If you would like to take a message you received with MM and copy it to a file on your own microcomputer, you need to copy it somehow from the computer MM is running on to your own microcomputer: a procedure known as downloading. How you will download a file depends on your microcomputer, its operating system, and the communications software you use to connect to the host where you run MM.
The command list copies a message into a regular file. Type list followed by your choice of filename. At the MM> prompt, also specify a message sequence. In this example, message 16 is copied into a file named meeting.
MM>list meeting 16 16 MM>
Since MS-Kermit, Kermit for MS-DOS, is widely used, the following example shows how to download with Kermit.
The basic procedure, as shown in the example below, is to run Kermit on the remote computer, shown by the prompt C-Kermit, and give it the command send with the name of the file to be sent, which is meeting in the example. Then escape to the local Kermit, using alt-x, and give it a receive command, with the MS-DOS file specification (what drive, directory, filename), shown here as a:meeting.txt. When it's done, give the command c to reopen the terminal session and quit from the remote Kermit.
$ kermit C-Kermit, 4F(095) 31 Aug 89, 4.2 BSD Type ? for help C-Kermit>send meeting Escape back to your local Kermit and give a RECEIVE command... [alt-x] MS-Kermit>receive a:meeting.txt
MS-Kermit: 3.11 7 Sep 1991 File name: MEETING as MEETING.TXT KBytes transferred: 0 Percent transferred: 100% Sending: Completed Number of packets: 86 Packet length: 4 Number of retries: 0 Last error: Last message: MS-Kermit>c
... C-Kermit>send meeting Escape back to your local Kermit and give a SEND command... [return] C-Kermit>q $
Clean up afterwards by removing the file meeting, when you no longer need it on the mail host.
$ rm meeting rm: remove meeting? y $
You can use a similar procedure with Mac Kermit (for Macintosh) and with other communications software that uses the Kermit protocol. See the documentation that came with your software for more information.
If your communications software and your MM host both support another file transfer protocol, like Xmodem, you can use that as an alternative to Kermit.
Your communications software may have a way of capturing what appears on screen to disk, either for the whole login session, or for selected parts. Doing so would be an another way of downloading a file.