.. RST source for unalf(1) man page. Convert with:
..   rst2man.py unalf.rst > unalf.1

.. |version| replace:: 0.0.0
.. |date| date::

=====
unalf
=====

--------------------------------
extract Atari 8-bit ALF archives
--------------------------------

:Manual section: 1
:Manual group: Urchlay's Atari 8-bit Tools
:Date: |date|
:Version: |version|

SYNOPSIS
========

unalf [**-l**] **alf-file**

DESCRIPTION
===========

**unalf** lists or extracts the contents of an *ALF* archive.

*ALF* is a compressed archive format similar to **arc**\(1), though
not compatible with it. It was used on the Atari 8-bit platform
beginning in the late 1980s.

Extracted files are written to the current directory. Existing files
are overwritten without warning.

OPTIONS
=======

For compatibility with **arc**\(1) usage, the **-** in front of
option letters is optional.

-l
  List contents of archive, but do not extract. The output format
  is similar to that of **arc -v**, minus the *Stowage* column, since
  *ALF* doesn't support multiple compression types. The date and time
  are displayed, but in most .alf files these are the default values
  of "8 Jan 82  12:24a".

-v
  Same as **-l**.

**-e**, **-x**
  Extract files. This is actually a no-op, as extraction is the
  default action.

EXIT STATUS
===========

**0** for success, **1** for failure.

DIAGNOSTICS
===========

Besides the standard error messages such as "no such file or directory":

**unalf: this is an ARC file, not ALF**
  Self-explanatory. Use the **arc**\(1) utility for this file.

**unalf: not an ALF file**
  Self-explanatory. Either the file is too small (less than 29 bytes)
  or its first two bytes don't match the *ALF* signature **0x1a** **0x0f**\.

**unalf: junk at EOF (ignored)**
  Usually this is caused by the .alf file being stored on a CP/M disk
  at some time, or by a dumb file transfer protocol. Either way, the
  file gets padded to the block size of the filesystem or protocol.
  Usually, the padding characters are **0x1a**, aka ASCII control-Z.

  If you see this message, you can ignore it. It's intended to let
  you know that this .alf file can't be appended to by the **ALF.COM**
  aka **LZ.COM** Atari utility.

**unalf: checksum error on** *<file>*
  The archive is corrupt. If *<file>* is a text file, it may be
  partially readable. If it's an executable or other binary file, it's
  probably unrecoverable.

NOTES
=====

This **unalf** is 100% compatible with the original Atari **UNALF.COM**
aka **DZ.COM**, with the following differences:

- There is no interactive mode. The file to extract must be given as
  a command-line argument.

- Files are always extracted to the current directory. The original
  **UNALF.COM** accepted a 2nd argument or prompted for the output directory.

- This **unalf** is capable of listing the contents of an archive
  without extracting it.

- Turning the screen off for speed makes no sense on modern operating
  systems, so there's no option for that.

Neither this **unalf** nor **UNALF.COM** actually use the dates/times
stored in the archive. Extracted files will have their timestamps set
to the current date/time.

COPYRIGHT
=========

**unalf** is released under the WTPFL: Do WTF you want with this.

AUTHORS
=======

B. Watson <urchlay@slackware.uk>

SEE ALSO
========

TODO