## Environment Variables

           In addition to various  “standard”  environment  variables
           such as HOME, PATH, USER, DISPLAY, TMPDIR, etc, Lynx utilizes
           several Lynx-specific environment variables, if they exist.

           Others may be created or modified by Lynx to pass data to
           an external program, or for other reasons.  These are
           listed separately below.

           See also the sections on Simulated CGI Support and
           Native Language Support, below.

           Note:  Not all environment variables apply to all types of
           platforms supported by Lynx, though most do.  Feedback on
           platform dependencies is solicited.  See also win32/dos specific
           variables.

## Variables Used By Lynx

           COLORTERM
                               If set, color capability for the terminal
                               is forced on at startup time. The actual
                               value assigned to the variable is ignored.
                               This variable is only meaningful if Lynx
                               was built using the slang screen-handling
                               library.

           LYNX_CFG
                               This variable, if set,  will  override
                               the  default  location and name of the
                               global configuration  file  (normally,
                               lynx.cfg)  that  was  defined  by  the
                               LYNX_CFG_FILE    constant    in    the
                               userdefs.h  file, during installation.
                               See  the  userdefs.h  file  for   more
                               information.

           LYNX_HELPFILE
                               If set, this  variable  overrides  the
                               compiled-in URL and configuration file
                               URL for the Lynx help file.

           LYNX_LOCALEDIR
                               If  set,  this  variable overrides the
                               compiled-in  location  of  the  locale
                               directory  which  contains native lan-
                               guage (NLS) message text.

           LYNX_LSS
                               This  variable,  if set, specifies the
                               location of the default Lynx character
                               style  sheet  file.   [Currently  only
                               meaningful if  Lynx  was  built  using
                               experimental color style support.]

           LYNX_SAVE_SPACE
                               This  variable,  if set, will override
                               the  default  path  prefix  for  files
                               saved  to  disk that is defined in the
                               lynx.cfg SAVE_SPACE:  statement.   See
                               the lynx.cfg file for more information.

           LYNX_TEMP_SPACE
                               This variable, if set,  will  override
                               the  default path prefix for temporary
                               files that was defined during installation,
                               as well as any value that may
                               be assigned to the TMPDIR variable.

           LYNX_TRACE
                               If  set,  causes Lynx to write a trace
                               file as if the -trace option were sup-
                               plied.

           LYNX_TRACE_FILE
                               If set, overrides the compiled-in name
                               of the trace  file,  which  is  either
                               Lynx.trace or LY-TRACE.LOG (the latter
                               on the DOS platform).  The trace  file
                               is in either case relative to the home
                               directory.

           MAIL
                               This variable  specifies  the  default
                               inbox Lynx will check for new mail, if
                               such  checking  is  enabled   in   the
                               lynx.cfg file.

           NEWS_ORGANIZATION
                               This  variable,  if  set, provides the
                               string  used  in   the   Organization:
                               header of USENET news postings.  It will
                               override the setting of the ORGANIZATION
                               environment  variable, if it is also set
                               (and, on  UNIX, the contents of an
                                /etc/organization file, if present).

           NNTPSERVER
                               If set, this  variable  specifies  the
                               default  NNTP server that will be used
                               for USENET news  reading  and  posting
                               with Lynx, via news: URL's.

           ORGANIZATION
                               This  variable,  if  set, provides the
                               string  used  in   the   Organization:
                               header  of  USENET  news postings.  On
                               UNIX, it will override the contents of
                               an /etc/organization file, if present.

           PROTOCOL_proxy
                               Lynx supports the use of proxy servers
                               that  can act as firewall gateways and
                               caching servers.  They are  preferable
                               to  the  older  gateway  servers  (see
                               WWW_access_GATEWAY, below).
                               Each protocol used by Lynx (http, ftp,
                               gopher, etc), can be mapped separately
                               by setting environment variables of
                               the form PROTOCOL_proxy (literally:
                               http_proxy, ftp_proxy, gopher_proxy,
                               etc), to “http://some.server.dom:port/”.
                               See Proxy details and examples.

           WWW_access_GATEWAY
                               Lynx still  supports  use  of  gateway
                               servers,  with  the  servers specified
                               via   “WWW_access_GATEWAY”   variables
                               (where  “access” is lower case and can
                               be “http”, “ftp”, “gopher” or “wais”),
                               however most gateway servers have been
                               discontinued.  Note that  you  do  not
                               include  a  terminal “/” for gateways,
                               but do for proxies specified by PROTOCOL_proxy
                               environment variables.  See Proxy details.

           WWW_HOME
                               This  variable,  if set, will override
                               the default startup URL  specified  in
                               any of the Lynx configuration files.

## Variables Set or Modified By Lynx

           LYNX_PRINT_DATE     This  variable  is  set  by  the  Lynx
                               p(rint) function, to the “Date:”  string
                               seen  in  the  document's “Information
                               about” page (= cmd), if  any.   It  is
                               created  for  use  by an external program,
                               as  defined   in   a   lynx.cfg
                               PRINTER: definition statement.  If the
                               field does not exist for the document,
                               the  variable  is set to a null string
                               under UNIX, or “No Date” under VMS.

           LYNX_PRINT_LASTMOD  This  variable  is  set  by  the  Lynx
                               p(rint)  function,  to  the  Last Mod:
                               string seen in the document's  “Information
                               about”  page  (= cmd), if any.
                               It is created for use by  an  external
                               program,  as  defined  in  a  lynx.cfg
                               PRINTER: definition statement.  If the
                               field does not exist for the document,
                               the variable is set to a  null  string
                               under UNIX, or “No LastMod” under VMS.

           LYNX_PRINT_TITLE    This  variable  is  set  by  the  Lynx
                               p(rint)  function,  to  the  Linkname:
                               string seen in the document's  “Information
                               about”  page  (= cmd), if any.
                               It is created for use by  an  external
                               program,  as  defined  in  a  lynx.cfg
                               PRINTER: definition statement.  If the
                               field does not exist for the document,
                               the variable is set to a  null  string
                               under UNIX, or “No Title” under VMS.

           LYNX_PRINT_URL      This  variable  is  set  by  the  Lynx
                               p(rint) function, to the  URL:  string
                               seen  in  the  document's “Information
                               about” page (= cmd), if  any.   It  is
                               created  for  use  by an external program,
                               as  defined   in   a   lynx.cfg
                               PRINTER: definition statement.  If the
                               field does not exist for the document,
                               the  variable  is set to a null string
                               under UNIX, or “No URL” under VMS.

           LYNX_VERSION        This variable is always set  by  Lynx,
                               and may be used by an external program
                               to determine  if  it  was  invoked  by
                               Lynx.   See  also  the comments in the
                               distribution's  sample  mailcap  file,
                               for notes on usage in such a file.

           SSL_CERT_DIR        Set to the directory containing trusted
                               certificates.

           SSL_CERT_FILE       Set to the full path and filename  for
                               your file of trusted certificates.

           TERM                Normally,  this  variable  is  used by
                               Lynx to determine  the  terminal  type
                               being  used  to invoke Lynx.  If, however,
                               it is unset at startup time  (or
                               has  the  value  “unknown”), or if the
                               -term  command-line option is used,
                               Lynx will set or modify its value
                               to the user specified  terminal type
                               (for the Lynx execution   environment).
                               Note: If set/modified by Lynx, the values of
                               the LINES and/or  COLUMNS  environment
                               variables may also be changed.

## Simulated CGI Support

If built with the cgi-links option enabled, Lynx allows access to a cgi script directly without the need for an http daemon.

When executing such “lynxcgi scripts” (if enabled), the following variables may be set for simulating a CGI environment:

           CONTENT_LENGTH

           CONTENT_TYPE

           DOCUMENT_ROOT

           HTTP_ACCEPT_CHARSET

           HTTP_ACCEPT_LANGUAGE

           HTTP_USER_AGENT

           PATH_INFO

           PATH_TRANSLATED

           QUERY_STRING

           REMOTE_ADDR

           REMOTE_HOST

           REQUEST_METHOD

           SERVER_SOFTWARE

Other environment variables are not inherited by the script, unless they are provided via a LYNXCGI_ENVIRONMENT statement in the configuration file. See the lynx.cfg file, and the (draft) CGI 1.1 Specification <http://Web.Golux.Com/coar/cgi/draft-coar-cgi-v11-00.txt> for the definition and usage of these variables.

The CGI Specification, and other associated documentation, should be consulted for general information on CGI script programming.

## Native Language Support

If configured and installed with Native Language Support, Lynx will display status and other messages in your local language. See the file ABOUT_NLS in the source distribution, or at your local GNU site, for more information about internationalization.

The following environment variables may be used to alter default settings:

           LANG                This variable, if set,  will  override
                               the  default  message language.  It is
                               an ISO 639 two-letter code identifying
                               the  language.  Language codes are NOT
                               the same as the country codes given in
                               ISO 3166.

           LANGUAGE            This  variable,  if set, will override
                               the default message language.  This is a
                               GNU extension that has higher priority for
                               setting the message catalog than LANG or
                               LC_ALL.

           LC_ALL              and

           LC_MESSAGES         These  variables,  if set, specify the
                               notion of native  language  formatting
                               style.  They are POSIXly correct.

           LINGUAS             This variable, if set prior to configuration,
                               limits the installed languages to specific values.
                               It is a space-separated list of two-letter codes.
                               Currently, it is hard-coded to a wish list.

           NLSPATH             This variable, if set, is used as  the
                               path prefix for message catalogs.

## Proxy details and examples

To set your site's NTTP server as the default host for news reading and posting via Lynx, set the environment variable NNTPSERVER so that it points to its Internet address. The variable “NNTPSERVER” is used to specify the host which will be used as the default for news URLs.

UNIX

      setenv NNTPSERVER "news.server.dom"

VMS

      define/system NNTPSERVER "news.server.dom"

Lynx still supports use of gateway servers, with the servers specified via the variables “WWW_access_GATEWAY”, where “access” is lower case and can be “http”, “ftp”, “gopher” or “wais”. Most of the gateway servers have been discontinued, but “http://www.w3.org:8001” is available for wais searches (note that you do not include a terminal “/” for gateways, but do for proxies; see below).

Lynx version 2.2 and beyond supports the use of proxy servers that can act as firewall gateways and caching servers. They are preferable to the older gateway servers. Each protocol used by Lynx can be mapped separately using PROTOCOL_proxy environment variables as shown below:

UNIX

  >     setenv http_proxy         "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv https_proxy        "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv ftp_proxy          "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv gopher_proxy       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv news_proxy         "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv newspost_proxy     "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv newsreply_proxy    "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv snews_proxy        "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv snewspost_proxy    "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv snewsreply_proxy   "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv nntp_proxy         "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv wais_proxy         "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv finger_proxy       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     setenv cso_proxy          "http://some.server.dom:port/"

VMS

  >     define "http_proxy"       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "https_proxy"      "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "ftp_proxy"        "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "gopher_proxy"     "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "news_proxy"       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "newspost_proxy"   "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "newsreply_proxy"  "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "snews_proxy"      "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "snewspost_proxy"  "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "snewsreply_proxy" "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "nntp_proxy"       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "wais_proxy"       "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "finger_proxy"     "http://some.server.dom:port/"
  >     define "cso_proxy"        "http://some.server.dom:port/"

  (Encase *BOTH* strings in double-quotes to maintain lower case for the PROTOCOL_proxy variable and for the http access type; include /system if you want proxying for all clients on your system.)

If you wish to override the use of a proxy server for specific hosts or entire domains you may use the “no_proxy” environment variable. The no_proxy variable can be a comma-separated list of strings defining no-proxy zones in the DNS domain name space. If a tail substring of the domain-path for a host matches one of these strings, transactions with that node will not be proxied. Here is an example use of “no_proxy”:

UNIX

      setenv no_proxy "host.domain.dom, domain1.dom, domain2"

VMS

      define "no_proxy" "host.domain.dom, domain1.dom, domain2"

You can include a port number in the no_proxy list to override use of a proxy server for the host accessed via that port, but not via other ports. For example, if you use “host.domain.dom:119” and/or “host.domain.dom:210”, then news (port 119) URLs and/or any wais (port 210) searches on that host would be excluded, but http, ftp, and gopher services (if normally proxied) would still be included, as would any news or wais services on other hosts.

Warning: Note that setting “il” as an entry in this list will block proxying for the .mil domain as well as the .il domain. If the entry is “.il” this will not happen.

If you wish to override the use of a proxy server completely (i.e., globally override any existing proxy variables), set the value of “no_proxy” to “*”. This is the only allowed use of * in no_proxy.

Note that Lynx treats file URLs on the local host as requests for direct access to the file, and does not attempt ftp if that fails. It treats both ftp URLs and file URLs on remote hosts as ftp URLs, and does not attempt direct file access for either. If ftp URLs are being proxied, file URLs on a remote host will be converted to ftp URLs before submission by Lynx to the proxy server, so no special procedure for inducing the proxy server to handle them is required. Other WWW clients may require that the http server's configuration file have “Map file:* ftp:*” in it to perform that conversion.

If you have not set NNTPSERVER, proxy or no_proxy environment variables you can set them at run time via the configuration file lynx.cfg (this will not override external settings).

## Win32 (95/NT) and 386 DOS

(adapted from “readme.txt” by Wayne Buttles
and “readme.dos” by Doug Kaufman)

Here are some environment variables that should be set, usually in a batch file that runs the Lynx executable. Make sure that you have enough room left in your environment. You may need to change your “SHELL=” setting in config.sys. In addition, Lynx looks for a “SHELL” environment variable when shelling to DOS. If you wish to preserve the environment space when shelling, put a line like this in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file also “SET SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM /E:2048”. It should match CONFIG.SYS.

        HOME         Where to keep the bookmark file and personal config files.
        TEMP or TMP  Bookmarks are kept here with no HOME.  Temp files here.
        USER         Set to your login name
        LYNX_CFG     Set to the full path and filename for lynx.cfg

386 version only:

        WATTCP.CFG   Set to the full path for the WATTCP.CFG directory

(Depending on how you compiled libtcp.a, you may have to use WATCONF.)

Define these in your batch file for running Lynx. For example, if your application line is “D:\win32\lynx.bat”, lynx.bat for Win32 may look like:

            @ECHO OFF
            set home=d:\win32
            set temp=d:\tmp
            set lynx_cfg=d:\win32\lynx.cfg
            d:\win32\lynx.exe %1 %2 %3 %4 %5

In lynx_386, a typical batch file might look like:

            @echo off
            set HOME=f:/lynx2-8
            set USER=your_login_name
            set LYNX_CFG=%HOME%/lynx.cfg
            set WATTCP.CFG=%HOME%
            f:\lynx2-8\lynx %1 %2 %3 %4 %5 %6 %7 %8 %9

You will also need to make sure that the WATTCP.CFG file has the correct information for IP number, Gateway, Netmask, and Domain Name Server. This can also be automated in the batch file.