Each event may have an associated letter/email file name. The names of files consist of the event name, followed by a period, followed by au or ed for letters to authors and editors, respectively, and the following suffixes:
| suffix | use |
|---|---|
| .tex | LaTeX files for printed letters |
| .html | HTML files for sending via email, translated to ASCII with lynx |
| .nroff | nroff (ms macro set) files for sending via email, translated to ASCII with nroff |
| .txt | plain text files for sending via email, formatted using the fmt utility |
Letters consist of the boilerplate text, interspersed with variable names. Variable names begin with a dollar sign. The following variables are defined:
| publication | the full name of the publication |
| year | the current year (for conferences) |
| ead | editor's mailing address (letters only) |
| ad | author's mailing address (letters only) |
The paper by $[a au1] was received $[date Received] by $[e name].might print as
The paper by Galileo Galilei was received 04/08/94 by Dr. Isaac Newton.The opening and closing brackets must be in the same line. The values of fields are retrieved as commands; the command for the fields of the paper is a, for the editor it is e and for the editor-in-chief, eic. The field names can be modified and added to, but the standard set as used in the sample database is listed in the table below. The command date inserts the date of the given event, using the current cycle and editor name.
| name | record type | description |
|---|---|---|
| ti | a | title of paper |
| au1 ... au5 | a | first through fifth author |
| name | a, e, eic | name used to address correspondence author |
| gr | a, e, eic | greeting for letter, email |
| ad1 ... ad5 | a, e, eic | address lines |
| country | a, e, eic | country of residence |
| a, e, eic | email address | |
| phone | a, e, eic | phone number |
| fax | a, e, eic | fax number |
| file | a | file name of manuscript |