                A package by Yannis Haralambous ( yannis@FRCITL81.BITNET)
                for Mac and MS-DOS, supposedly handling almost any language.
                Price: approx. $200 (institutes pay a higher price)
                Availability:
                    Yannis Haralambous
                    101/11, rue Breughel
                    59650 Villeneuve d'Ascq
                    France
                    Tel. (33) 20.05.28.80
                    Fax  (33) 20.91.05.64
                    Bitnet: yannis@frcitl81


        --------------------------------------------------------------


    4q. What are the radio frequencies and broadcast times of Farsi
        speaking radio programs and/or programs originating from Iran?

    4a. Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting

            Frequencies below 3000 kHz are medium wave broadcasts and
            can only be heard in areas in the immediate vicinity of
            Iran (unless you have an exceptional receiver and a
            special type of antenna). Receiving FM broadcasts abroad,
            on the other hand, is virtually impossible.

            Radio Tehran External Service Schedule:

            Broadcasting Schedule: No. Nov. 91 - Feb. 92 (D91-92)

            Program        UTC/GMT        Target Areas  Frequency (kHz)
            ------------------------------------------------------------------
            English        1130-1230**    East Asia     11790, 11930, 9685
                                          Middle East   9525, 7215, 1224, 702
                           1400-1500      West Asia     702
                           1930-2030*     Europe        9022, 15260, 6030
                           0030-0130**    America       9022, 15260, 9720
            French         0630-0730*     Europe        9022, 9720, 15260
                           1830-1930*     Europe        9022, 15260, 6030
            German         1730-1830*     Europe        9022, 15260, 6030
            Russian        1530-1630      West Asia     9022, 11790, 1404, 1449
                           1930-2030      West Asia     1404
            Spanish        2030-2130*     Europe        9022, 15260
                           0130-0230**    America       9022, 9720, 15260
                           0530-0630*     Europe        9022, 9720, 15260

            * For Tehran on FM (100.7 MHz)
            * For Tehran on FM (97.7 MHz)


            Correspondence can be addressed to 

            IRIB
            External Service
            P.O. Box 3333
            Tehran 19395
            Iran 

        *******************************************************************

        Voice of America

            The following are times and frequencies of the Persian
            language programs of the Voice of America and the BBC.
            The information presented is at least six months old, so
            there could have been some changes since then.

            Time (UTC)       Frequency (kHz)
            -------------------------------------------------
            0300-0430        7651 *, 9635, 9700, 11805, 15105  
            1700-1900        6160, 7280, 9680, 11835

            * This frequency is used for the broadcast in Single
              Sideband mode (Lower). It is the frequency of the
              station in the US that relays the program to Greece.
              Your receiver needs to be equipped with a certain type
              of circuitry in order to demodulate this broadcast. All
              other frequencies originate in Greece and are in normal
              AM.

        *******************************************************************

        British Broadcasting Company

            BBC:

            Time (Tehran)      Frequency (kHz)
            ------------------------------------------------
            0600-0630          720, 1413, 9590, 11740, 15575
            1945-2030          1413, 7160, 11720, 15575
            2200-2230          720, 1413, 7160, 11720

            Note: UTC = Tehran Time - 3.5 

        *******************************************************************

    5q. How do I tranfer money to/from Iran?

    5a. The easiest way to transfer money from US to Iran is through
        Bank Melli Iran. They have a branch in New York. You can wire
        the funds from any bank in the US to Bank Melli in New York
        along with the receiving party's name and address (or account
        number) in Iran. For a nominal fee, Bank Melli will transfer
        the funds to Iran within a few days.

            Bank Melli Iran
            New York Agency
            628 Madison Avenue,
            New York, N.Y. 10022
            (212) 759-4700

            They have a post office box too:

            Post Office Box 1420
            F.D.R. Station
            New York, N.Y. 10150


    6q. What is the latest on military service/exemption?

    6a. [to be completed later --mack]

    7q. Where can I find a Persian restaurant?

    7a. A list of nearly [xxx] persian restaurants around the world
        including their address, phone number, and comments on the
        quality of their food is available via anonymous ftp.

    8q. What are the various Iranian magazines and newspapers, and
        how can I subscribe to them?

    8a. [to be completed later --mack]

    9q. Where can I find Persian songs and music?

    9a. [to be completed later --mack]

   10q. How do I watch a video cassette that was made in
        Iran/US/Europe? Where can I convert such videos from one
        system to another?

   10a. [to be completed later]


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Newsgroups: soc.culture.iranian