PCjs Machines
Home of the original IBM PC emulator for browsers.
PC-SIG Diskette Library (Disk #1273)
[PCjs Machine "ibm5170"]
Waiting for machine "ibm5170" to load....
Information about “VDE – VISUAL DISPLAY EDITOR”
BLACKJACK! is a tour de force in beating the casino dealer that might
help you line your pockets with green. Long overdue, it teaches you a
basic blackjack strategy, adds an effective card counting system to it,
and drills you on both the strategy and your counting ability. You play
against world famous casinos or customize the rules the dealer follows.
It's fun, quickly played, and could fatten your wallet on your next trip
to Nevada, New Jersey, or Monte Carlo.
BLACKJACK! is a joy because you can alter the number of decks in the
shoe and practice your count in the most difficult of circumstances.
The rules on doubling down automatically change as you switch from
single to multiple decks. You can play head on or add up to three
players to your table. You watch your bank rise and sink with your luck
and you can get instant advice on how to alter your betting strategy.
ARCOPY.DOC
ARCOPY.DOC
----------
Instructions for ARCOPY.COM
Version 1.4 (12/4/89)
(c)1988-89 E. Meyer
ARCOPY (ARchive COPY) is a small, fast disk file copy utility for all
MSDOS (2.x and above) systems. Its features are geared toward the tasks of
backing up (archiving) files, and maintaining multiple copies of files; but it
can also make ordinary file copying, moving, and renaming easier.
ARCOPY is geared toward command line aficionados who want to be able to
do as much as possible at one DOS prompt. It can copy different groups of
files at once; backup files by time stamp or archive flag; select files to
copy by existence on destination directory, or user prompt; move files easily
from one directory to another; do sophisticated renaming; and more.
USING ARCOPY
------------
SYNTAX: A>ARCOPY {source{,source2,...} {dest} {/options}} "{}"=optional
Like DOS COPY, ARCOPY expects two arguments: a source and a
destination filespec. However, the source may be a list of files
as well, delimited with commas or semicolons.
Either filespec may be ambiguous; destination name defaults
to same as source. Subdirectories are supported. If not
specified, drive and directory default to the current values.
Common device names (CON,PRN...) are also accepted.
If NO arguments are given, ARCOPY loads into memory and gives a prompt
"-". You can then enter one pair of arguments after another, and can remove
the disk containing ARCOPY if needed. To exit, just press RETURN or ^C.
If the source is a list, a comma separator means that the previous item's
drive/directory is assumed (unless the current item begins with a drive or
root directory); a semicolon means not. Thus the second item in the list
"\WORK\FILE1,FILE2" is taken to be "\WORK\FILE2", while in "\WORK\FILE1;FILE2"
it is merely in the default directory, and in "\WORK\FILE1,\FILE2" it is in
the root directory.
For ambiguous (group) copying, ARCOPY alphabetically lists each file
being processed; you may abort at any time by typing ^C. If the destination
names are different, both names are shown: OLDFILE.NAM -> NEWFILE.NAM.
OPTIONS
"Options" must be preceded by one slash "/"; separating
spaces, and further slashes, are optional. Several (A,M,P)
are identical to DOS XCOPY utility options; several (R,W,Z)
correspond to options of CP/M PIP. (Anyone remember that?)
/? - display help message
/A - only files with the ARCHIVE attribute will be copied. (See "Incremental
Backup" below for further explanation.)
/B - only files with time stamp BEFORE specified date/time (MMDDYY:HHMM) will
be copied. (If not specified, defaults are today, 0000 hours.)
/E - only those files that already EXIST on the destination directory will be
copied. (Note that the destination filename is the one tested here.)
/L - only files with time stamp LATER than specified date/time (MMDDYY:HHMM)
will be copied. (If not specified, defaults are today, 0000 hours.)
/M - only files with the Archive attribute are copied, and then MARKED by
having their Archive attribute removed. (See "Incremental Backup" below.)
/N - only those files that are NEW (do NOT already exist on the destination
directory) will be copied.
/P - you will be PROMPTED "y/n?" for each file about to be processed. Press
"Y" to copy the file, or "N" to skip it.
/R - Hidden and System files, normally ignored, will be READ and copied along
with normal files.
/T - whenever a file already exists on the destination directory, it will
only be overwritten if the source copy has a more recent TIMESTAMP.
/W - copying may WRITE over or delete Read/Only files. (Normally, any
attempt to do this will cause a DOS R/O error.)
/X - files will be TRANSFERRED: if on the same drive, by renaming; if on
different drives, by deleting the original after copying.
/Z - the high (parity) bit will be ZEROED on all output data, which converts
nonstandard data (like WordStar text) into standard ASCII form.
INCREMENTAL BACKUP
It's important to maintain backup copies of important data, but this can
be a tedious task. Fortunately you don't need to remember exactly which files
have been modified recently; there are two automatic ways to update disks by
selecting and copying just those files that need it ("incremental backup").
(1) THE ARCHIVE ATTRIBUTE
MSDOS maintains a file attribute called Archive. Whenever a disk file is
modified, this attribute is set. Consequently, if this attribute was cleared
in the past (the last time you did a backup), the files which now have it set
are those you have created or changed since, and need to back up now.
ARCOPY can copy just those modified files, and (if you want) clear their
attribute again to indicate they have been archived. So all you have to type
each time you want to back up the contents of a directory is:
ARCOPY *.* B: /M
In conjunction with this, when you are first setting up your disks, you may
find a use for a utility that can manually set or clear the Archive attribute
on groups of files, such as my DTA.COM.
(DOS 3.x users should look up the ATTRIB and XCOPY utilities in their
manual for an alternative approach to the task.)
(2) THE TIMESTAMP
If your computer has a clock, the MSDOS file timestamp can also be used
to determine whether one copy of a file has been modified more recently than
another. Thus, you can also back up files by typing:
ARCOPY *.* B: /T
Any file that already exists on the destination directory will be replaced
only if the source copy is more recent.
This method is the simplest; I now use it all the time.
(DOS 3.x XCOPY has an option to copy files changed since a given date,
but this comparison is more reliable for backup purposes.)
COPYING BY TIME STAMPS
With the /B and /L options, you can choose to copy only files dated
before or after a given date or time. (You can even use both together, to
copy files dated between two date/times.)
In either case, the date/time should follow the option letter. Dates
must be given as six digits in the form MMDDYY; the date "000000" may be used
for a blank time stamp, otherwise YY must be 80 or above. You may also type a
colon, followed by a four-digit (24-hour) time in the form HHMM. Given a date
with no time, the time defaults to 0000 hrs; given a time with no date (note
the leading colon is necessary), the date defaults to today. If time/date are
omitted altogether, the default is today, 0000 hrs.
MOVING AND RENAMING
The /X option has powerful moving and renaming features, depending on the
circumstances of its use. If copying onto another drive, files are copied and
then deleted. If copying into another directory on the same drive, files are
efficiently moved into the new directory. If copying into the same directory,
files are simply renamed!
MASS RENAMING
Copying multiple files to different names can get confusing. If the
wildcards match exactly (as in *.DOC to *.BAK) it's straightforward enough.
But (unlike COPY or XCOPY) ARCOPY also lets you do more complex renaming,
which may or may not work depending on the specific filenames encountered.
Suppose you have three files on drive A: GORT.TXT, KLAATU.DOC, NIKTO. You
want to create some extra backups on drive B. You might type:
A>ARCOPY *.* B:*.BAK
Despite the fact that other utilities would refuse this request, it's
perfectly clear what you want, and ARCOPY will do it:
A:GORT.TXT, KLAATU.DOC, NIKTO ---> B:GORT.BAK, KLAATU.BAK, NIKTO.BAK
But suppose there had been a fourth file A:GORT.NOT. Because both it and
GORT.TXT would get copied to the same destination B:GORT.BAK, which is likely
to be a bad idea, in this case ARCOPY would refuse the (same!) copy request.
Rather than give up at first, ARCOPY looks ahead at what the actual results of
copying would be: only if two filenames would be identical, or an illegal
filename result, does ARCOPY quit with an error message.
ABOUT DEVICES
MSDOS provides a number of "device names" which may be used in place of a
filename, as either source or destination. ARCOPY fully supports these: AUX,
COM1-2, CON, LPT1-2, LST, NUL, PRN. The most useful are:
CON - the console (keyboard input, screen output)
PRN - printer output
Console input is terminated with ^Z, RETURN.
Ambiguous filenames and options /A,D,E,M,N,P,T are not allowed.
USAGE EXAMPLES
A>arcopy b:\wrk\*.doc;apr\*.not c:
All files B:\WRK\*.DOC and A:APR\*.NOT will be copied to drive C:.
A>arcopy b:\wrk\*.doc,apr\*.not c:
All files B:\WRK\*.DOC and B:\WRK\APR\*.NOT will be copied to drive C:.
A>arcopy \ws\*.doc *.txt /z/p
Each file of type ".DOC" on directory A:\WS will be copied to the
current directory, with the same name but type ".TXT" instead of ".DOC".
In the process, the high bit will be zeroed out to convert to standard
ASCII. You will be prompted to confirm each item to copy individually.
A>arcopy b:gort /x/w
B:GORT will be copied to drive A:, and the original deleted, even if R/O.
A>arcopy *.mac \prog /x
Every file *.MAC will get moved to directory \PROG.
A>arcopy *.mac f*.mac /x
Every file *.MAC will have the first letter of its name changed to F.
A>arcopy *.* c: /l010189/b:1200
Every file on A: with a date since 1/1/89, but before noon today, will
be copied to drive C:.
A>arcopy c:*.* b: /a
All files on C: which have been modified will be copied to drive B:, but
they remain marked as unArchived (probably for further use with /M).
A>arcopy c:*.* b: /m/e
All files on C: which have been modified, and of which copies already
exist on drive B:, will be copied to B: and marked as Archived. (Thus
you can backup a single directory onto more than one floppy disk.)
A>arcopy c:*.* b: /t/e
This does much the same thing, except it selects files that need to be
backed up by their more recent timestamps instead.
A>arcopy b:*.exe /n
All files B:*.EXE which do not already exist on drive A: will be copied
there from drive B:.
A>arcopy *.sys b: /r
All files A:*.SYS, including System and/or Hidden files, will be copied
to drive B:.
A>arcopy my.doc con /z
The file MY.DOC will be typed on screen, with the high bit zeroed out.
An easy way to view WordStar text without funny graphics.
ERROR MESSAGES
<Bad argument> Missing or invalid argument; think (read?) and try again
<No memory> You don't have enough free memory; or, too many files
(You might try a more restrictive source filename)
<Overwrite> A destination filename would have been the same as a source
<Conflict> Two source files would have copied to the same destination
<Illegal> A file with an illegal name would have been constructed
<Read error> DOS error opening or reading source file
<Write error> DOS error on output: full disk, read/only file, etc.
HISTORY
ARCOPY 1.0 (3/88) was the first MSDOS release, an 8086 adaptation of the
previous CP/M program ARCOPY 2.1.
v1.01 (4/88) - Fixed bug in parsing of options with no second filename.
1.02 (5/88) - Preserves original file time/date.
1.1 (7/88) - New options /T, /?. Improved parsing.
1.2 (4/89) - Comma-delimited source lists; small fixes.
1.3 (10/89) - More efficient copies, moves; /X replaces /D; small fixes.
1.4 (12/89) - New options /B, /L. Semicolon/comma file delimiters.
ARCOPY and its documentation are (c)1988-89 E.Meyer, all rights reserved.
They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit without my
written consent. The user takes full responsibility for any damages resulting
from the use of this program.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Avenue SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
DIRCMP.DOC
DIRCMP.DOC
----------
Instructions for DIRCMP.COM
Version 1.2 (2/20/90)
(c)1989-90 Eric Meyer
DIRCMP (DIRectory CoMPare) is a small, fast directory utility for all
MSDOS (2.x and above) systems. For various reasons -- including backing up
files -- one often needs to reconcile two directories: to detect differing
versions of a file, or to see which files are in one directory but not the
other. You could always run two DIR commands, read the lists, and try to
match them up... but DIRCMP makes it much easier.
SYNTAX: C>dircmp dir1 {dir2} {/o} "{}"=optional
Two arguments are expected: each may consist of an MSDOS
directory name and/or an ambiguous filename. If the second is
omitted, it is assumed to be the current directory, *.*.
In addition, you can specify the option:
/P = pause display every 25 lines
You can also choose one of these options to restrict the display:
/E = files EXISTING in both directories only
/N = files NOT existing in both directories only
/M = files MODIFIED only
Otherwise, by default, the complete set of listings will be produced.
EXAMPLES: C>dircmp a:
C>dircmp a:\work /mp
C>dircmp \prg\*.asm a: /n
DIRCMP will normally give three alphabetical file listings:
1. files common to both directories;
2. files present in the first but not the second;
3. files present in the second but not the first.
In each case the number of files, and their total size (to the nearest K), is
also reported.
Note: nonidentical versions of files (same name, different timestamps)
will appear in the lists of DIFFERING files. The newer version will be
flagged with a "+" sign before the filename, the older version with a "-".
You can also select a more restricted display: the /E option gives only
the first listing (common files). The /N option gives only the second and
third (differing files). The /M option gives a single listing, of modified
versions of files with the same name only.
ERROR MESSAGES
<Bad argument> Missing or invalid argument; think (read?) and try again.
<No memory> You don't have enough free memory (about 45k required).
<Too many> Too many files to compare (maximum is 1024 in each dir);
try a more restrictive filespec, e.g. *.DOC instead of *.*.
HISTORY
DIRCMP 1.0 (4/89) - first release of this program.
1.1 (5/89) - added Modified file options, pagination.
1.2 (2/90) - 2nd argument defaults to current dir, *.*;
file maximum increased to 1024.
DIRCMP and its documentation are (c)1989-90 Eric Meyer, all rights
reserved. They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit
without my written consent. The user takes full responsibility for any
damages resulting from the use of this program. Please report any problems
encountered.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
DLT.DOC
DLT.DOC
-------
Instructions for DLT.COM
Version 1.0 (3/20/90)
(c)1990 E. Meyer
DLT is an enhanced file deletion utility for all MSDOS (2.x and above)
systems. It is geared toward command line aficionados who want to be able to
do as much as possible at one DOS prompt. Unlike the MSDOS "DEL" command, it
can delete lists or groups of files (in different directories) with a single
command, displaying the number deleted. In addition, options allow: display
and user confirmation before deletion; delete all except specified files;
selection of files by time/date; inclusion of hidden, system, or read/only
files.
USING DLT
---------
SYNTAX: A>DLT filespec {,filespec2,...} {/options} "{}"=optional
The target may be either a single (ambiguous) filespec, or
a list of them delimited with spaces, commas or semicolons.
Subdirectories are supported. If not specified, drive and
directory default to the current values.
You can get a help message by typing "DLT" alone.
If the target is a list, a space or comma separator means that the
previous item's drive/directory is assumed (unless the current item begins
with a drive or root directory); a semicolon means not. Thus the second item
in the list "\WORK\FILE1,FILE2" is taken to be "\WORK\FILE2", while in
"\WORK\FILE1;FILE2" FILE2 is merely in the default directory, and in
"\WORK\FILE1,\FILE2" it is in the root directory.
OPTIONS
"Options" must be preceded by one slash "/"; separating
spaces, and further slashes, are optional.
CAUTION! Use care when deleting groups of files;
recovering accidentally deleted files requires special
utilities, and can be difficult.
While you are learning to use DLT and its various
options, always use the "/P" option: you will be shown the
selected files, and can choose NOT to delete them!
In the future, any time you are the least bit
uncertain as to your selection of files (especially with
the "/X,E,L" options), use "/P"!
/P - PROMPT to confirm. You will be shown the files and asked "Delete? (y/n)"
/H - HIDDEN and System files (otherwise not found) will be included as well.
/R - READ/ONLY files may be deleted as well (otherwise an error results).
/E - Only files EARLIER than specified date/time (MMDDYY:HHMM) are deleted.
/L - Only files LATER than specified date/time are deleted.
/X - All files EXCEPT those specified will be deleted. (Be careful!)
The /X option cannot be used with a list of files in more than one
directory. Also, /X cannot be used together with /E or /L.
With the /E and /L options, you can choose to delete only files dated
before or after a given date or time. (You can even use both together, to
delete files dated between two date/times.)
With /E or /L, the date/time should follow the option letter. Dates must
be given as six digits in the form MMDDYY; the date "000000" may be used for a
blank time stamp, otherwise YY must be 80 or above. You may also type a
colon, followed by a four-digit (24-hour) time in the form HHMM. Given a date
with no time, the time defaults to 0000 hrs; given a time with no date (note
the leading colon is necessary), the date defaults to today. If time/date are
omitted altogether, the default is today, 0000 hrs. Examples:
/l since today 0:00
/e:1300 before today 13:00
/l020190:1300 since 2/1/90 13:00
/l120189 /e010190 since 12/1/89 0:00, and before 1/1/90 0:00
USAGE EXAMPLES
A>dlt *.bak read.me todo
A>dlt *.*
(Doesn't give the annoying confirmation prompt that DOS does.)
A>dlt b:\wrk\*.doc;apr\*.not
Deletes all files B:\WRK\*.DOC and A:APR\*.NOT.
A>dlt b:\wrk\*.doc,apr\*.not
Deletes all files B:\WRK\*.DOC and B:\WRK\APR\*.NOT.
A>dlt *.doc *.not /x
Deletes all files other than *.DOC and *.NOT.
A>dlt \*.sys /p/rh
All files *.SYS in the root directory (including hidden files like
MSDOS.SYS) will be deleted, after you are prompted to confirm this.
A>dlt *.bak /e010189
Every file *.BAK dated earlier than 1/1/89 is deleted.
A>dlt *.* /l/e:1200
Every file dated today before noon is deleted.
ERROR MESSAGES
<Bad argument> Missing or invalid argument; think (read?) and try again
<No memory> You don't have enough free memory; or, too many files
(You might try a more restrictive filespec)
<R/O Error> DOS error deleting file (is it read/only?)
<Aborted> You pressed ^C
DLT and its documentation are (c)1990 E.Meyer, all rights reserved.
They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit without my
written consent. The user takes full responsibility for any damages resulting
from the use of this program.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Avenue SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
DTA.DOC
DTA.DOC
-------
Instructions for DTA.COM
Version 1.3 (9/89)
(c)1987-89 E. Meyer
DTA.COM is a super directory utility that will run on any PC/MSDOS system
(version 2 or higher). "DTA" stands for Directory-Tree-Attributes; it is a
replacement for the DIR, TREE, and ATTRIB commands of DOS, as well as a
WHEREIS utility. DTA is written entirely in 8086 assembler, and has many
advantages including:
* alphabetized directory with file sizes and free space
* default compact display; optionally include attributes and time/date
* select items by file attributes or time/date
* change any file attributes or time/date
* treat directories separately or together with files
* alphabetized compact subdirectory tree; optionally include sizes
* search entire directory tree for files
USING DTA
---------
SYNTAX: A>dta {filespec} {/options} ("{}"=optional)
where "filespec" may include a drive, path, or wildcards;
"/" is the delimiter for option letters.
If the drive or path is omitted, the defaults are the active ones. If
the filespec is omitted it defaults to "*.*". If it is a directory name, the
contents of the directory are displayed.
Options are discussed in detail below. If none are specified, you will
get a compact, informative directory display.
You can pause or abort during operation of DTA by typing ^S or ^C.
Output can be directed to a file or other device in the standard fashion:
A>DTA FILESPEC /OPTIONS >DEVICE.
DTA OPTIONS
-----------
By default, DTA will display a list of all files specified, along with
their sizes, and some disk space information. You can modify this consid-
erably with a variety of options. One "/" must precede any options; further
slashes may be used or not as desired.
/? = help. Gives a brief summary of DTA usage and options.
There are options to scan the directory tree, instead of the current dir:
/T = tree: show it, starting at specified or current directory.
/G = global: search for specified files throughout the tree.
Then there are options affecting the appearance of the display:
/F = full: for files, show attributes and time/date also.
(automatically selected for single file display)
for directory tree, show total size of contents.
/V = version: include the DTA version message.
/W = wide: just like DIR /W, five columns with no file sizes.
/N = narrow: use only half the usual number of columns.
/P = paginate: pause every 24 lines for a keystroke.
Then there are options to select what items are chosen for display:
/D = directories: look at directories instead of files.
/U = universal: look at both directories and files.
/E = earlier: select files earlier than specified time: MMDDYY:HHMM.
/L = later: files later than (or equal to) specified time: MMDDYY:HHMM.
/A,H,R,S = select only items with the specified attributes:
Archive; Hidden; Read/only; System.
/a,h,r,s = select only items WITHOUT these attributes.
Finally, you can specify:
/@ = set time stamp on items, in format: MMDDYY:HHMM.
/C = change items to have the following specified attributes.
Be careful with these options, because they actually CHANGE the DOS time
stamp and attributes for files! Time stamps, in particular, provide valuable
information about the age and revision of a file, and should not be changed
unwisely.
Dates must be given as six digits in the form MMDDYY; the date "000000"
may be used for a blank time stamp, otherwise YY must be 80 or above. You may
also type a colon, followed by a four-digit (24-hour) time in the form HHMM.
Given a date with no time, the time defaults to 0000 hrs; given a time with no
date (note the leading colon is necessary), the date defaults to today. If
time/date are omitted altogether, /E and /L default to today, 0000 hrs; /@
defaults to today, now.
Note that the file attributes are case sensitive (uppercase=set,
lower=clear). Those listed alone, or before the "C" option letter, are used
for file selection; those after it, represent changes to be made. The /C
option can also be used alone, with NO following attributes, simply to cause
attributes to display instead of file sizes (no attributes will be changed).
The best way to make DTA usage clear will be by a series of examples.
EXAMPLES: DIRECTORY TREE
C>dta \ /tp
Show the directory tree starting from C:\, pausing after each screenful.
C>dta *.bak /g
Find all directories on drive C: containing files *.BAK.
EXAMPLES: FILES and DIRECTORIES
C>dta a:\*.sys
Show all files *.SYS in the root directory on A:. (System, etc included.)
C>dta a:\*.sys /f
Same thing, but with "full" display including attributes and time/date.
C>dta /d
Show all subdirectories in the current directory.
C>dta \work /u
Show all files AND subdirectories in C:\WORK.
EXAMPLES: TIMESTAMPS
C>dta \work /l
Show only files in directory C:\WORK created or modified since... today.
C>dta /e090189
Show only files in current directory dated earlier than 9/1/89.
C>dta *.doc /l/e:1700
Show only files *.DOC dated today earlier than 5:00pm.
C>dta log /@090189:1320
Modify the file LOG to have the time/date 9/1/89, 1:20pm.
EXAMPLES: ATTRIBUTES
C>dta /c
Show all files in current directory with their attributes.
C>dta /A
Show all files in current directory marked with the Archive attribute.
C>dta a: /SH
Show all files in current directory on A: which are System and Hidden.
C>dta a:*.sys /Hca
Select all Hidden files *.SYS on A: and clear their Archive attribute.
QUIZ
All right, can you decide what the following commands would accomplish:
A>dta /vfn >prn B>dta a: /u /c /p
A>dta *.syz /smAca C\SUE\WORK>dta \ /f/d/H
C\SUE\WORK>dta .. /tf B>dta /e/@
(Sorry if this seems cryptic at first; you'll catch on. Nobody will force you
to use all these fool options; many exist only to allow you to get hard copy
exactly the way you want it. Again, you can always type "DTA /?" for help.)
INTERPRETING THE DISPLAY
------------------------
File SIZES are displayed to the nearest kilobyte (or "k"; 1k is 1024
bytes). The "used/free" space shown by DTA is for the entire drive. The
"items use" amount is only for the specific files listed. Because allocation
clusters on a disk can vary from 128 bytes (on a RAMdisk) to 4k or more (on a
hard disk), the space actually "used" can be several K more or a fraction of a
K less than a file's actual size.
File ATTRIBUTES, when displayed, show as a letter ("A,H,R,S") if set, or
as "." if clear. The Archive attribute indicates to a backup utility that a
file has been changed recently, and needs to be backed up; the bit is cleared
by the utility when it does so. (Simple backup utilities that work well with
DTA include the DOS XCOPY command, and my own ARCOPY.COM.)
The Read/only attribute prevents a file from being changed or deleted,
though it can be read and copied. The Hidden and System attributes both
exclude a file from normal searches: such files cannot be accessed at all by
ordinary MSDOS file commands. Ordinarily only the DOS boot files MSDOS.SYS
and IO.SYS have these attributes. (If you do NOT want to see hidden or system
files, use "/sh".)
DTA can display up to 1000 files, 64 MB total size. If any file exceeds
999k, its size won't display properly, but other statistics will be correct.
COMMON ERROR MESSAGES
"0 items" - No such file (or directory) was found. (If you expected
there to be some, check your arguments again...)
"<invalid argument>" - You guessed it. Invalid option, bad path, illegal
character in filename, that sort of thing. Think and try again. (Note some
arguments conflict: you can't specify /ud, or /Aa.)
HISTORY
DA version 1.0 (9/87) was loosely based on my earlier program DA.COM for
CP/M systems, a directory utility that could also display & change attributes.
DA 1.1 (7/88) - better argument parsing; attributes can now be both
selected on and changed, eg: "/HcS"; several new options.
DTA 1.2 (10/88) - added "/T" option: a TREE that fits on the screen!
DTA 1.3 (9/89) - added "/G" search, "/E,L,@" options to select or set
time/date. (Note /L replaces the previous "/M" option for "modified today".)
DTA and its documentation are (c)1987-89 Eric Meyer, all rights reserved.
They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit without my
written consent. The user takes full responsibility for any damages resulting
from the use (or misuse) of this program. Please report any problems
encountered.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071
FILE1273.TXT
Disk No: 1273
Disk Title: Visual Display Editor (VDE)
PC-SIG Version: 1.1
Program Title: Visual Display Editor (VDE)
Author Version: 1.52
Author Registration: None.
Special Requirements: Printer.
VDE is a small (30K), fast and powerful text editor. It can work with
as little as 128K RAM. This makes it ideal for laptop computers with
limited space.
This tough little text editor offers:
~ Dual file editing
~ Wordwrap and reformat
~ Append to existing file
~ Margins, tabs and spacing control
~ Pure ASCII mode
~ Block operations
~ Find and replace
~ Undelete functions
~ Macro programs and programmable keys
~ Full DOS utilities and subdirectory support
~ WordStar compatibility
~ Configurable options and more
VDE is fast. Written in 8086 assembler, it writes directly to video RAM
and operates entirely in memory with no disk access during editing.
Speed is a factor that more cumbersome, full-featured programs
overlook. Example: finding a string near the end of a 60K nondocument
file takes WordStar 4 about 20 seconds [8 MHz 8088]; VDE does it in half
a second.
PC-SIG
1030D East Duane Avenue
Sunnyvale Ca. 94086
(408) 730-9291
(c) Copyright 1989 PC-SIG, Inc.
GO.TXT
╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ <<<< Disk No 1273 VISUAL DISPLAY EDITOR (VDE) >>>> ║
╠═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
║ The files on this disk are stored in ZIP file format. To extract ║
║ the individual files from archive, use the PKUNZIP utility provided. ║
║ Type: PKUNZIP [filename] [destination] (press enter) ║
║ ║
║ For example; [filename] = vde152 ║
║ [destination] = C:\VDE ║
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
LQCHAR.DOC
LQCHAR.DOC
----------
Instructions for LQCHAR.COM
Version 1.23 (02/04/90)
(c)1988-90 Eric Meyer
Requires: IBM PC compatible computer
Epson LQ compatible dot matrix printer
LQCHAR is a small, efficient utility for designing downloaded character
fonts for Epson LQ-compatible 24-pin dot matrix printers. It will run on any
MSDOS system (2.x or above) with an IBM compatible video adapter (MDA, CGA,
EGA, VGA). LQCHAR lets you design each character individually on screen, and
builds up a disk file containing all the character definitions. This file can
then be sent to your printer anytime you wish to use the font.
**********************************************************************
* *
* LQCHAR and its documentation are (c)1988-90 Eric Meyer, *
* all rights reserved. They may be freely distributed, but not *
* modified or sold for profit without my written consent. *
* (Voluntary contributions are welcome!) The user takes full *
* responsibility for any damages resulting from the use of this *
* program. *
* *
* Eric Meyer *
* 401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305] *
* Norman, OK 73071 USA *
* *
**********************************************************************
INTRODUCTION
The ability of many dot matrix printers to accept downloaded fonts makes
them far more versatile than formed-character (daisy wheel) printers. You can
change fonts in the middle of printing without touching your printer, and you
can design any characters you like. (Combined with the font definition
ability of the EGA/VGA adapter, this allows word processing in a wide variety
of typefaces, using ordinary off-the-shelf software. Programs for this
purpose include an excellent freeware screen font editor called CHET.ARC, from
Mylex Corp., and also a PC Magazine utility called FONTEDIT.)
ABOUT YOUR PRINTER...
LQCHAR should work with any 24-pin Epson LQ compatible printer... But no
manual I've ever seen describes the design and use of downloaded fonts in a
comprehensible fashion, and I suspect that some details may vary from one
printer to another. I have used it on an Alps ALQ200, and verified that it
works on genuine Epsons as well.
NOTE: if your printer is another Epson "compatible", it's possible that
downloaded fonts: * aren't supported;
* require extra options (eg memory);
* aren't implemented in a 100% compatible way.
First let's clear up some terminology:
QUALITY - What you select with the ESC-x command (Draft, LQ, etc).
FONT - A set of characters designed for a given print quality.
FONT TYPE - Whether the font includes undefined characters (see below).
PITCH - Spacing of a given font (Pica, Elite, etc).
PROPORTIONAL - This is a variety of PITCH, not of FONT!
LQCHAR designs fonts in either Draft or Letter Quality (LQ) mode. Some
printers (such as the Alps) have a third print mode, "High density", that
falls in between; LQCHAR does not support this mode. Some printers have a
third "Proportional" mode with an even wider dot pattern; LQCHAR does not
support this either. However, an LQ font designed with LQCHAR can be declared
proportionally spaced! (Don't get confused between the two.)
-------------------------- CREATING LQC FILES ------------------------------
TYPE: A>lqchar FONTNAME
FONTNAME: a 1 to 8 character name for the font. Do not specify the ".TYP" of
the file; LQCHAR will automatically make it ".LQC".
* A disk or directory may precede the fontname.
* An option may follow the fontname:
NO option - EDIT the font file
/P - send it to the PRINTER
/U - send to the printer and start USING it
You can get this help message onscreen by typing simply "LQCHAR".
If you are starting a new font from scratch, you will have to declare it
to be either Draft or Letter quality (LQ); and you will start out with every
character blank. I have included two files called DRAFT.LQC and LETTER.LQC,
containing a full plain ASCII font for each print quality. These are often a
good point of departure for designing modified fonts. You can use them to get
a feel for the program, simply by typing:
A>lqchar draft OR A>lqchar letter
Once you are in LQCHAR, you will see a "box" on the left side of the
screen, in which each character will appear, dot by dot. The character matrix
is always 24 dot rows high; its width varies according to the print quality: 9
dot columns for Draft, 29 for Letter. (Note: in Draft mode LQCHAR spreads out
each dot by a factor of 3 so as not unduly to distort the aspect ratio.)
Background shading indicates the vertical boundaries of a normal capital
letter. The rows above are available for accents, etc; those below, for
lowercase descenders, etc.
To the right you will see a header with general information about the
font, and the cursor on a prompt that says "Character". Below will appear a
list of characters, with those that are already defined highlighted, for
reference. At this point you can do a variety of things.
MODIFYING THE ENTIRE FONT
First, several commands can be used to modify the whole font in some way:
<F1> - Change PRINT QUALITY between Draft and Letter
<F2> - Change FONT TYPE between full and partial
<F3> - Change CHARACTER PITCH: pica, elite, or proportional
<ESC> - EXIT to Save Menu
When you use the <F1-F3> commands, you will see the information in the header
change appropriately. Nothing is changed on disk until you Save the font.
PRINT QUALITY: It is possible (with the <F1> key) to expand a Draft font
into a sort of skeleton LQ font, or to compress an LQ font into a Draft font.
In the first case, each character is expanded to fit the larger LQ pattern,
leaving blank columns in between; you can enhance and fill in the gaps however
you like. In the second case, two rows out of every three are deleted; much
detail will be lost, so retouching will again be necessary.
Since changing print quality is a drastic modification which, if invoked
accidentally, could lose valuable data, LQCHAR prompts for confirmation (Y/N)
first.
FONT TYPE: The font can be stored as Full or Partial (selected with the
<F2> key). The only difference concerns characters that you have NOT defined:
in a Full font, they simply won't print. In a Partial font, the printer's
resident font will "show through" any gaps; so a Partial font is an easy way
to modify just a few characters.
PITCH: The font can be stored as Pica, Elite, or Proportional (selected
with the <F3> key). This choice affects only the spacing between characters,
not the size of the characters themselves: Pica prints 10 characters per inch
(cpi), Elite prints a more compact 12 cpi, and Proportional is also about 12
cpi but will vary according to the actual width of the characters. (Some
printers can vary the pitch of a downloaded font, and will not require the use
of this command. See MORE ABOUT DOWNLOADED FONTS below.)
THE DOS MENU
When you are finished modifying the font, pressing <ESC> takes you to the
DOS MENU, which presents several choices:
<P>= PRINT THE FONT. The entire range of characters will be printed,
with the standard font above (for comparison) and your new font below.
(Your printer must be online.)
<C>= CHANGE THE NAME of the font before saving it to a disk file.
<S>= SAVE the font to disk, then continue editing.
<L>= LOAD A NEW FONT to work on.
<E>= EXIT to DOS, SAVING the font to disk first.
<Q>= QUIT to DOS, without saving the font to disk.
Pressing <ESC> at the DOS MENU will return you to editing the font.
--------------------------- DESIGNING CHARACTERS ---------------------------
To examine and modify individual characters, you can press:
ARROW KEYS - Display previous/next character
Any character - Display that character
<RETURN> - Edit the character shown
Select the standard character whose ASCII code corresponds to that of the new
character you wish to create. You may choose any character from hex value 21
to 7E (33 to 126 decimal, "!" to "~"). If you pick a previously defined
character, you will be modifying it. For example, if you've loaded DRAFT.LQC,
and type "A", you should see that character in the box; if you hit <RETURN>,
you will be editing that character.
Note that your cursor is now inside the character matrix. You can move
it around with your arrow keys. The spacebar or keypad [5] key will toggle
the pin you are pointing to ON and OFF. Thus you can build up the pattern of
dots that will form your character.
There are many other special commands available in this mode, to make
modifying characters easier; a reminder of them is visible to the right for
reference during editing. These are:
<R,L,U,D> move the whole pattern RIGHT, LEFT, UP, or DOWN.
<C> COPY the pattern from another defined character.
<O> copy pattern from character in OTHER font file.
<B> BLANK the whole pattern out to start over.
<P> PREVIEW a character in hi-res graphics. (EGA only!)
<F1,F2> move current COLUMN up, down.
<F3,F4> move current ROW left, right.
<F5,F6> insert, delete a COLUMN.
<F7,F8> insert, delete a ROW.
<F9,F0> ROTATE left, right.
NOTES: The OTHER command can be used to copy characters from another LQC
font file (you will be asked for the font name). This works with any other
font, regardless of print quality, pitch, or font type. (On limitations of
Draft/LQ conversion, see above.)
The PREVIEW command works ONLY on an EGA adapter. It shows you a more
realistic, miniature picture of the present character, using higher resolution
graphics. Press <P> again or <ESC> to remove this and continue editing.
Of the remaining commands, only "rotate" is a bit tricky: this changes
the overall slant of a character. Be sure the character isn't too wide, and
is roughly centered in the box, or parts of it will get truncated. Note that
the rotation works in increments of 2 rows; thus moving the character up or
down one row first can give a slightly different effect. Also, if you're
going to rotate more than once, you should move the character up or down once
each time in between to get the smoothest effect. (Rotation works best on LQ
characters; its effects are a bit drastic for Draft mode.)
When done, you can press either:
<RETURN> - SAVE the character as modified
or <ESC> - QUIT without saving changes
Upon saving, automatic centering causes the pattern to move to the middle of
the box. Note that you will not be able to save a definition that violates
the following rule:
---> No two adjacent pins in any ROW may be ON! <---
This is a physical limitation of the printhead: the pins can't fire fast
enough to print twice in adjacent columns. You could send such a character
definition to the printer, but the second dot wouldn't print as intended, so
LQCHAR warns you beforehand to avoid mistakes.
---------------------- PRINTING WITH DOWNLOADED FONTS ----------------------
The fonts designed with LQCHAR should have a filetype of ".LQC", for
ready identification. Typically they range in size from 1k to 5k, depending
on how many characters are defined (also, Partial or LQ fonts are larger than
Full or Draft fonts). They must be loaded into your printer's font memory in
order to be used. This is done with the "/P" option:
A>lqchar fontname /p
This command can be given, for example, before you enter your word processor,
or (hopefully) from some kind of DOS gateway within it. (Be sure your printer
is online.) The font is now ready for use. In order for this to work, your
software MUST be installed to give the printer commands to switch to the
downloaded font when required. For example, in WordStar 4, you might have
your print controls set up so that ^PA enables the downloaded (alternate)
font, and ^PN goes back to the normal font. Thus you can alternate between two
completely different fonts.
If you don't have LQCHAR handy, you can also use the ordinary DOS COPY
command to do this. You will have to specify the filetype though; and you
should use the /B option to make sure the LQC file is treated as binary, not
character, data:
A>copy fontname.LQC prn /b
Alternatively, you may want to be using the downloaded font alone, rather
than switching back and forth between it and the normal font. (This is how
you will typically use a Partial font.) In this case, you want the font to
take effect immediately upon loading. Use the "/U" option instead:
A>lqchar fontname /u
After loading the font, LQCHAR will enable it, so that all subsequent printing
will be using the downloaded font. Your word processor doesn't need to know a
thing about it. In order for this to work, your software MUST NOT use any
printer commands to change the font after you've run LQCHAR. (Check your
"printer initialization sequence" for commands that reset the printer, select
font or print quality, etc.)
MORE ABOUT DOWNLOADED FONTS:
In any event, you will have to be careful that your software does not
send commands to the printer that will cancel the font loaded with LQCHAR.
This may include certain "global reset" commands that programs often use to
initialize the printer. If you can't get a downloaded font to work, try
reloading it with the "/U" option, then printing something with a simple DOS
command like "COPY filename PRN". If this does work, your problem is with the
printer initialization in your software; see your manual for how to modify it.
Your printer can keep only one downloaded font in memory at once; if you
load a second font it will replace the first. After using LQCHAR, you can
change between Draft and Letter quality, but of course the printer's resident
font will be used in the other mode.
Downloaded fonts do function a bit differently than the printer's
resident font. They should respond nicely to all the usual enhancements:
expanded, compressed, emphasized, italics etc. (This may depend on your
printer.)
Your printer may or may not allow printer commands to vary the pitch of a
downloaded font with ESC sequences or panel switches. (The Alps does not; I
am told that some Epsons do.) If it does, you can leave LQCHAR set to "pica
pitch" and ignore the "pitch" command <F3>. If not, your choice with the <F3>
key determines the pitch. (You can always create another copy of an LQC file
in a different pitch.)
But there is one FIRM limitation: True super/subscripts will NOT work,
as these miniature characters have to be defined separately, on an 18-pin high
matrix, and LQCHAR doesn't do this. If you need these, you may be able to
install your software to do subscripting with platen rolls instead.
-------------------------- TECHNICAL INFORMATION ---------------------------
LQC FILE FORMAT:
The output file for a full font consists of an ESC sequence to set the
print quality (draft/LQ) and proportional print (on/off), then a long ESC
sequence defining every ASCII character from hex 20 to 7E. (LQCHAR defines
20H as space, automatically.) For a partial font, the file instead contains
the ESC sequence to copy the resident font, then a separate ESC sequence for
each defined character individually.
This means that if you don't have LQCHAR handy, you can simply load LQC
fonts with the DOS COPY command: they contain nothing but standard Epson ESC
sequences. However -- there too many details about the way the character
definitions must be formatted to explain here. I do NOT recommend that you
try to convert font data from other sources into LQC files for use with
LQCHAR. There are just too many details, and LQCHAR might crash if its data
isn't in the expected format.
LQCHAR can, however, read LQC files created by versions prior to 1.22
(which lack the proportional code in the leadin string), and even those
created by the earlier CP/M version of the program (LQCHAR 1.1, 8/87).
SCREEN COLORS:
The default screen colors in LQCHAR are chosen for visibility on the
widest variety of display adapters. However, if you prefer to change the
colors using DEBUG or a similar utility to modify LQCHAR.COM, you may do so.
There are 5 distinct colors, beginning at address 0102h:
ADDR DEFAULT PURPOSE
0102 07 (white) Normal video
0103 08 (grey) Dim video (undefined/unavailable items)
0104 0F (bright) Bright video /These are all used \
0105 70 (black on white) Inverse video < for highlighted text>
0106 7F (bright on white) Hilight video \and box shading /
VERSION HISTORY:
LQCHAR 1.0 (6/88) was developed from my earlier Z80 CP/M program of the
same name (version 1.1, 8/87), with a number of added features.
1.1 (1/89) - adds hi-res preview for EGA systems; small improvements.
1.2 (4/89) - more DOS functions; LQ to Draft conversion; copy character
from another font; print font; small improvements.
1.21 (5/89) - fixed bug in <O>ther font function; small improvements.
Proportional spacing of narrow characters improved.
1.22 (10/89) - correctly recognizes more non-EGA systems; puts printer
in proportional mode for prop. fonts. (Note: to convert
existing LQC files, you must load and resave them.)
1.23 (02/90) - fixed bugs in reading older fonts, writing Partial fonts;
included more font files.
This will be the LAST RELEASE of this program.
------------------------------------[end]-------------------------------------
PI.DOC
PI.DOC
------
Instructions for PI.COM
Print Interceptor 1.2 (4/6/90)
(c)1988-90 E. Meyer
PI (Print Interceptor) is a printer utility for all MSDOS systems
(requires MS/PCDOS 2.x or higher). When run, PI.COM becomes a memory resident
program (TSR) that translates printer output according to a table that can be
changed at will. Any outgoing ASCII code can be redefined to another code, or
string of codes, to be sent to your printer. This is a very general approach,
with many possible applications, including:
* IBM extended (foreign) characters can be emulated on LQ printers
* Single-character "Macros" can produce predefined strings
* The same file can print differently on different printers
* Printer output can be entirely suppressed for testing software
PI allows you to change the current definitions in two ways: with a text
file full of definitions that you create with an editor; or with ESC code
sequences that can be sent from other programs.
1. INSTALLING PI
The PI.COM module, once installed, remains in memory until your computer
is reset. There are two ways to install it. First you may simply type:
A>pi
This loads the module, but it is INACTIVE, and no redefinitions are in effect.
You would have to define some characters, then make PI active, before printer
output would be affected. (See below for how to do this.)
Second, you may invoke PI with the name of a definition file:
A>pi filename
This loads the module, makes it ACTIVE, and implements any redefinitions in
the file. (See below for the required file format.) This command may be
repeated later to install a replacement set of definitions.
NOTE: the printer must be online when loading definitions.
2. DEFINITION FILES
You can quickly establish a set of redefinitions for use with PI, using
any text editor. Create a simple ASCII text file (say, MY.DEF), which you
will be loading with PI (eg, A>pi my.def).
The file may contain any number of statements like this:
128='C',8,','; '@'=27,'(s0S'; ...
Numbers are always decimal; literal characters or strings are enclosed in
single quotes; commas separate items in a definition, a semicolon ends each
definition; blank space and carriage returns are ignored. PI interprets the
example shown as a request to define character 128 as the three-byte sequence
"C", backspace, comma; character "@" as Escape, "(s0S"; and so on for each
such statement in the file. Any characters not mentioned will ordinarily
print as themselves. Finally, PI will be made ACTIVE, enabling these
definitions for use.
The effect of the first example is to allow the IBM character capital-C-
sedilla to print as capital-C, backspace, comma, which is a good facsimile on
letter quality printers. Of course, definitions can be a single byte:
"128=67;" would define it as capital-C alone. And definitions can be empty:
"128=;" would define it as nothing, that is, a non-printing character.
Each definition may be up to 32 bytes long, and PI has 6K (about 6000)
bytes available for all definitions.
3. CONTROLLING PI
If you just type "PI" with no arguments, you will be informed of the
current status (whether PI is active, and whether print output is enabled).
There is also a set of commands to change status:
A>pi /a Make PI ACTIVE
A>pi /i Make PI INACTIVE
A>pi /d DISABLE print output
A>pi /e ENABLE print output
The "/D" command temporarily disables all output to the printer. Your
software can operate as usual, thinking it's printing; but nothing will
happen, in fact there need not even be a printer present. The current
definitions are not affected.
4. PROGRAMMING PI
You may never need to do anything further to control PI. However, if you
do find a need, or become interested, PI responds to a set of ESC-commands,
just like those that control your printer. You can install these commands in
your word processor's printer controls section; put a set of them in a disk
file to be COPYed to the printer for use; or use them in a program of your
own, for example, to read in translation tables in some format other than that
expected by PI.COM itself.
When PI is "active", it is translating printer output according to any
currently installed definitions. When it is "inactive", all output goes
direct to the printer without translation. Keep these two states in mind:
making PI inactive and defining every character as itself are NOT the same.
Once again, after PI.COM is installed, these codes must be sent as
PRINTER OUTPUT to modify its behavior. Hexadecimal notation is used
throughout here; decimal values are often shown in parentheses. Hex 1B is the
ESCape code (27 decimal).
INACTIVATE PI. 1B FF 30 (27,255,48)
This sequence temporarily "turns PI off", if you ever need a
quick way to suspend translation.
ACTIVATE PI. 1B FF 31 (27,255,49)
This sequence "turns PI on", enabling its translation of
outgoing printer data according to any installed definitions.
SET STANDARD ASCII. 1B FF 32 (27,255,50)
This sequence defines every character as itself; useful as a
starting point for further modifications.
MASK PARITY. 1B FF 33 (27,255,51)
This sequence defines ASCII 00-7F (0-127) as themselves, and
ASCII 80-FF (128-255) as 00-7F (0-127) also. Effectively, this
would "mask off" the high, or parity, bit on outgoing data.
ERASE DEFINITIONS. 1B FF 34 (27,255,52)
This sequence wipes out all ASCII codes, defining each as a
null string. Only subsequently redefined codes will print.
REDEFINE CODE. 1B FE aa nn b1 b2... (27,254,aa,nn,b1...)
This sequence redefines any ASCII code "aa", for printing
purposes, as a string of "nn" bytes, "b1 b2...".
5. ABOUT CONFLICTS
PI itself uses just two uncommon ESC codes, which probably will not
conflict directly with anything in your printer's command set. A more subtle
problem is that PI might interfere with your use of printer ESC codes by
attempting to translate them! PI tries to avoid this: it will never translate
an ESC, nor a byte preceded by an ESC, so that, for example, if you use an ESC-
E command it will not be affected by any translation of the character "E".
But many printer sequences are longer than two bytes, and in these cases PI
can't distinguish commands from data.
To illustrate the problem, suppose you have been using the printer
command ESC-r-nn, "1B 72 80" (27,114,128) to set the right margin to absolute
column 128. If this occurs while PI is ACTIVE, with the redefinition in the
example above, that final "128" is going to turn into "67,8,44" or whatever,
resulting in setting a margin at column 67, plus some garbage. This is why
you (may?) need to ensure that PI is INACTIVE when (some?) printer commands
are being sent. There are two possible approaches.
THE FAST AND LOOSE METHOD: in general, leave PI ACTIVE and don't worry;
you may never see a problem. But whenever you see that your printer isn't
being properly set up, or spot a particular command that you know will cause
trouble (because it contains ASCII codes that you have redefined), make sure
it is "bracketed" somehow by commands to turn off translation:
1B FF 30 ;make PI INACTIVE
1B 72 80 ;now set the margin correctly
1B FF 31 ;make PI ACTIVE again
Often this approach will be adequate, particularly if you seldom redefine any
characters in the normal ASCII range 00-7F.
THE CAUTIOUS METHOD: in general, make PI INACTIVE. But in every text
file you are going to print, embed the PI ON command (1B FF 31) at the
beginning, and PI OFF (1B FF 30) at the end.
TECHNICAL NOTES
PI is a replacement interrupt handler. It will intercept all normal
printer output from programs, but not output generated by use of redirection
or the PRN device in DOS commands.
Because PI is a Terminate and Stay Resident (TSR) utility, once installed
it cannot be removed without a reset. You should not install PI from within a
DOS shell while executing another program, as this will corrupt the DOS memory
allocations; other uses of PI.COM (reading files, etc) cause no problems in
this situation.
HISTORY
PI 1.0-1.1 (3/88) Original release
1.2 (4/90) Added 'literal quote' option for def. file
PI and its documentation are (c)1988-90 E.Meyer, all rights reserved.
They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit without my
written consent. The user takes full responsibility for any damages resulting
from the use of this program.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
QKRP.DOC
QKRP.DOC
------------
Instructions for QKRP.COM
version 1.2 (11/7/89)
(c)1989 E. Meyer
Quick Key Repeat requires: IBM PC/XT, DOS 2.x or above.
QKRP is a speedup program for the original IBM PC/XT keyboard. Enhanced
(AT) keyboards have a programmable key repeat rate; original PC's don't, so
QKRP actually modifies the way the BIOS handles incoming keystrokes. It
accelerates key repeat action, yet stops instantly when the key is released.
Furthermore, the delay before repeat action begins can be adjusted.
QKRP roughly doubles the key auto-repeat rate on an IBM PC. This makes
moving the cursor, as well as typing repeated characters, faster and easier.
At the same time, it solves a problem in the PC BIOS: when you hold down a
key, repeat keystrokes are stored in the type-ahead buffer, whether or not
your software is ready for them yet. Then an annoying "overshoot" effect
occurs as, even after you've released the key, your software is still reading
these keystrokes from the buffer. QKRP avoids this, by engaging auto-repeat
only when the typeahead buffer is empty.
QKRP does not interfere with normal keyboard operation, for example the
use of the Alt and numeric keys to enter graphic characters. However, it will
only work on 100% PC compatible computers, and might conflict with other TSR
(memory resident) software. Test it out before installing it in your bootup
procedure.
USING QKRP
You can install QKRP from the DOS command line. However, since it should
normally be installed before any other TSRs that monitor keyboard interrupts,
it's best to place it early in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Type:
> QKRP I to "I"nstall.
Once QKRP is installed, you can adjust the repeat delay setting (the
time, after pressing a key, before auto repeat begins) at will, simply by
typing:
> QKRP 1..5 for delay from 1 (shortest) to 5 (longest).
A value of "3" is the default, for a moderate delay. Different settings
will suit different typists; experiment to find out which you like. If you
prefer a different value, you can specify this at the time of installation:
> QKRP I 2 to "I"nstall with moderately short delay.
Note: you may include option slashes if desired, eg: > QKRP /I /2.
QKRP consumes only about 400 bytes of memory. It should not be installed
more than once, as this wastes memory and complicates the keyboard interrupts.
Consequently, QKRP tries to detect the fact that it is already resident; if
so, it will accept a command to change the delay setting, but will refuse to
install itself again.
If you simply type "QKRP", with no arguments, the program will tell you
whether it is installed.
Note: QKRP cannot tell that it is already memory resident if another
keyboard-intercepting TSR has been loaded since. In this situation you can no
longer vary the delay setting. (Also, an installation command would result in
a duplicate installation, which should be avoided.)
HISTORY
QKRP is based upon an elegant little TSR program called "HOTKEY version
1.10", of January 1987. This seems to have been the last release of the
program, which unfortunately was circulated anonymously.
v1.2 (11/89) - Corrected DOS 1.x program exit; added variable
delay feature, multiple installation prevention.
QKRP and its documentation are (c)1989 Eric Meyer, all rights reserved.
They may be freely distributed, but not modified or sold for profit without my
written consent. (Voluntary contributions are welcome.) The user takes full
responsibility for any damages resulting from the use of this program. Please
report any problems encountered.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
VDE.DOC
VDE.DOC
-------
Instructions for Video Display Editor:
VDE 1.52 (04/03/90)
(c)1987-90, E. Meyer
Requires: Any 80x86 computer; MS/PCDOS 2.x or above.
==============================================================================
VDE is a small, fast, powerful text editor offering:
* easy menu-bar operation OR WordStar command set
* multiple files, windows, cut and paste
* block copy, move, delete, read, write, zoom
* find/replace, undo deletions, automatic save
* keystroke macros with full programming ability
* utilities to browse disk files, split files, compare files,
count words, number lists automatically
* full DOS access: subdirectories, DOS commands, shell
* programmable function keys and many other user configurable options
* ability to run on NON-IBM compatibles, and in limited space
But VDE is also an efficient small word processor, with:
* wordwrap, reformat, left and right margins, variable tabs
* center, flush right, proportional spacing
* customizable printer drivers for special effects (bold, underline, etc)
* printing options: headers, pagination, selective print, print to file
* multiple file formats (plain ASCII, WordStar, WordPerfect, XyWrite)
VDE's versatility is due to its combination of the most important word
processing features with the simplicity of an editor designed to work with
plain text files, making it an efficient tool for many different tasks. VDE's
pure ASCII mode makes it an ideal choice for a DOS file editor, or a practical
editor to run from a shell within telecom, database, file maintenance,
programming, and other application software. Yet its full formatting and
printing features also make VDE a highly WordStar-compatible word processor.
VDE is very fast; it edits files entirely in memory, and displays text
directly to video RAM (on IBM PCs). Speed is a factor that commercial
programs often overlook; finding a string near the end of a 60k non-document
file takes WordStar 4 about 20 seconds [8 MHz 8088], while VDE does it in half
a second. When you are free to move around in your file with this speed, you
can do more of your work instantly on screen, and less on paper.
VDE is also very small. Taking only about 45k of disk space, and running
in as little as 90 to 140k of RAM, it is well suited to portable computers and
other applications with limited memory or disk space.
SOURCES
Please note that copies of VDE on disk can NOT be ordered directly from
the author, except for purchasers of site licenses.
Primary distribution points for VDE, as of October 1988, are:
(1) Glendale Littera QBBS - Glendale, CA (818)956-6164.
(2) On CompuServe, in download libraries (DL) of the IBMAPP forum.
VDE is updated regularly, and users with access to a modem can always find the
most recent release on these systems.
In addition, VDE is available on a wide variety of other remote systems,
and also on disk through several software libraries, including:
The Public Software Library (800)242-4775
P.O. Box 35705, Houston TX 77235. (ask for disk #1933)
Any use of VDE is governed by the Usage Policy detailed below.
=============================== USAGE POLICY ===============================
The VDE editor and its documentation are copyright (c)1987-90 Eric Meyer,
all rights reserved. They may not be circulated in any incomplete or modified
form, nor sold for profit, without written permission of the author. The use
or sale of VDE is subject to the following terms:
INDIVIDUAL USE: VDE may be freely used and shared with others; there is
---------- no required registration fee. (If you like VDE and find it
useful, please do consider sending a contribution!)
INSTITUTIONAL USE: Any corporation or institution wishing to use VDE in the
------------- course of its business must purchase a SITE LICENSE. A
standard license, allowing the use of VDE on up to 20
different computers, can be ordered for US $50.00; write
for terms concerning larger quantities. A disk containing
the latest release of VDE will be included at no additional
charge (specify 5.25" or 3.5").
COMMERCIAL SALE: Any software dealer or library may offer VDE for sale,
---- as long as the price charged for the disk containing VDE
does not exceed US $5.00. With this single exception, the
sale of VDE for profit, either alone or together with other
software or hardware, requires a licensing agreement provi-
ding for royalty payments. Please write for terms.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
DISCLAIMER: You undertake to use VDE at your own risk. The author
assumes no liability for damages of any kind resulting from your use of VDE.
"WordStar", "WordPerfect", "XyWrite" and "DesqView" are registered trademarks.
================================ CONTENTS ==================================
1. INTRODUCTION: Installation; Command line syntax, examples;
VDE operating modes (MenuBar, Command).
2. COMMAND SUMMARY: a complete brief listing of all commands:
MenuBar choices;
Ctrl, ^K (Block/File), ^Q (Quick), ^O (Onscreen), Alt, Esc.
3. EDITING COMMANDS, explained alphabetically by category:
Auto indent, Auto number, Auto save, Block commands, Deleting, Files,
Find/replace, Graphics, Header, Hyphenation, Information, Inserting, Line
spacing, Margins, Matching up files, Moving around, Multiple files,
Pagination, Place markers, Printer codes, Printer drivers, Printing,
Proportional spacing, Ruler line, Run command/shell, Save/exit, Screen
controls, Splitting files, Tabs, Time/date, Undelete, Upper/lower case,
Windows, Wordwrap & reformat.
4. GENERAL INFORMATION, alphabetically by category:
Compatibility (WordStar, WordPerfect, XyWrite), Directories, Error
messages, File modes, Memory, Prompts.
5. APPLICATION TIPS, alphabetically by topic:
DesqView, Foreign ASCII files, Programming, Redirecting I/O, Spelling
checkers, Structured languages, Transposing text.
[The following sections are in the companion file VINST.DOC.]
6. MACROS. Explanation and examples of:
Function keys, Key redefinition files, Macros, Macro keys, Macro
programming, Recording macros.
7. RUNNING VINSTALL. How to use VINST.COM to modify VDE.COM:
Installing for different computers, printers; user defaults and
options; macro and function key defaults.
[See the companion file VDE.UPD for version history and recent changes.]
============================= 1. INTRODUCTION ==============================
Most users will have an IBM compatible computer, and can begin using VDE
straightaway. Before long, though, you should use the VINSTALL program to
customize the display and other options to your tastes. (Once you have done
this, the introductory information screen in VDE will disappear.)
However, if your computer is not 100% IBM-compatible, you should run
VINSTALL immediately, and perform the computer installation before using VDE.
(In non-IBM mode, VDE will run on any MSDOS system with an ANSI.SYS driver.)
VDE operates by default in Command mode. If you want to get started
using the simplified menu system, you must change this with VINSTALL. You
will eventually discover the settings you prefer for the many other options
and defaults, as you become more familiar with VDE. [See VINST.DOC for
details. Comments below in brackets "[]" point out various uses of VINSTALL.]
RUNNING VDE
You can just type "VDE", with no arguments; or, you may specify a list of
up to 8 filenames. Any filename may include a DOS directory, and/or be
followed by a mode option. A key definition file may also be specified at the
end of the command line, following a semicolon ";". All spaces are ignored.
SYNTAX: note "{}" = optional
C>vde {filename} {/m} {, filename2 {/m}} {,...} {;name.VDK} {;name.VDF}
EXAMPLES: C>vde C>vde article.doc/w;ws4.vdf
C>vde sample.fil C>vde b:myfile,myfile.bak
C>vde a:summary,\recs\sep85 C>vde prog.doc/a,prog.asm/n,errors
"filename" - file to edit. If no name is given, you begin a new
(untitled) file. Multiple names are separated by commas; the previous
item's directory carries over to the next item, unless this begins
with a drive or root "\". (In the example above, MYFILE.BAK is on B:.)
"/m" or " m" - optional choice of file modes: "m" can be "A"SCII,
"W"ordstar, WordStar "5", Word"P"erfect, or "X"yWrite document; or
"N"ondocument. Normally defaults to "/A". Must be separated from
filename by a space and/or a slash. See FILE MODES.
"+name.VDK (or VDF)" - optional macro and/or function key definition
file to load. See KEY DEFINITION FILES.
VDE can edit different types of files: non-documents, such as program
source code; or documents with formatted text, in either pure ASCII or formats
compatible with WordStar, WordPerfect, XyWrite, and other word processors.
Maximum file size is roughly 80k; if an existing file is too large to edit
with VDE, divide it up (see SPLITTING FILES).
VDE gives you a certain amount of information at the top of the screen
(for details see HEADER, RULER). At times, further information may be
provided by various menus or error messages; press [Esc] or [Space] to remove
these. Any input prompts (like "New value:") may be cancelled by typing ^U.
Hint: If you need on-line help while learning to use VDE, it's an
excellent idea to load VDE.DOC as a second file while you work. Then just
switch to it and search for the help you need (for example, the word "margin").
OPERATING MODES
VDE has two distinct modes of operation:
(1) MENU-BAR mode. (2) COMMAND mode.
If you see the message "Esc=MenuBar" at the right end of the header line, you
are in MenuBar mode. If this area is blank, you are in command mode.
To switch into MenuBar mode from command mode, type Esc,?; to switch to
command mode from MenuBar mode, select {Misc:Command mode} (Esc,M,C).
(1) If you are new to word processing, you may find the MenuBar mode
easiest. Just press the [Esc] key, and a series of menu bars will guide you
to the function you need: type a highlighted letter to select from each menu.
Most (though not all) of VDE's features are available in this mode. In the
text below, MenuBar commands will be referred to in the following manner:
{stYle:Underline}
This designates selecting st"Y"le, then "U"nderline from the menu bar sequence
(you actually type Esc,Y,U).
(2) Control-key commands (WordStar compatible), although they do need to
be memorized, are more concise, and give access to the full range of VDE
features, including powerful macros. If you're familiar with the popular
WordStar command set already, you can probably start right in editing files
with VDE. It uses simple one- or two-key combinations, like:
Ctrl-Q F
These are easily found by the touch typist without distraction, and probably
account for the continuing popularity of WordStar, which (despite being nearly
a decade old) is still widely used throughout the world.
Most of these commands in VDE are identical to those in WordStar, though
a few differ slightly. But VDE is more than just a WordStar "clone", and has
a number of extra Alt-key and Esc-key commands to invoke its additional
features, such as multi-file editing.
=========================== 2. COMMAND SUMMARY =============================
Explanation of Keys: IBM PC special keys are indicated in [brackets],
including arrows [^,v,<,>] for the cursor keys. ([+] and [-] refer to the
keypad +,- keys only.) "Esc" means the Escape key, [Esc]; "Esc1" means
[Esc],1. "Alt" indicates holding down the [Alt] key: "AltD" means [Alt]+D.
"^" indicates holding down the [Ctrl] key: "^K" means [Ctrl]+K. Many commands
require two-key sequences, eg ^QR = [Ctrl]+Q,R. The prefix (^Q) displays in
the header, and can be canceled by pressing Esc or Space.
Synonyms: If your keyboard lacks any of the IBM PC keys, synonyms are
always available (eg, ^R for [PgUp]). If you have no [Alt] key, you can still
access the Alt-commands with a double-Esc prefix: Esc,Esc,X = AltX. (This
also allows use of VDE while Alt-keys have been redefined with TSR utilities.)
UNIVERSAL KEYS
The following keys are active in either operating mode. (Asterisks "*"
mark features unique to VDE.)
[Ret] = Carriage Return (also known as [Enter], CR, or ^M).
New line. In documents, marks a paragraph end.
[BkSp] or [<-] = BackSpace (also known as BS or ^H). [May delete.]
[Tab] = Hard Tab mode: enter Tab. Variable Tab mode: move to next stop.
* Shft[Tab] = backward variable Tab: move to previous stop.
[Del] = delete character to the left. [May instead delete right.]
* ^[Del] = delete character in opposite direction from [Del].
[Ins] = toggle Insert mode on and off.
[^], [v], [>], [<] (IBM cursor keys).
^[>] = move to start of next word right.
^[<] = move to start of previous word (left).
[-] = scroll back one line.
[+] = scroll forward one line.
[PgUp] = scroll back one screen.
[PgDn] = scroll forward one screen.
* ^[PgUp] = scroll both files back a screen (in split screen mode).
* ^[PgDn] = scroll both files forward (").
[Home] = go to top of screen. [Home, End keys can also be set to move
[End] = go to bottom of screen. to beginning, end of line instead.]
^[Home] = move to top of file.
^[End] = move to end of file.
MENU-BAR MODE
("Esc=MenuBar" shows at upper right)
Press [Esc] to call up the main menu bar; select an option by typing the
capitalized, highlighted letter. For example, the main menu bar reads:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Delete moVe Text stYle Set sCreen Misc Print Block File Exit
----------------------------------------------------------------------
If you wanted to underline text, you would type "Y" for stYle, on which you
would see a new menu bar listing Underline, Bold... and so on. You can type
[Esc] again, to back up one menu, or exit.
The entire MenuBar set, for your reference, appears below. For further
explanation of commands, look them up below under their command mode
equivalents, given in the second column.
{Delete: del Line} ^Y {Misc: insert Time} AltT
to line Start} ^Q[Del] Date} AltD
End} ^QY file Info} ^KI
del to Char} ^QT about VDE} AltI
del Block} ^KY Command mode} Esc?
Undelete} ^U
{Print: overstrike Char} ^PH
{moVe: Find} ^QF Line} ^PM
Replace} ^QA Formfeed} ^PL
rEpeat f/r} ^L Tab} ^PI
Overview bar} AltO Graphic} AltG
place Set} ^PZ Driver} AltV
Go} ^QP Print file} ^KP
{Text: rUler} ^OT {Block: Begin} ^KB
set mrgn L} ^OL End} ^KK
R} ^OR Unmark} ^KU
Mrgn rel} ^OX Copy} ^KC
Center} ^OC Move} ^KV
Flush} ^OF cuT} AltC
rEform} ^B Paste} AltP
Autoindent} ^OA Write} ^KW
Zoom} ^KZ
{stYle: Underline} ^PS
Bold} ^PB {File: rEname work} ^KN
Doublestrike} ^PD Dir} ^KF
Italic} ^PY Read in} ^KR
Subscript} ^PV Load new} ^KL
suPerscript} ^PT Add file} AltL
Next file} AltN
{Set: tab Set} ^OI Prev} AltB
Clr} ^ON
Varitab} ^OV {Exit: Save to disk} ^KS
Double spc} ^OS eXit w/save} ^KX
Prop spc} ^OJ Quit w/o save} ^KQ
Hyphens} ^OH Run DOS command} AltR
pg Length} ^OP
{sCreen: make Top} ^OE
Window} AltW
Other win} AltF
Header} ^OQ
Blank} ^OZ
Preview} ^OD
Ega:43} AltE
Ati:132} AltA
COMMAND MODE
(Right end of header is blank)
Many commands are identical to those in WordStar. Equal signs ("=") mark
those that differ significantly from their WordStar equivalents. (See
COMPATIBILITY, below.) Asterisks ("*") mark additional commands unique to VDE.
HELP: ^J = display basic help menu
(for Alt, Esc, ^K, ^O, ^P, ^Q commands, press A,E,K,O,P,Q next)
I. CONTROL KEYS: single keystroke commands.
WordStar arrow-key diamond:
^E = up. ^D = right. ^F = move to start of next word.
^X = down. ^S = left. ^A = to start of previous word.
^W = scroll back one line. ^R = scroll back one screen.
^Z = scroll forward one line. ^C = scroll forward one screen.
^G = delete character to right. ^Y = delete current line.
^T = delete word to right.
^U = undo last deletion (character, word, line, or block).
^V = toggle Insert mode on/off. ^N = insert [Ret] (break line).
* ^] = toggle Word Insert on/off. ^P = insert control code.
* ^_ = insert a space. ^PZ = insert place mark.
* ^P# = insert numbering marker.
* ^^ = toggle case (upper/lower) of character at cursor.
^B = reformat paragraph. ^L = repeat last find/replace.
II. FILE AND BLOCK COMMANDS: first press ^K, then the key shown.
* ^KI = file/memory Information. ^KP = Print the text.
* ^KF = disk File browser. ^KR = Read a file into text.
* ^KL = Load new file(s) to edit. ^KJ = delete a disk file.
* ^KN = reName current work. ^KS = Save to disk, and continue.
^KD = Done: save & load new file. ^KX = eXit: save & quit to DOS.
* ^KA = set Autosave interval. ^KQ = Quit to DOS, abandoning file.
^KB = mark start of a Block. ^KK = mark end of a block.
= ^KU = Unmark the block. ^KY = Delete the marked block.
^KC = Copy block at cursor location. ^KV = moVe block to cursor location.
* ^KZ = Zoom into the marked block. ^KW = Write block to a disk file.
* ^K# = automatically number items in the block.
* ^K",',^ = uppercase ("), lowercase ('), or switch case (^) of block text.
III. QUICK COMMANDS: first press ^Q, then the key shown.
^QS or [<] = go to start of line. ^QE or [^] = go to top of screen.
^QD or [>] = go to end of line. ^QX or [v] = go to bottom of screen.
^QR = go to top of file. ^QB = go to Block start marker.
^QC = go to end of file. ^QK = go to block end marker.
= ^QZ = go to next place marker.
^QI = go to specified page (document) or line (non-document).
^QP = go to Previous position in file (before last sizable move).
^QF = find a string. ^QA = find and replace a string.
^QY = delete from cursor to end of current line.
^Q[Del] = delete from cursor to beginning of current line.
^QT = delete up to specified character.
IV. ONSCREEN COMMANDS: first press ^O, then the key shown.
^OR = set Right margin. ^OX = toggle Margin Release on/off.
^OL = set Left margin. ^OC = Center current line.
* ^OF = make line Flush with right margin.
* ^OQ = header display on/off. ^OT = ruler line display on/off.
^OB = hard CR display on/off.
^OD = preview text with no control codes or hard CRs.
* ^OA = Auto indent on/off. ^OH = Hyphenation on/off.
* ^OJ = proportional spacing on/off. ^OS = double Spacing on/off.
^OV = tab mode hard/Variable.
^OI = set variable tab stop(s). ^ON = clear variable tab stop.
* ^OP = set page length (0 turns off pagination).
* ^OE or [^] = make current line top of screen.
* ^OW = split Window to show two different portions of the file.
* ^OZ = temporarily blank the entire screen.
V. VDE ALT-KEY COMMANDS: press Alt and the key shown.
(These commands also work with an Esc,Esc prefix instead)
* AltI = show VDE version Information.
* AltL = Load an additional file. AltB = move Back to previous file.
* AltW = split Window with 2 files. AltN = move forward to Next file.
* AltF = move to other File window.
* AltC,P = Cut and Paste a block from one place or file to another.
* AltM = Match up the two files on screen, showing differences.
* AltX = eXit (^KX) from all files. AltQ = Quit (^KQ) from all files.
* AltR = Run DOS command (or shell). AltS = Split up a large file.
= AltT,D = enter the current system Time or Date in the file.
* AltG = enter an IBM Graphics character into text.
* AltE = EGA screen (43/50 lines). AltA = ATI screen (132 columns).
* AltO = move with Overview bar. AltV = change printer driVers.
* AltU = Use (load or save) macro/function key definition file.
VI. VDE ESC-KEY COMMANDS: first press Esc, then the key shown.
* Esc[Tab] = variable tab forward (even in hard tab mode).
* Esc[<],[>] = shift screen horizontally 32 columns.
* Esc[^],[v] = shift screen vertically 1/4 screen.
Esc? = switch to MenuBar mode. (In macro mode: call up MenuBar.)
* Esc[ = define a macro string of commands.
* Esc" = record a macro from keystrokes.
* Esc] = store macro on alphanumeric key for later recall.
* Esc0...Z = use stored key. (In macro mode: jump label.)
* Esc!,=,~ = jumps and loops, used in macro programming (see MACROS).
* Esc(),+,- = counter, used in macro programming.
* Esc; = brief pause, during macro execution only.
* Esc& = chain to another macro.
========================== 3. EDITING COMMANDS =============================
AUTO INDENT (^OA) - This command toggles Auto Indent mode. When ON, wordwrap
or the [Ret] key will cause the cursor to advance to:
Any existing indentation on the line (if Insert mode is OFF); or,
The same indentation as the previous line (if Insert is ON).
Thus, once you set the indentation level, VDE will automatically maintain
it. (Indentation must NOT be done with hard tabs; it can be changed with
space, backspace, or with variable tabs, which insert spaces.) Useful as
a paragraph indent, or for outlines, structured program source code, etc.
AUTO NUMBER (^P#,^K#) - The ^P# command inserts a marker (a highlighted "#")
in the text to stand for a sequential number in a list, for example:
#. First item.
#. Second item...
You can then mark the list off as a block (see BLOCK COMMANDS), and use
the ^K# command: VDE will insert the numbers (1, 2, etc) in place of the
markers. You will be asked for the starting number; the default is of
course 1. (Once this is done the markers disappear. For frequently
revised lists, leave the "#" markers in the file on disk; use ^K# just
before printing, and do not save afterward.)
AUTO SAVE (^KA) - You can instruct VDE to save any changes you have made to
disk automatically, at regular intervals. This can ensure that you don't
lose too much work if you make a mistake, have a power outage, etc. The
^KA command lets you set the interval (1 to 255 minutes), or turn this
feature off entirely (0). Just press [Ret] to restore the default,
normally 0. [This can be changed with VINSTALL.]
Notes: will not work on untitled files; if editing multiple files,
will not activate until you return the cursor to a file.
BLOCK COMMANDS (^K-B,K,U,Z,Y,C,V,W,PB; ^QB,K) - A block of text is delimited
by two markers, which remain in memory until reset or deleted. ^KB marks
the beginning of the block; ^KK marks the end. ^KU unmarks the block,
removing any marker(s) set. The block operation commands all require a
block to be marked:
^KY goes to and deletes the block (including markers).
^KV moves the block (including markers) to the present cursor
location; ^KC simply copies it, leaving the original marked. Any place
markers present are not transferred. (The cursor cannot be IN the block.)
^KZ "zooms into" a block: the rest of the text is hidden, and the
block is temporarily treated as the entire file. This can serve a number
of purposes, from simply concentrating attention on one portion of a text,
to limiting the scope of many VDE commands (^QA, ^B, ^KI...) to that
portion. Use ^KZ again to zoom back out. In zoom mode: pagination is
off; you CAN use block operations, though any block markers will disappear
when zooming back out; if you save (^KS), VDE will automatically zoom back
out of the block first.
^KW writes the block text to a disk file; you will be asked for the
filename (and optional mode). Normally this will overwrite any pre-
existing file; however, you can choose instead to append the text at the
end of the file, by typing a "+" before the filename:
Write to file: GORT overwrites
+GORT appends
The ^QB command, from wherever you are in the file, moves the cursor
to the block start; ^QK moves to the block end.
^KPB (^KP with B option) prints the block text only. (See PRINTING.)
DELETING (^G,Del,^Del,^T,^Y; ^Q-Y,Del,T) - ^G or ^[Del] deletes the character
to the right of the cursor. Normally, as in WordStar, [Del] deletes the
one to the left, and [BkSp] (^H) moves left without deleting. [BkSp/Del
behavior can be changed.]
^T deletes an entire word to the right (up to 255 characters).
^Y deletes the entire current line. ^QY deletes the part of the
line to the right of the cursor; ^Q[Del] deletes the part to the left.
^QT deletes to the next occurrence of a specified character (up to
4095 characters). EXAMPLE: ^QT. (period) deletes to the end of the
sentence. Special case: ^QT^M ([Ret]) deletes to the next HARD CR, the
end of the paragraph.
Accidentally deleted text can be recovered (see UNDELETING).
FILES (^K-L,R,J,F) - ^KL loads new file(s) to edit, REPLACING the current one.
(If the file has been modified, you will be prompted to confirm this.)
You may enter either a single filename or a list delimited with commas
(see SYNTAX). If you want to load file(s) in ADDITION to the current
one, use AltL instead (see MULTIPLE FILES).
^KR reads in the contents of a disk file, inserting the text at the
current cursor position.
^KJ deletes any disk file you specify. (If you need more complex
file utilities, remember that you can run any DOS command with AltR.)
All these commands prompt for a specific filename. If you are
unsure, or would rather see a directory first, you can call up the file
browser by pressing [Ret] alone (for *.*), or typing a filename with
wildcards (eg \WORK\*.BAK). Note: if you want to begin an untitled file,
press ^J or ^[Ret], instead of [Ret], at the ^KL prompt.
The file browser can also be called directly with the ^KF command.
You may specify a directory and/or filename mask, and the files will be
alphabetically listed. (The default, if you just press [Ret], is the
current file's directory, and all files *.*.) Files display in uppercase,
directories in lowercase. If all items will not fit on the screen, you
will see "..." at the end to indicate that there were more. [Note:
display of COM/EXE files can be suppressed.]
To remove the display, press [Esc] or [Space]. But while it is on
screen, you may also select one of the files shown, by moving the cursor
to it with the arrow keys. Then, you can press:
[Ret] to load this file instead (see ^KL);
^L to load it as an additional file (see AltL);
^R to read it into the current file (see ^KR);
^Y to delete this file.
If the file you want to load/read requires a different file mode, you can
first press "/" and the correct mode letter (A,N,W,5,P,X, or space).
You can also select a directory, in which case you may press:
[Ret] to view its contents;
^Y to remove it (if empty).
FIND/REPLACE (^Q-F,A; ^L) - ^QF is the command to FIND a string. The
search normally proceeds from the cursor position forward, and is case
(upper/lower) sensitive. The character "^_" (Ctrl-underline) functions as
a wildcard: it will match any single character. Control codes, like ^M
for newline, can be included (with the ^P prefix where needed). Graphics
characters can be included using AltG. Examples:
Find: ^MLABEL matches "LABEL" at start of line only;
Find: 4^_^_01 matches "42201", "47401", etc;
Find: ^_ank matches "tank", "Bank", etc.
^QA is the REPLACE command. It asks for a string to find, as above,
then what to change it to. The cursor will be placed in succession on
each occurrence of the string, starting at the cursor location. (You will
see the prompt "Chg?" in the header.) To change this instance, press "Y";
anything else skips to the next. To change all further instances without
being asked, press "*". [Esc] cancels at any time.
There are several options for find/replace. After you enter the text
string(s), you will be prompted to enter any of the following:
"B" = search Backward through the file;
"U" = case insensitive search (ignore Upper/lower distinction);
"G" = search Globally (from start or end of file);
and further, for replacing:
"A" = Align (reform) paragraphs again after each replacement;
"N" = No query: replace all instances without asking.
If you don't want to be prompted for options, finish entry of the find
string (for ^QF) or replace string (for ^QA) by typing ^J instead of
[Ret]. (^[Ret] is also ^J on most keyboards.)
Notes: The "N" option is automatically assumed whenever ^QA is used
in a macro. [Uppercase can be set as your default; if so, specifying
"U" reverts to case sensitive search.]
^L repeats the last ^QF or ^QA command. For ^QA, you will be asked
whether you want to replace the found string. In both cases, the "B",
"U", and "A" options remain as last specified.
GRAPHICS (AltG) - You can enter an IBM graphic character into the file text
with the AltG command. You will be presented with a menu of up to 32
characters (labeled A-Z,1-6) to choose from; the default set contains some
nice box parts and other useful things, and has room free for other
characters that might be loaded. [The default set can be modified.]
Any unused menu entry can be defined on the spot. Type "=", then the
code (A-5) to change. You can then select the desired character from the
complete graphics set, by moving the cursor to it and pressing RETURN.
Alternatively, if you press any other key, you may enter the extended
ASCII code in either hex (2 digits 80-FF) or decimal (3 digits 128-255)
format. Example: a Greek alpha can be entered either as "E0" hex or "224"
decimal. Once defined in the menu, the graphic can be entered into the
file; its definition cannot be changed again while editing.
NOTE: In addition to the 128 graphics characters, the code ^Z (1A, or
026) may only be entered as a graphic. (In contrast, ^PZ embeds a place
marker.) Furthermore, if ^P is used to embed codes 1C-1F or 7F (028-031
or 127) they will also appear in the graphics table.
CAUTION: If you load a file containing many graphics (or binary data
that will be interpreted as graphics), VDE will try to add each character
to its table. If the graphics table fills up, any further graphics will
be replaced by fuzzy blocks (graphic #6)! You will see an error message,
and the file will become "untitled", to guard against saving to disk and
corrupting the file. If you frequently work with graphics characters you
will want to keep your default table relatively empty to avoid this.
Graphics are stored in disk files in accord with the current file
mode. Printing of graphics depends on whether your printer is installed
as an IBM graphics printer [see VINST.DOC]. If so, they will print
directly. If not, VDE will "emulate" them, choosing standard ASCII
character overstrikes that come as close as possible. This usually works
well, especially for the foreign language characters.
HEADER (^OQ) - VDE gives you an informative "header" at the top of the screen.
If you like, you can toggle this display on and off with the ^OQ (Quiet)
command. [It can also be suppressed by default.] Turning the header off
lets you see more text, and can speed up editing on slow terminals.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
+ VDE.DOC /A Pg 14 Ln 11 Cl 48 Ins vt hy AI DS MR " ^K_
(OP/BZ) (WIn) (PS)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"+" = Multi-file flag. Present if other file(s) are being edited.
"VDE.DOC /A" = Current filename and mode. The full drive and path
information, along with other files being edited, can be displayed with
the ^KI command (see INFORMATION).
"Pg 7, etc" = Current position in file by page (in document modes),
line, column. If pagination (^OP) is off, you will see "Pg 0" (in
document modes), "OP" (in "N" mode), or "BZ" if ^KZ is in effect.
"INS","WIn" = Insert mode (^V) or Word Insert (^]) on.
"vt" = Variable Tab mode on. (^OV)
"hy" = Hyphenation enabled. (^OH) Doesn't display in "N" mode.
"AI" = Auto Indent mode on. (^OA)
"DS" = Double spacing. (^OS)
"MR" = Margins released. (^OX) Doesn't display in "N" mode.
"PS" = Proportional spacing. (^OJ) Overridden by MR.
'"' = Quote mark appears during macro recording (Esc").
"^K_" = WordStar key prefixes (and some prompts) display here.
HYPHENATION (^OH) - VDE can't hyphenate automatically, but it can recognize
hyphens in the text, treating them as a legitimate place to break a line.
If you have a long word running over the margin, you can type a hyphen,
and wordwrap or reformat will break the word there.
VDE also can't DE-hyphenate automatically. If VDE is trying to
reformat and finds a hyphen at the end of a line, it will have to ask YOU
what to do: you will see the prompt "Remove?" in the header.
Press "Y" to remove the hyphen and space, joining the word;
"N" to leave the hyphen, but still join the word;
"Esc" to ignore the hyphen, NOT joining the word.
Typically you would choose "Y" for "soft" hyphens that you introduced to
break up a word ("intro-duction"); "N" for hard hyphens that are part of a
word ("vis-a-vis"); and "Esc" for punctuation (dashes -- etc). After your
choice, reformatting will proceed automatically.
You can toggle hyphenation on and off with ^OH. If off, hyphens are
not recognized. [The ^OH default can be changed.]
INFORMATION (^KI; AltI) - ^KI displays an Information message telling you:
- the full directory, name, and timestamp of the current file;
- whether (Y/N) the file has been changed since last saved;
- any print toggles (^B,D,S etc) that seem to be mispaired;
- a WORD COUNT for documents (useful for professional writing);
- the current size of the file in bytes or K (1k = 1024 bytes);
- the number of bytes of memory used and free in this text segment;
- the size (in K) of the largest block of RAM still free;
- the names of all OTHER files being edited.
For large files, all this may take a moment to calculate. Note that
words are not counted in non-documents.
The AltI command displays the VDE version, date, and usage policy.
(An uninstalled copy of VDE does this automatically on startup.)
INSERTING (^V,[Ins],^],^_,^N) - ^V or [Ins] toggles Insert mode on/off, and
^] toggles Word Insert. When both are off, VDE is in overwrite mode: any
text to the right of the cursor is replaced as you type. With Insert (^V)
ON, what you type is inserted; any existing text is carried to the right.
With Word Insert ON, you can type over the letters of a word, but
anything you add at the end of the word (when the next character is a
space) is inserted; this is a handy feature for revising text.
The ^_ (or ^-) and ^N commands (insert space, CR) are most useful
when Insert is off. [The default insert status can be changed.]
LINE SPACING (^OS) - The ^OS command toggles between single and double line
spacing. In double space mode, the following functions generate double
carriage returns: [Ret] (^M), Insert CR (^N), Reform (^B), Wordwrap. You
can easily mix single and double spacing; the ^B command can convert
between the two.
Note: a single-spaced file can also be printed out double-spaced with
the "D" option of the ^KP command (see PRINTING).
MARGINS (^O-R,L,X,C,F) - ^OR sets the RIGHT margin, and enables wordwrap,
reformatting, and centering. At the prompt "Column:" enter the column
number (2-255), or just press [Ret] for the current cursor column. If the
value entered conflicts with the current left margin, the left margin will
be removed. There are two special values for the right margin:
1 = all formatting is disabled (as in "N"ondocument mode files).
0 = unlimited right margin: text can be reformatted to undo wordwrap.
^OL sets the LEFT margin in an identical fashion; of course, the
value must be less than the current right margin, so you may need to set
the right margin first.
^OX temporarily RELEASES the margins (resets them to 1), allowing you
to type outside them. Use ^OX again to restore the margins.
^OC CENTERS the current line with respect to the margins, if set.
^OF sets the current line FLUSH right, if the right margin is set.
MATCHING UP FILES (AltM) - This command is used to locate small differences
between two largely similar files (perhaps an earlier and a later revision
of a text). In order to use it, you must first load these two files
(AltL), then split the screen between them (AltW), and position the cursor
on corresponding lines in both files (for example, the top).
Then press AltM. Starting from these positions, VDE searches for any
difference between the files. If there is one, VDE will stop on those
lines, showing the disagreeing passages side by side. If you want to
continue, reposition the cursors to corresponding lines if necessary, and
press AltM again. If no further differences are found, VDE will report
"Not Found"; the files match.
MOVING AROUND (Arrow keys; ^F,^A; ^Q-R,C,I,P; AltO) - VDE supports two sets
of Arrow keys, which function interchangeably. The first is the actual
IBM cursor keypad (the four arrow keys); the second is the WordStar "arrow
key diamond" ^E,^X,^D,^S. These keys move the cursor up, down, right, and
left respectively.
Preceded by ^Q-, any arrow key moves more Quickly: to the top or
bottom of the screen, to the left or right end of the line.
There are also two word movement commands: ^F moves right, to the
start of the next word; ^A moves left, to the start of the last (or
current) word. Both have a maximum travel of 255 characters.
For quickly covering large distances, ^QR and ^QC move all the way to
the beginning and end of the file, respectively; ^QI moves directly to a
given page (for documents) or line (for non-documents). ^QP returns the
cursor to its "previous" position -- before the last command causing a
large movement was executed. (^QP can be used again to cycle between
these two positions in the file.)
Finally, the AltO command displays an "overview bar" at the top of
the screen. The length of the bar corresponds to the filesize, and the
current position is marked so you can see where you are:
| ooo*ooooooooooooooooooooooo |
You can move the place marker left or right with the arrow keys; the
cursor remains in the original (current) position.
| ooo_oooooooooooo*oooooooooo |
To move to the selected position, press [Ret]; press [Esc] instead to
cancel. (If the file is empty or too small, AltO does not function.)
MULTIPLE FILES (AltL,B,N,X,Q,C,P) - VDE allows you to edit several different
files simultaneously, if you have enough memory. This can be done from
the command line, by giving the filenames separated by commas.
Otherwise, to Load additional files, press AltL. You may specify a
single filename, or a list delimited with commas (see SYNTAX); for an
untitled file, press ^J or ^[Ret]. You can also access the file
browser with [Ret] or wildcards (see FILES). (This command will fail
if you run out of memory, or are already editing the maximum number,
or another file by that name.)
Once multiple files are in use, AltB and AltN can be used to cycle
back and forth through the files being edited. If you Quit or Exit
(^KQ,^KX) from one file, you will be returned to the previous one.
AltX exits ALL files immediately, saving any changes made. AltQ
quits ALL files immediately, without saving; if any of them have been
modified, you will be prompted once to confirm this.
AltC Cuts a marked block of text, placing it in a buffer for later
recovery. (The original remains, unless you delete it with ^KY.) AltP
Pastes in the previously cut text at the cursor position. The text in the
buffer remains available for further pasting. (Cut and Paste thus allow
block copying and moving between files.)
PAGINATION (^OP; ^PL) - The ^OP command sets the page length. Enter a value
0 to 255 lines, or just press [Ret] to restore the default. [Normally 56.]
When the value is nonzero, it determines the page and line shown in
the document header ("Pg xx Ln xx"), and all page functions in the Print
routine (pagination, headers, start/stop at page) are enabled. A formfeed
will be sent after printing. [VDE does not send a formfeed before
printing; install one in your printer initialization if you want.]
When the value is zero, pagination is off. The header will say "Pg 0
Ln xxxx", showing you the absolute line number in the file. Also,
printing occurs with no page breaks. (This is useful for printing small
things right after each other on the same sheet; or, in conjunction with
the "*" option, to print out multiple copies of index cards, labels, etc.)
The ^PL command embeds a formfeed (^L) in the text. This code
functions as a page break: you can type ^PL at the start of a line to
begin a new page. In document file modes, this will be reflected in the
header page/line count, use of ^QI and other page-related commands, etc;
it does not affect line count in "N"on-documents, or when pagination is
off (^OP 0).
PLACE MARKERS (^PZ; ^QZ) - You can set any number of temporary place markers
in the text with ^PZ (they display as highlighted "Z"). The ^QZ command
moves the cursor to the next place marker in the file, cycling back to the
top of the file as needed. (Place markers are NOT saved to disk.)
PRINTER CODES (^P) - This command prefix is used to enter "control codes" in
the ASCII range 00-1F or 7F into the text, usually for purposes of printer
control. Most codes are entered in a standard fashion: ^P@ embeds ^@, ^PA
embeds ^A, etc; and in documents they display as highlighted letters @, A,
etc. (In non-documents they display as graphics.) The EXCEPTIONS are:
1A (^Z) can only be entered as a graphic via AltG (see
GRAPHICS), not via ^PZ (see PLACE MARKERS). Many programs
treat this code as an end of file marker; use caution.
06 (^F) displays as the marker "#" (see AUTO NUMBERING).
1C-1F,7F (^\,^],^^,^_,Del) always display as graphics.
The IBM extended codes 80-FF also must all be entered with AltG.
Several common control codes produce special effects in printing:
^PH - backspace - overstrike previous character
M - carriage return - enter a CR without a LF to overstrike line
I - hard (ASCII) tab - printers respond variously to this
L - formfeed - will cause a page break
In addition, in place of complex "escape sequences" for effects such
as underlining, in document files VDE lets you enter a single marker,
which will be translated into the proper codes during printing. VDE
supports a set of 13 codes for this purpose: seven toggles, six switches.
[See VINST.DOC on how to install the proper commands for your printer.
Without such installation, only ^PS and ^PX will work.] The conventional
WordStar meanings of these codes are:
Toggles: ^P^B boldface Switches: ^P^Q (user def 1)
^D ("doublestrike") ^W (user 2)
^S underline ^E (user 3)
^Y italic ("ribbon") ^R (user 4)
^T superscript ^A alternate pitch
^V subscript ^N standard pitch
^X strikeout [has no installation]
but you can use them for anything you like. "Toggles" are good for
features like underlining that are turned on and off; enter them twice, at
the beginning and end of the desired text. "Switches" are better for
multi-valued parameters like character pitch; enter them once.
EXAMPLE: using ^PS for underlining, you could type:
This is how you get ^PSunderlined text^PS in VDE.
If toggles are not properly paired, you will find print effects continuing
throughout the rest of your document. To save time and effort, use the
^KI command to check for this before printing. (If an "S" appears under
the "^Check" heading, there is an unpaired ^S somewhere.)
PRINTER DRIVERS (AltV) - Since many people use more than one kind of
printer, VDE accomodates two different printer drivers, a primary and an
alternate. Before printing a file, you can select which one is active
using the AltV command. [You can change the two drivers with VINSTALL.]
PRINTING (^KP) - The ^KP command Prints the file from memory. You will be
asked for a set of "Options:", at which point you may enter one or more of
the following, in any order:
'...' sends a string of escape commands to printer before printing.
D DOUBLESPACES the printout.
B prints only the currently marked BLOCK.
Tnn sets the TOP MARGIN to nn lines. [The default margins can
Lnn sets the LEFT MARGIN to nn columns. be set with VINSTALL.]
^ FILTERS control characters ^X so they print out as text "^X".
*nn prints the entire job out nn TIMES (nn=1...255).
P PAUSES for your keystroke before each page (sheet feed).
N NUMBERS pages sequentially, at top right.
C numbers pages at bottom CENTER.
@nn begins printing AT page nn.
#nn prints only (up to) a TOTAL of nn pages.
O,E prints only Odd or Even pages (print one, then run the paper
back through and print the other, for double-sided printing).
=nn MAKES the first page number show as nn.
"..." uses the quoted string as a HEADER. The string will print in
the top right corner of each page, followed by the page number if
"N" was selected. (Maximum length is 50 characters.)
Note: you can include the current Time or Date in the header
simply by entering ^T or ^D, respectively.
(The paging options (N/C,@,#,O/E,=,"") are NOT allowed if the page length
is set to 0 (^OP), or if 'B'lock print was chosen. 'C' cannot be used
together with 'N' or "".)
(FILENAME) redirects printer output to a disk file. All print
control codes will go into the file just as they would have been
sent to your printer. If you want to append the output to an
existing file, type a "+" before the name: "(+FILENAME)".
EXAMPLE 1: Options: L12P
will print the file with a left margin of 12, pausing before each page
until you press a key (other than Esc).
EXAMPLE 2: Options: @6#2=21"(^T) Instructions, page"N
will print the 6th and 7th pages, numbering them 21 and 22, with a header
like this: "(3:41 PM) Instructions, page 21".
EXAMPLE 3: Options: BD(+SCRATCH)
will append the print output of the current marked Block, double spaced,
to the disk file SCRATCH.
NOTES: If you are in "W" or "5" file mode, any dot commands in the
file (lines beginning with ".") will not be printed.
You can abort printing at any time by pressing Esc.
PROPORTIONAL SPACING (^OJ) - If your printer has a proportionally spaced
font, you can get VDE to use it, and to format text so that it will print
with more appropriate margins. With ^OJ on, your printer will be put in
proportional mode when printing (^KP); and all wordwrap and reformatting
(^B,^OC,^OF) will take advantage of a built-in table of character widths,
resulting in a better justified printout.
In proportional mode, the margin settings need to be interpreted in
inches rather than characters; VDE assumes 10 cpi for convenience, so that
a right margin (^OR) of 70 means 7.0". (Note: words will often seem to
extend "beyond" the right margin column on screen when editing.)
[See VINST.DOC to install codes for proportional mode on your
printer, and to modify the character width table with VINSTALL.]
RULER LINE (^OT) - To help you align text properly, ^OT displays a "ruler
line" above the text. Type ^OT again to remove it. A moving pointer
indicates the current column.
In each column you will see one of several symbols: the arrow "v" is
the cursor column; "L,R" designate the current margins; "." indicates
areas outside the current margins, "-" within them. Also, tab stops are
marked by either "|" (Variable) or "!" (Hard). Examples:
("A" mode) L-----|-----|--------v--|--------------R........
("N" mode) !.......!.......!....v..!.......!.......!.......
RUN COMMAND/SHELL (AltR) - Typing AltR causes VDE to produce a replica of the
DOS prompt (eg, "C:\WORK>"). At this point you are still in VDE,
and all its input rules apply (press ^U to cancel, etc) -- but you can
execute any command just as you would under MSDOS. You can copy or rename
files, or run any other program you like, and afterwards VDE will prompt
you to "Press Esc" (or Space), upon which you will return to your
undisturbed VDE editing session. VDE leaves no disk files open, so you
can do anything you like with an AltR command. (Exception: don't load new
memory-resident utilities; this fouls up the DOS memory allocation.)
In addition, there is a special VDE command that can be typed at this
"fake DOS" prompt: SHELL. This lets you out into what is known as a
Command Shell: you are actually back IN MSDOS, and can use any number
of commands or move around as you like; when through, you need to type the
command EXIT to leave the Shell. At this point you will be back in VDE,
and will see the "Press Esc" prompt to return to editing.
NOTE 1: VDE must be able to find your command interpreter (usually
COMMAND.COM), and there must be enough free memory to load it and run the
chosen program. VDE reads the COMSPEC environment variable; if your
CONFIG.SYS file doesn't include a line like SET COMSPEC=C:\COMMAND.COM,
you should add one.
NOTE 2: Using the AltR command in MACROS is tricky. Any keyboard
input expected by the program or shell must be typed by YOU; it will not
be taken from the macro. And you must remember to include in your macro
the [Esc] keystroke needed to return to editing in VDE after it finishes.
SAVE/EXIT (^K-N,S,X,D,Q) - ^KN renames your work. This allows you to change
the filename in the header before saving. (Accepts mode option; you can
also specify a mode alone, eg "/W", simply to change the current mode.)
Caution: if you give the name of a file that already exists, it will be
overwritten
^KS saves your work so far: what's in memory is written to disk under
the filename in the header. (You must have a filename; one will be
requested if necessary.) If the file has not been modified, you will be
prompted to confirm whether you meant to resave it anyway.
A copy of the existing file is preserved as a BACKUP FILE (with
extension ".BAK") each time you save changes. [If you prefer not to use
BAK files, you can suppress their use with VINSTALL.]
There are several different commands for finishing up:
^KX saves your work (if modified), and then EXITS to DOS.
^KD (Done) saves your work, then loads a new file to edit.
^KQ just QUITS, without saving to disk. If the file has been
modified, you will be prompted to confirm that you meant to do this!
SCREEN CONTROLS (^W,^Z; Esc^,v,<,>; ^O-E,D,Z; AltE,A) - VDE provides a
number of commands affecting the screen display:
The ^W and ^Z commands scroll the screen up and down a line at a
time, without moving the cursor in the text (unless necessary).
Preceded by Esc-, any arrow key shifts the SCREEN, leaving the cursor
in place: the text view moves up/down 1/4 screen, or right/left 32
columns. (The cursor must be past column 32 to allow horizontal shifts.)
Preceded by ^O-, either UP arrow key (eg, ^OE) makes the current text
line the top of the screen.
The ^OD command shows you a preview of the screen with all non-
printing codes (markers, ^P codes, etc) hidden. This is handy for making
sure that text is aligned properly. Press [Esc] to continue editing.
The ^OZ command temporarily "Zaps" (blanks) the entire screen; good
for avoiding CRT burn-in, or just protecting work from prying eyes or
fingers. Restore the screen by pressing [Esc]. This is also useful if
some other software (like a resident utility) has messed up the screen:
type ^OZ,Esc and VDE will completely restore it.
The AltE command lets you see more lines of text on screen, if you
have an enhanced graphics adapter. It toggles between normal 25-line
mode and a compressed mode of 43 (EGA) or 50 (VGA) lines.
The AltA command works ONLY with the ATI EGA Wonder video card; do
not use it otherwise. This toggles between normal 80-column mode and ATI
132-column mode. It can be used alone, or in combination with AltE to
provide a 43x132 screen.
SPLITTING FILES (AltS) - If you encounter a text file that is too large for
VDE to load and edit, you can divide it into manageable chunks with the
Split command. Suppose you have a big file HUGE.DOC. Type AltS, then
answer at the prompt:
Split file, output name (w/#): HUGE.DOC, PIECE.#
VDE will go through the file HUGE.DOC and write out a series of smaller
files PIECE.1, PIECE.2 etc, which can then be edited. (You can tidy up
the transitions between them with Cut and Paste, if you like.)
Note that the output name must be separated from the input by a
comma, and must contain one # sign, which will be replaced by a 1, 2, etc
in sequence. (The above example could have used HUGE-#.DOC, etc.) Make
sure you have enough disk space for the output files.
TABS ([Tab],Shft[Tab],Esc[Tab]; ^O-V,I,N) - There are two Tab modes, Variable
and Hard; the ^OV command toggles between them. In Hard Tab mode the Tab
key produces an actual ^I (ASCII TAB); whether this overwrites any
existing text depends on the Insert toggle. Hard Tabs display at fixed
intervals of 8 screen columns.
In Variable Tab mode, the Tab key moves the cursor to the next
variable tab stop. Existing text is not overwritten; spaces are added at
the end of a line as needed. Up to eight tab stops may be set with ^OI
and cleared with ^ON; the defaults are in columns 5, 15, 35, and 55.
[These are reconfigurable.] The Shft[Tab] command tabs backwards (left),
useful for moving around in tables, etc.
You can always get a Hard Tab with ^PI, or a Variable Tab with
Esc[Tab], no matter what tab mode you are in.
The set/clear commands prompt for a column number, or you can press
[Ret] for the cursor column. In addition, the Set command ^OI accepts
two further options, both of which replace all earlier tab settings:
@nn Set tabs every "nn" columns
#n1,n2,... Set tabs to columns "n1,n2,..."
You can simply clear all variable tabs by typing "@" or "#" alone.
TIME/DATE (AltT,D) - If your MSDOS system maintains the system clock
properly, VDE can read it and insert the current time and date in your
file automatically. Just press AltT for the Time, or AltD for the Date.
The string will appear at the current cursor location, as though you had
typed it in yourself: for example,
1:21 PM [or 13:21 -- format can be selected]
January 15, 1988 [or 1/15/88, 15 January 1988, 15.1.88]
UNDELETING (^U) - The undelete function can be used to recover any amount of
text lost by the last deletion operation (whether character, word, line,
or block). This includes an overstruck character. The text will be
replaced at the current cursor location.
UPPER/LOWER CASE (^^; ^K",',^) - The ^^ (Ctrl-caret or ^6) command reverses
the case of the character at the cursor, if it was a letter, and moves to
the next.
The ^K^ (^K-caret) command reverses all text in a marked block (see
BLOCK COMMANDS); ^K" makes all block text uppercase, ^K' lowercase.
WINDOWS (^OW; AltW,F; ^[PgUp,Dn]) - VDE can split the screen into two windows,
showing you either two parts of the same file or two different files.
AltF moves the cursor back and forth between the two windows. The ^[PgUp]
and ^[PgDn] keys can scroll through BOTH windows in synchronization.
The ^OW command is used in a SINGLE file; it creates a window in the
bottom half of the screen, duplicating the current file text. You can
move to a different place in the file within this window, and continue
editing, with the original text still in view in the top window. (Note:
any modifications made to the file will not be reflected in the inactive
window until you return to it.) Typing ^OW again removes the Window.
The AltW command splits the screen Window between two DIFFERENT files
being edited, showing you both at once. (If the file you get in the
window isn't the one you wanted, find it by cycling through with
AltB/AltN.) Typing AltW again restores fullscreen editing.
WORDWRAP & REFORMAT (^B, ^OB) - WORDWRAP is automatic in all document modes
whenever the right margin is set. Any text entered will be kept within
the current margin settings. The end of a paragraph is marked by a "HARD
CR", which occurs when you press the [Ret] key. (This is a CR immediately
following a nonspace.) In contrast, when wordwrap occurs you get a "SOFT
CR" (which is actually a CR with a space before it). You can change a
hard CR into a soft one, or vice versa, by deleting or adding a space at
the end of the line; hitting [Ret] also hardens a soft CR. The
distinction between hard and soft CRs is only important when reformatting.
^B REFORMATS from the line the cursor is on, to the end of the para-
graph, according to the current margin settings and line spacing. (Thus
^B is used not only to reshape a paragraph after editing, but also to
change its margins and line spacing.) If the current line is indented
relative to the next one, VDE interprets that as paragraph indentation.
To reformat an entire file (WordStar ^QQB) use a MACRO: Esc[ ^B CR Q*.
^OB toggles DISPLAY OF HARD CRs. Hard CRs, otherwise invisible, are
normally displayed as a left-arrow character in document files. Some may
find these distracting, so they can be turned off.
========================= 4. GENERAL INFORMATION ===========================
COMPATIBILITY - VDE is "compatible", to various degrees, with several other
word processors, including WordStar, WordPerfect, and XyWrite, and can be
a useful accessory for users of these programs. (For example, I generally
do all my writing in VDE, using its speed and extra features; but
sometimes I need to take advantage of WordStar's more sophisticated
printing abilities, or ability to edit larger files.) See FILE MODES.
WORDSTAR: Highly compatible. /W file mode supports all WS 3-4
features except right justification, which it removes. /5 file mode also
removes all the additional WS 5 embedded codes (formatting, fonts etc),
which are not supported in VDE. With these exceptions, document files can
be exchanged freely between VDE and WS.
Aside from the absence of a "No-File" menu, VDE operates very much
like WS, although it does lack some WS commands, and also has some new
ones of its own. VDE's macro commands are completely different (they were
developed before WS had macros!). Aside from that, note the following
differences in common commands:
DIFFERENCES IN COMMAND SET
COMMON USE WS 4.0 VDE 1.3 VDE USE
Repeat command ^QQ Esc[ Macros are more powerful.
Hide block ^KH ^KU Actually unmarks block.
Paragraph indent ^OG ^OA General purpose auto-indent.
Set Place Mark ^K0..9 ^PZ Not individually numbered.
Go to Place Mark ^Q0..9 ^QZ Cyclic.
Time, Date stamp Esc!,@ AltT,D
DIFFERENCES IN MEANING OF COMMANDS
COMMAND WS USE VDE USE
^^ (^6) Soften hard CR Transpose upper/lowercase
^KN Column block mode Rename current work
^OB Display soft spaces Display hard CRs
^OF Ruler from text Flush right
^OP Preview mode Set page length
^OJ Right justification Proportional spacing
Note also that VDE does not obey WS "dot commands" in text, though in /W
or /5 mode it will avoid printing them. You can get a page break
(WordStar .PA) in VDE with the ^PL command.
NOTE: Because VDE has no embedded margin information, files WRITTEN
in /P or /X mode do NOT contain any formatting codes; however, they can be
read (and reformatted if necessary) by WordPerfect or XyWrite.
WORDPERFECT - Limited compatibility. /P file mode can READ WP text;
it recognizes margin changes, and print codes for bold, underline, super/
subscript, and overstrike. No other formatting features are supported.
You can also edit in VDE using a command set much like WordPerfect's,
by loading the WP.VDF key definition file [see VINST.DOC]. It causes the
[F]-keys to call up the MenuBar in a manner similar to WP's commands.
XYWRITE - Limited compatibility. /X mode can READ XW text; it
recognizes margin changes, and print codes for bold, underline, and
italics. No other formatting features are supported.
DIRECTORIES - When editing with VDE, the default directory assumed by the
file commands (^KL,R,N,F,J; AltL) is that of the current file; when
editing multiple files, this can differ from one to the next. The
directory does not display in the header, but can be seen with ^KI or at
the ^KF prompt.
The current DOS directory remains unchanged, and it is the default
when using the AltR command. (It can be changed with CHDIR under AltR.)
ERROR MESSAGES - Press Esc or Space to continue. "Error" alone means the
command used just won't work in this situation. (Example: a block command
was used with no block marked.) More specific errors are:
"Out of Memory" - the file, block, or key string won't fit in RAM.
"Invalid Key" - an illegal command key sequence was pressed.
"Invalid Name/Path" - file not read/written because path does not exist,
or filename is a duplicate, or illegal (COM/EXE).
"I/O Error" - file not found, disk full, invalid drive, etc.
"Cannot Reformat" - word too long, or margins invalid.
"Not Found" - the object of a search was not found.
"Graphics Overflow" - too many graphics in file to fit in table.
"Macro Error" - programming command misused, or recording overflow.
IMPORTANT NOTE: On DOS 2.x systems, an attempt to access an empty
disk drive or to print when the printer is not online can produce a
critical error message directly from DOS, something like:
"Device not ready; Ignore, Retry, or Abort?"
If this should happen, correct the situation and press "R" for Retry.
Pressing "I" usually has no effect. DO NOT PRESS "A", as this will exit
from VDE back to DOS, losing any text in memory!
If, after recovering from such an error, the message is still on
screen, you can press ^OZ,Esc to redisplay your text.
FILE MODES - VDE has six "file modes": "A"SCII, "W"ordStar, WordStar "5",
Word"P"erfect, or "X"yWrite document, and "N"on-document. In general, the
document modes have wordwrap, pagination, and variable tabs; non-documents
have hard tabs.
The file mode option can be specified along with the filename at any
VDE file function prompt (such as "Read in file:"), allowing you to read
or write text in whatever format needed. [The default mode is /A, but
this can be changed, and exceptions declared, with VINSTALL.]
Most VDE users will select /A mode for documents (word processing) or
/N mode for programming and other special applications. Both modes use
plain ASCII text files, which are produced or accepted by virtually all
software (DOS, compilers, database, telcom, etc).
The /W, /5, and /P modes allow VDE to read and write WordStar or
WordPerfect files (see COMPATIBILITY).
The /X mode uses plain ASCII text, but without CRs at the ends of
lines -- CRs occur only at the ends of paragraphs. These files can be
exchanged with XyWrite and most other word processors that use this text-
stream format (see COMPATIBILITY).
CONVERSION: You can easily use VDE to mix text from several
different formats, or to convert a file from one format into another.
Just specify the appropriate mode with each file loaded or read in, or
change to the appropriate mode (with ^KN) before saving. (Note limits on
supported features in each format, above.)
Normally, you must be sure to give the correct mode for any text you
are reading; otherwise it may not be read in properly, and you will have
to delete it or quit and try again. Exception: when you are reading a
WordStar file into an ASCII file, or vice versa, you need not specify
modes; VDE's disk input routine can automatically recognize the text and
translate accordingly.
MEMORY - VDE allocates memory for a file according to need, up to a maximum
of 64k. (1k = 1024 bytes.) If you check the usage of memory (^KI) you
will find that VDE compresses text: a file typically occupies 20-25% less
memory than its actual size. Thus the largest file that can be edited
with VDE in 64k is roughly 80k.
VDE runs well with anywhere from 128k to 640k RAM; the number and
size of files you can edit depends on the amount of memory you have. If
you are running short of memory while editing, try exiting files you no
longer need, or cutting (AltC) an empty block to empty the cut buffer.
Running a DOS command requires enough free memory (beyond VDE's
usage) to load a copy of COMMAND.COM and any programs you intend to run
under it. You may not have enough memory to do this if you are editing
many files with VDE, or you have lots of memory-resident software (TSRs).
PROMPTS - First, VDE has several simple prompts requiring you to confirm an
action by typing "Y" or "N". These warning messages appear on line 1
(though they are NOT given when a macro is running):
"Abandon changes?" - a file you want to quit has been changed.
"Unchanged; save?" - the file you want saved hasn't been changed.
"File exists; overwrite?" - such a file already exists and will be lost.
"Not recoverable; delete?" - block to delete is too big for undeletion.
These confirmation prompts appear at the right edge of the header:
"Chg?" - change this instance of a string? (Y/N/*)
"Remove?" - remove this hyphen? (Y/N/Esc)
"Rdy" - press a key to print next page (Esc quits).
There are a number of standard prompts for either numeric or string input,
like "Column:" or "Find string:". You are expected to type in a string
(up to 65 characters). The following control keys operate:
Correct error: [BkSp] (^H) Erase entire entry: ^X
Finish entry: [Ret] (^M) or (^J) Abort operation: ^U
Replay last filename: ^R (except in Macro strings)
Note that to get any of these codes into the string itself, you must
precede it with ^P (this includes ^P).
EXAMPLE: to find a line beginning with a "*" (find "^M,*") type
^QF^P[Ret]*[Ret].
Graphics can also be entered into strings using Alt-G.
=========================== 5. APPLICATION TIPS ============================
DESQVIEW - VDE is "DesqView aware": it cooperates with time-sharing in the
multitasking DV environment. For VDE to run properly in a DV window, you
must identify it as a "program that writes directly to the screen".
FOREIGN ASCII FILES - If you edit an ASCII file created by other software, you
may find that the file is properly formatted but full of hard CRs, making
it impossible to REformat. There are two easy ways to solve this problem:
first, you can use ^QA to find "^M"s and selectively replace them with
"_^M". But the best method is to use a macro program (this is one of the
examples you will find under MACRO PROGRAMMING.)
PROGRAMMING. VDE (in "N"ondocument mode) makes a fine programmer's editor.
A growing number of languages today include their own "integrated"
environment editor, that guides you straight to errors detected during
compilation. You can use VDE in a very similar manner, if you have a
compiler or assembler that generates typical error messages (such as "Line
1091: Type of operands must match"). After saving your source file to
disk, just use the AltR command to run the compiler, with the MSDOS ">"
option to redirect output to a disk file; for example,
C:\WORK>compile prog.src >listing
Then use AltL to load the error reports in LISTING. You can go back and
forth between LISTING and PROG.SRC (windowing both if desired), using the
^QI command to move to each line where an error was detected.
REDIRECTING I/O. All the standard DOS device names are supported by VDE's
input and output routines: CON, LST, PRN, LPTx, COMx, AUX, NUL. You might
find this useful one day, though I never have. What it means, in
practice, is that you should not try to edit a file with one of these
reserved names, as VDE will try to read or write to the device.
SPELLING CHECKERS. VDE has no integrated support for a spelling checker.
However, some such programs are designed to work in a standalone mode,
from the DOS prompt, with a filename argument, eg:
C:\WPROC>spellchk my.doc
Once you have saved your text to a disk file, you can of course run such a
program with VDE's AltR command, then reload the file and/or misspelling
list and scan for any errors flagged.
STRUCTURED LANGUAGES. VDE's auto-indent function (^OA) is convenient for many
structured programming languages including C and Pascal. However, in
order to use it effectively in a non-document, you must either indent with
the space bar rather than the tab key, or set VARIABLE TABS using the ^OV
and ^OI commands (see TABS). Auto-indent can't cope with the actual
(hard) tab characters normally inserted in non-documents when the [Tab]
key is pressed.
TRANSPOSING TEXT. Often you may need to switch the order of letters, words,
or lines erroneously typed. The "undelete" feature can be exploited to
move text, rather like a quick-and-dirty block move. For example, if the
cursor is at the start of a word, the sequence of commands ^T^F^U (which
of course can be assigned to a macro key) will swap that word with the one
following it. Similarly, ^Y^X^U will swap two lines, while ^G^D^U
transposes two letters.
==============================================================================
For further information, see accompanying files:
- VINST.DOC for information on MACROS and the use of VINSTALL
- VDE.UPD for version history, including recent changes
--- Eric Meyer, 401 12th Ave SE #139, Norman OK 73071 ---
==============================================================================
VINSTALL.DOC
VINSTALL.DOC
------------
[Supplement to VDE.DOC 1.52]
Instructions for Macros and VINSTALL utility
(c)1987-90 Eric Meyer
================================ CONTENTS ==================================
(continued)
6. MACROS. Explanation and examples of:
Function keys, Key redefinition files, Macros, Macro keys, Macro
programming, Recording macros.
7. RUNNING VINSTALL. How to use VINSTALL.COM to modify VDE.COM.:
A. INSTALLATION. Installing for different computer hardware:
============ Screen size; IBM compatibility; Colors; Fonts; Snow.
B. USER OPTIONS. Customization of many initial VDE settings.
C. PRINTER INSTALLATION. Using special printer features:
print modes, graphics, etc.
D. DEFAULT MACRO KEYS. Installing a default set of macro keys.
E. DEFAULT FUNCTION KEYS. Installing the function keys.
F. GRAPHICS. Modifying the default set of graphics characters.
G. CHARACTER WIDTHS. Modifying the default set of character widths.
H. RESTORE DEFAULTS. Undoing previous modifications.
================================ 6. MACROS =================================
(Command mode only)
Macros are a sophisticated and powerful tool for automating repetitive
tasks. A "macro" is a string of VDE commands and/or text that you can type in
once and then have repeated automatically. (Note: for large pieces of boiler-
plate text, read in disk files with ^KR instead.) A "function key" is a macro
assigned to one of the [F1]...[F40] keys, while a "macro key" is a macro
assigned to a key Esc0...9 or EscA...Z; these can all be defined either while
editing, or with VINSTALL. "Macro programming" involves the use of special
commands allowing a macro to perform more complex operations including loops
and conditional execution, much like a programming language.
VDE's 76 user-definable macros allow you to customize it for any task,
such as the formatting requirements of specialized professional writing, or
many programming languages. Many examples are given below.
To create a macro, while editing, you can:
(1) use the Esc[ command, and type the necessary keystrokes at the
prompt. You may want to plan or compose the macro first, using pen and
paper. Certain keystrokes, like [Ret] or ^X, are line editing commands,
and must be preceded by a ^P to enter them into the macro; the input line
has a 65-key limit. See MACROS, PROMPTS.
(2) use the Esc" command. Type the desired keystrokes, exactly as
you would while editing: no ^P prefixes are required, and you will see the
results as you type. There is a 128-key limit. See RECORDING MACROS.
Macros execute EXACTLY as though you had typed the given keys yourself.
EXAMPLE: to read in a letterhead file called LETTER.HDR at the top of your
file, you would type:
^QR to get to the top of the file
^KR to read in a file
LETTER.HDR to specify filename at the "Read file:" prompt
[Ret] to end the filename input
So this is exactly what you need to enter in your macro. Note that ALL the
input -- every keystroke, including answers to prompts, [Ret] keystrokes, and
so on -- MUST be included. For further details see MACROS.
Note that the results of a macro may depend on various settings at the
time it is run! A problem of sorts arises with "toggles" -- commands that
reverse a state -- since the macro doesn't know what state they were in to
begin with. So macros that employ ^OS, ^OV, and other similar commands must
be used with care -- be sure everything is set properly before invoking them.
There is one exception: the Insert toggles (^V,^]) are so much of a
problem that VDE actually turns INSERT OFF before running any macro, so you
can be sure that you are initially NOT in insert mode, or, that when the first
^V or ^] is encountered in the macro, you ARE. Thus the macro "Hello" will
overwrite any existing text, while "^VHello" will insert -- regardless of the
insert status when the macro is used. The previous status is restored when
the macro terminates.
Once again, ordinarily macros are completely self-contained, and NEVER
request input from the keyboard while running. There are two exceptions:
(1) If a reformat (^B) operation is in progress and
dehyphenation is required, the "Remove?" prompt will appear in
the header and a "Y/N" answer will be necessary to continue.
(This is a decision the macro can't make.) See REFORMAT.
(2) Using the AltR command in macros is tricky: input while
running a program must come from the keyboard. (VDE resumes
control only when the program ends.) See RUN COMMAND.
USING MACROS
FUNCTION KEYS ([F1]...[F40]) - Up to 40 macros can be assigned to function
keys; they can then be recalled and used with one keystroke. Each of the
10 IBM function keys can be used with Shift, Ctrl, or Alt, to produce:
Shift-[F1]...[F10] = [F11]...[F20]
Ctrl-[F1]...[F10] = [F21]...[F30]
Alt-[F1]...[F10] = [F31]...[F40]
The new Extended (101-key) keyboards actually have extra keys labeled
[F11] and [F12]; VDE will not recognize these keys.
Otherwise, function keys are defined (with the Esc[ or Esc] command,
or with VINSTALL) and used exactly like macro keys. See MACRO KEYS.
KEY DEFINITION FILES (AltU) - These files save sets of macro key or function
key definitions, and should be given file types of ".VDK" and ".VDF",
respectively. You can load any key file, along with your text file(s) to
edit, from the command line (see SYNTAX). In addition, they can be loaded
or saved with the AltU command while editing in VDE, and can also be
created or installed as defaults in your copy of VDE with the VINSTALL
program (see below).
The AltU command will ask whether you want to "L"oad or "S"ave such a
file, then prompt for the name of the file. The filetype MUST be ".VDK"
or ".VDF", and will determine whether MACRO or FUNCTION keys are affected.
If you load such a file, those definitions will replace any previous ones.
If you save, the current definitions will be written to the file.
MACROS (Esc[,]) - When you are in the middle of doing something in VDE, and
find that you need to do something many times, it may be less tedious to
have it repeated automatically. If you type Esc[ you will be asked first
for the string to execute; then, whether you want to Use or Store it. (On
storing keys, see MACRO KEYS.)
If you Use the macro, you will be asked for an optional "Quiet"
designation, then a "Repeat count". You can speed up macro execution by
specifying "Quiet" mode: only the header will be updated as the macro
runs. (Don't do this if the macro concludes by requesting user input --
the necessary prompts would not display!) For the repeat count, you can
type a number of times to repeat (0-254), or "*" for indefinitely. You
will see the results as the macro executes, and you can abort it at any
time by pressing Esc.
Macros also stop if an error occurs; the error message will be
visible, and can be cleared by pressing Esc. Many commands (like Find or
Reformat) are designed to generate errors at the end of the file so that
an indefinite ("*") macro containing them will halt there. Other indef-
inite macros may need to be aborted manually.
Once defined, a macro can be re-used with the Esc] command, which
again gives you the options to Use or Store the previously defined macro.
In order to include any input line editing characters (BS (^H), [Ret]
(^M), ^J, ^X, ^U, ^P) in a macro, you must prefix them with ^P. (NOTE:
To make them easier to read and understand, macro listings will be given
here as they function, not as they are typed in. ^P prefixes as needed
are NOT shown: remember that you need to add them! Keystrokes are often
separated by spaces for clarity; the "_" symbol is used to represent an
actual space character typed. Here are some sample macros:
1. Reformat an entire file (Wordstar ^QQB): after Esc[, just enter
^B
Specify quiet and indefinite repeat as options ("Q*").
2. View a file by scrolling slowly through it:
Esc; ^C
This will pause, then scroll down. (Use a repeat count of "*".)
3. Enter a long graphics border for a box. (This can get tedious by
hand.) Assuming graphic "Y" is the horizontal bar,
AltG Y
will enter one character. You can get a line 40 characters long by giving
a repeat count of "40" (and the "Q"uiet option will avoid unnecessarily
displaying the menu).
4. Can you figure out what this one does, if entered with a repeat
count of "*"? (Answer: .elif eht fo dne eht ta meht fo tsil a gnikam
elif a fo tuo sesehtnerap ni stnemmoc ekat lliw tI)
^QR ^QF(^J ^G ^KB ^QF)^J ^G ^KK ^QC [Ret] ^KV
VDE macros are very powerful tools, particularly given their program
ability and storage on macro Keys.
MACRO KEYS (Esc0...Z) - Both the Esc[ and Esc] commands also give the option
of storing the macro definition to a MACRO KEY. Up to 36 of these can be
stored on keys 0...9,A...Z; they can then be called up with two
keystrokes. (40 more can be stored on IBM function keys; see FUNCTION
KEYS.) Example: if stored to key 3, a macro can be reused simply by
typing Esc3.
Ordinarily, macro keys operate just like the original macro: they
will ask for a "Repeat count" when executed. In many cases (boilerplate
text, for example), you will want a key to execute only once when invoked;
if so, specify "N"o-repeat when storing the definition to a key. Or you
can instead specify "Q"uiet, if you also want the key to run in Quiet mode
(to increase speed and minimize display activity).
There is a total of 982 bytes available for all 36 keys, and a 128
byte limit for any one key. (VDE's own input line will only accept 65
bytes, but VINSTALL can handle up to the full 128.) Trying to use an
undefined key results in an error. You can delete a key definition by
entering an empty macro string (Esc[, CR) and storing it to the key. Keys
defined with Esc] are of course temporary. (VINSTALL lets you install
definitions permanently; see DEFAULT MACRO/FUNCTION KEYS.)
EXAMPLES: Besides simply storing any macro, these Keys are useful for
storing a frequently repeated phrase; "EscW" is much more convenient than
"World Wide Widgets Ltd. (N.A.)". You might also define one as a common
command like ^PS, for underlining; or a set of margins, like ^OR60[Ret]
^OL5[Ret]. A key defined as ^QR ^N AltD ^OF would place the current date
at the top right of a letter.
MACRO PROGRAMMING (Esc0...Z,!,=,~,(),+,-,&,;) - VDE has several commands that
operate only within a macro definition, and give you conditional control
over the execution of a macro, allowing real programming.
Esc0...Z, when placed IN a macro, function simply as "labels" 0...Z.
They have no effect, but can be "jumped" to by other commands.
Esc! followed by 0...Z is a "jump" instruction, causing macro
execution to resume with the command following that label. Example: Esc!2
jumps to label 2. As two special cases, Esc![ jumps to the beginning of
the macro, and Esc!] jumps to the end (aborts).
Esc= and Esc~ perform tests on the character at the current cursor
position. There are two ways to use them:
(1) Followed by a character, then a label 0...Z (or
"[","]"), they are conditional jumps: they jump IF the
character does (or for "~", does NOT) match the one
specified. Example: Esc~^M2 jumps to label 2 if the current
character is NOT a CR.
(2) Followed by a character, then ">" or "<", they are
search loops. They will continue to move the cursor right
(or for "<", left) as long as the character at the cursor
does (or for "~", doesn't) match, or until the beginning or
end of the file. Example: Esc=_> moves right as long as the
current character is a space (so it stops on a NONspace).
Several commands allow the use of a counter variable. Esc() sets
the value: for example, Esc(0) initializes it to zero. The Esc+ command
simply increments the value; Esc- (minus) decrements the value, then jumps
if it is zero to a specified label. (In addition to a number, you may use
"[" or "]" for the start or end of the macro, or "@" to avoid jumping
entirely.) Example: Esc-] decrements the counter, jumping to the end
(exiting) if it reaches zero.
Esc&, followed by 0...Z, is used to "chain" to another macro key. In
this way you can build up strings longer than the 65/128-byte limit on any
one key. This is a "jump", not a "call"; there is no returning. Example:
Esc&M causes key M to execute. (You cannot chain to function keys.)
Esc; (semicolon) gives a brief pause before execution continues,
presumably so the user can see what's happening on screen.
Macro programs are stored just like any other macro string (usually
as No-repeat). If you program an endless loop, you will at some point
have to abort by pressing Esc. Don't make macro programs Quiet until
you're sure they work.
EXAMPLE 1: here is a good macro program (best stored as a Quiet key)
to move the cursor to the start of the current sentence:
Esc~.1 ^S Esc1 Esc~.< Esc2 ^D Esc=_2 Esc=^M2
You could write this out in programmer's pseudo-code as:
If not "." goto label1
Move left ;move left if already on period
label1: While not "." move left ;move left to previous period
label2: Move right ;now move back right
If " " goto label2 ; as long as you see a space
If "^M" goto label2 ; or a Return
(all done)
EXAMPLE 2: a macro to move to the start of the current paragraph:
^QS ^S^S Esc=_[ ^D^D
EXAMPLE 3: if you have some text that you can't reformat because
every line ends in HARD CRs, here is a macro that will "soften up" one
paragraph's worth, leaving just one HARD CR at the end:
^QS ^X Esc=_] Esc=^M] ^S ^V_^V ^D Esc![
EXAMPLE 4: a macro to match parentheses. Many programming languages
use nested sets of parentheses, for example "{}" in C. This program, when
the cursor is placed on an open bracket "{", will move ahead to find the
closed bracket "}" that matches it:
Esc~{] Esc(0) Esc1 Esc~{2 Esc+ Esc!3
Esc2 Esc~}3 Esc-]
Esc3 ^D Esc!1
RECORDING MACROS (Esc") - As an alternative to composing macros and using the
Esc[ command to type them in, you can simply record a macro from a
sequence of keystrokes as you go about a task. Press Esc" to activate
recording; type away; then press Esc" again to conclude. You will then be
asked whether to use or store it, etc (see MACROS). No confusing ^P
prefixes are needed, and you can take advantage of the full 128-key length
limit. While recording, a quote mark (") will be visible in the upper
right (prefix) area of the header, if the header is displayed.
Notes: (1) Esc" initially turns INSERT OFF, so that your keystrokes
will behave as they would in the macro you are defining. See explanation
above under MACROS. (2) Function and macro key commands themselves will
not work while macro recording is in progress.
========================== 7. RUNNING VINSTALL =============================
VINSTALL is a utility that lets you customize your copy of the VDE
editor. A few choices will be important from the first: for example, VDE
operates by default in Command mode, and if you prefer MenuBar mode you will
need to change this with VINSTALL. There are many more options that you need
not concern yourself with at first: in the course of using VDE, you will
discover how you want these things set. However, there are important changes
you will need to make to VDE before using it, if you have a computer that:
* Is not fully IBM compatible (BIOS, video).
* Experiences "snow" problems with programs that write
directly to video memory (older style CGA adapters).
You should begin using VINSTALL soon; once you have modified VDE.COM, the
introductory messages in VDE and VINSTALL will no longer appear.
Your copies of the program files will be called VDE.COM and VINSTALL.COM,
though of course you can rename them (I usually call them V.COM and VI.COM).
To run VINSTALL simply type:
C>vinstall if your copy is still called "VDE.COM"
or C>vinstall V.COM if it's called "V.COM" (or whatever).
Notes: VINSTALL modifies the file VDE.COM; always keep an unmodified
original copy of all VDE files in case problems arise! The version numbers of
VINSTALL and VDE (and any auxiliary key or printer files, see below) must
agree, or you will get an error.
VINSTALL is fully menu-driven; it will present you with a set of
categories that corresponds to each section below, starting with Installation;
you select the values you want to change. The program is largely self-
documenting, and steps you through each item individually. If this is your
first time, take advantage of its "Help" option before you start in, for some
basic instructions. You may also find a good ASCII chart helpful for
deciphering your printer codes. VINSTALL uses several types of data entry:
TEXT - Just type in the character(s).
LOGICAL - Yes/No. Just type "Y" or "N".
DECIMAL - Enter a number from 0 to 255.
HEX - Enter a two-digit hex byte value 00-FF. (Don't omit lead zeros.)
BYTE STRINGS - fixed length: enter the required number of hex bytes.
variable: enter the (hex) count for the number of bytes,
followed by the bytes themselves. Example: (02)1B3D. This
format is referred to below as "(#),bytes".
VINSTALL can't check for illegal values; be careful what you enter!
At most points in VINSTALL, you can press Esc to return immediately to
the Main Menu, or ^C to abort the program.
----------------------------- A. INSTALLATION ------------------------------
VDE will not run properly on computers that are not 100% IBM compatible,
unless you use VINSTALL to provide the necessary display information. (Note:
the HP Portable Plus is also supported, as a "near compatible".)
The IBM PC installation gives the best performance, but requires an IBM
standard BIOS and a supported video adapter (MDA,CGA,EGA,VGA). You can
customize the display (colors, fonts etc) to your preferences.
The non-IBM installation will run on any system that supports ANSI
standard screen control sequences (eg, the ANSI.SYS screen driver -- you must
have the statement DEVICE=ANSI.SYS or equivalent in your CONFIG.SYS file).
You must also specify the size of your screen. This installation can of
course also be used on IBM compatibles, in the event that direct video access
is undesirable. It will even work in "remote" applications, such as high-
speed modem connections, with appropriate terminal software on the user's end.
IBM PC PARAMETERS:
Screen colors - you can select six video attribute bytes: one for normal text;
one for block text; one for soft CR markers; one for the header; one for
menus and prompts; and one for highlights (prompts, etc). Each is two hex
digits, for a background and foreground color. You will see a color
palette displayed on screen; the color digits are:
*0 = BLACK 4 = red *8 = GREY C = lt red
1 = blue 5 = magenta 9 = lt blue D = lt magenta
2 = green 6 = brown A = lt green E = yellow
3 = cyan *7 = WHITE B = lt cyan *F = BRIGHT WHITE
(* - All monochrome screens can display BLACK, WHITE, and BRIGHT WHITE; in
some cases, GREY may also be visible.)
Any digit may be used for the the foreground, but only 0-7 for
background (8-F produce blinking video... ugh). You will probably want
the header and highlight attributes to have the same background.
Make cursor "D"efault,"B"lock,"U"nderline (D/B/U) - You can choose the cursor
type you want during editing. Choose "D"efault to leave it whatever it
was before VDE was run.
Problems with CGA snow (Y/N) - Normally No. Some older CGA cards experience
ugly "snow" when programs write directly to video memory. If this happens
to you, select "Y", and VDE will time its video access according to
horizontal retrace intervals. (Display speed will be slightly reduced.)
NON-IBM PC PARAMETERS: (automatically set for IBM PC)
Clock speed in MHz - Set this decimal value to reflect your CPU clock speed.
Common values are 5 (for 4.77), 8, 10, 12, etc. Adjust the value if
desired to change the length of delays in VDE. (At present this involves
only the "Esc;" macro command and the horizontal scroll delay.)
Terminal init - enter an optional string of code (#),bytes to be sent to the
screen after clearing the screen, whenever (re)entering VDE.
Terminal uninit - enter an optional string of code (#),bytes to be sent to the
screen upon exiting from VDE back to DOS. (Max. lengths: 0F = 15 bytes.)
Viewable columns (80-255) - normally 80; set to the column width of your
display, if different.
Viewable lines (16-255) - normally 25; if you have a shorter or longer default
display (on entry to VDE), enter the length here.
Fast scroll supported (Y/N) - Does your computer respond to the ANSI sequences
for insert/delete line (Esc-[-L,M)? If so, set this to "Y" for a faster
display. (Default is "N", as MSDOS ANSI.SYS does not support these codes;
some enhanced console drivers, such as NANSI.SYS, do. The display will
not work properly if you select "Y" with the standard ANSI.SYS.)
----------------------------- B. USER OPTIONS ------------------------------
You can change a variety of default settings in your copy of VDE,
according to your taste. "Default" means the state assumed when VDE is first
run, or in the absence of any user commands.
Use COMMAND mode (Y/N) - Do you want VDE to use its WordStar-compatible
command set? If not, MenuBar mode is used. See OPERATING MODES.
Autosave interval (min.) - Do you want VDE to save your work to disk auto-
matically at intervals? If so, enter the interval in minutes. A value of
0 turns this feature off.
Preserve BAKup files (Y/N) - Should a backup file (*.BAK) be kept when you save
over an existing file? Choose "Y" to play safe, "N" to save disk space.
Use ^Z as EOF mark (Y/N) - Should an EOF marker (^Z, 1Ah) be considered the
end of a file? MSDOS software should not require this, but some early
programs (like their CP/M predecessors) did use this convention. Normally
set this to No: VDE will ignore ^Z on input, and will not add ^Z on
output. If set to Yes, VDE will consider a ^Z encountered on input as the
end of the file, and will put ^Z at the end of each file on output.
Exclude COM/EXE files (Y/N) - Normally "Y": executable programs (files with
types of .COM or .EXE) will not show in the ^KF directory display (unless
the filetype is specified explicitly), and cannot be edited. This is a
protection feature; you can damage such files by trying to edit them. To
disable, set to "N".
Default file mode - Which of the six file modes (A,W,5,P,X,N) described in
VDE.DOC do you want as the default? (Originally "A".)
Auto mode select filetypes - You can specify four filetypes (or type masks,
using "?" wildcards) as exceptions to the above default: for example, you
could declare all ".ASM" files to default automatically to "N" mode, or
all files ".89?" to "W" mode.
Insert mode (I/W/O) - Which insert mode setting do you want to start out with:
Insert, Word insert, or Overstrike (insert off)?
Header on (Y/N) - Do you want the header (^OQ) to start out ON? (Normally Yes)
Ruler on (Y/N) - Do you want the Ruler (^OT) to start out ON? (Normally No)
HCR display on (Y/N) - Do you want Hard CR display (^OB) to start out ON when
editing a Document ("W,A" modes) with VDE?
Hyphenation on (Y/N) - Do you want hyphenation (^OH) to start out ON?
Case-insensitive search (Y/N) - Do you want string searches (^QF) to be case
insensitive by default? Normally, No; if Yes, specifying the "U"ppercase
option while using ^QF will force a case SENSITIVE search.
Left and Right margin columns (1-255) - Default margin settings for "W/A"
modes. Set both to 1 to disable wordwrap and reformatting entirely.
Reserve status line (Y/N) - Do you want VDE to reserve the bottom (normally
25th) screen line for use as a status or function key line by special
software? (Normally No, VDE uses this line for text.)
Scroll overlap (0-255) - This is the number of lines overlap between screens
when scrolling: the smaller, the larger the scroll. Originally set to 2,
for a nearly full scroll. Keep this smaller than your screen size!
Ring bell on error (Y/N) - Do you want the bell to ring when a VDE error
message displays?
[BkSp] (^H) deletes to left (Y/N) - Do you want the [BackSpace] (^H) key to
delete characters? Originally No - it just moves the cursor left.
[Del] deletes to right (Y/N) - Do you want the [Delete] key to remove the char-
acter to the right? Originally No - it deletes to the left, as in
WordStar. (NOTE: whichever you choose, Ctrl-[Del] will do the opposite.)
[Home,End] move left/right on line (Y/N) - Do you want the [Home] and [End]
keys to move to the start or end of the line? Originally No -- they move
to the top or bottom of the screen, as in WordStar 4.
Variable tab stops - Enter up to 8 variable tab stop columns, in ascending
order. Fill unused values with 0. Defaults: 6, 15, 35, 55. (Note: hard
tabs display at intervals of 8 columns, and cannot be adjusted.)
Show time as AM/PM, not 24 hr (Y/N) - Do you want the time stamp to display in
12 hour format (AM/PM)? Originally Yes. If No, the time shows in 24 hour
format. (Affects AltT command and ^T in print headers.)
European date format (day,month,yr) (Y/N) - Do you want the date to display in
European format? Originally No, meaning US Format (month,day,year).
(Affects AltD command and ^D in print headers.)
Show date numerically (Y/N) - Do you want AltD to enter the date numerically
(eg 1/15/88)? Originally No, meaning verbose (eg January 15, 1988).
------------------------- C. PRINTER INSTALLATION --------------------------
Printers vary enormously. VDE can accomodate two printer drivers, each
of which can be installed to take advantage of your printer's special
features. (Within VDE, the AltV command can be used to select the driver to
use when printing.) The defaults installed in VDE are a standard "IBM/Epson
FX" driver, and a "Simple" driver that can send plain text to any printer, but
does not support any print controls other than underline and strikeout. These
and several other pre-defined drivers can be selected from a menu within
VINSTALL. In addition, you can modify either of the drivers, or create your
own. (To modify the Alternate driver, you must temporarily make it the
selected one.)
If your printer is not on the driver menu, but emulates or resembles one
that is, start out using that driver, and refine it as needed. Failing this,
you must simply refer to your printer manual and install all the necessary
codes yourself.
NOTE: If you have to create or SIGNIFICANTLY modify a
driver for use with your printer, please send me the data
so that I can revise or add a new driver for it. Drop me a
postcard, or Email your VDP file to my CompuServe ID.
VINSTALL can use special Printer Installation files to store and retrieve
other printer definitions. These should have a file type of ".VDP". You have
the option to read in or write out such a file, as well as editing the
following values individually. This makes it easy to save your installation
and to pass it along to others.
Printer ID - Identify the printer you are installing. (16 characters)
IBM graphics printer (Y/N) - Normally No; if you can print the IBM extended
ASCII characters, set this to Yes. If No, VDE will "emulate" graphics on
printing, choosing standard character overstrikes that come close.
Send LF after CR (Y/N) - Normally Yes. But with some printers, which manufac-
ture their own LF on receiving a CR, you will want No here.
Page length (0-255) - Set the number of text lines to print on a page. (Does
not include another 3 lines for a header or page number, if used.)
Top margin (0-255) - Set the number of blank lines to skip as a top margin
before printing each page. This value (not included in the page length)
can be used to position the paper properly. Default is 0.
Reserve space for header (Y/N) - Default is Yes; when printing without header
or page number, 3 blank lines will be kept clear of text on each page, so
that the physical page layout is the same. If No, an additional 3 lines
of text will print.
Left margin (0-255) - Set the number of blank columns to skip as a left margin
before printing each line. Useful if you can't set the margin on your
printer with an initialization string. Default is 0.
Printer initialization - Enter an optional string of code (#),bytes to send to
the printer before each print job, to set default margins, print modes etc.
Max. length here and below is 1F = 31 bytes. (NOTE: the ^KP command has
an option to specify additional codes at print time. See PRINTING.)
Printer deinitialization - Enter another string (#),bytes to send to the
printer after each print job, to restore printer to desired state on exit.
Proportional printing - Enter the codes needed to set your printer for
proportional printing, when ^OJ is engaged, and then to turn this off.
Both strings are entered as (#),bytes.
Codes for toggles (on/off) - For six of the seven printer toggles (not ^X),
you need to tell VDE the codes to send to your printer to produce the
desired effect, then turn it off again. The conventional meanings of the
toggles are: ^B boldface ^Y italic/ribbon
^D doublestrike ^T superscript
^S underline ^V subscript
but you can use them for anything you want. Example: IBM/Epson printers
require three-byte sequences to turn continuous underlining on and off:
Underline on Esc - 1 hex 1B 2D 31 dec 27 45 49
off Esc - 0 1B 2D 30 27 45 48
You would enter the hex data, starting with the byte count:
Underline (^PS) on: (03)1B2D31
...and off: (03)1B2D30
You should find the necessary ASCII hex codes in your printer manual.
(NOTES: ^PS will underline text by overstriking with "_" if you do
not install printer codes for it. The ^PX toggle, for strikeout, requires
no installation at all.)
Codes for switches - The same idea, but for switches, which send the same
codes every time they are used. WordStar calls the switches:
^P^Q user1 \
^W user2 \ (no standard ^A alternate pitch
^E user3 / meaning) ^N normal pitch
^R user4 /
but once again, you can use them for anything you want: fonts, etc.
-------------------------- D. DEFAULT MACRO KEYS ---------------------------
VDE has a set of 36 Macro Keys (available in command mode only!), corres-
ponding to the commands Esc0...9 and EscA...Z. The default macro definitions
are those attached to these commands when VDE is first entered. By changing
them you can configure VDE to suit your own specialized writing requirements.
(Any Keys defined with Esc] while using VDE override these defaults.)
NOTE: If you have favorite macros or macro programs,
please consider sharing them with other users of VDE. Drop
me a postcard, or Email your macros to my CompuServe ID.
VINSTALL can use Key Definition files to store macro key sets. These
should have a file type of ".VDK", for ease of identification. You have the
option to read in or write out such a file, as well as editing the keys
individually. (VDK files can also be read or saved with VDE's AltU command,
but only VINSTALL can display the definitions.)
VINSTALL gives you a display much like this:
Macro Keys: (___ bytes free) <---- note room (up to 982)
[Esc0]<>
[Esc1]<> <---- "<>" flag means empty
[Esc2]<>
[Esc3]^[;^C <---- normal macro key
[Esc4]<>
[Esc5]<N>World Wide Widgets Inc. <---- "<N>" flag means no-rpt key
[Esc6]<>
[Esc7]<Q>^QR^KB^QC^KK^KC <---- "<Q>" flag means quiet key
[Esc8]<>
[Esc9]<>
Just select the number of the Key you want to redefine, then type in the new
definition, much as you would in VDE. All the same rules apply (but VINSTALL
will accept longer keys, up to 128 bytes). If the new definition is too long
to fit it will be rejected.
There are several different ranges of keys, which can be displayed and
modified in a range of 10 at a time (for example, keys 0-9, or A-J).
VDE.ARC comes with a macro key file EXAMPLES.VDK, containing several
macros discussed above under MACROS and MACRO PROGRAMMING:
[Esc0]<Q>^QR^NAltD^OF ;put date at top right
[Esc1]<Q>^QS^S^S^[= [^D^D ;move to start of paragraph
[Esc2]<Q>^[~.1^S^[1^[~.<^[2^D^[= 2^[=^M2 ;move to start of sentence
[Esc3]<Q>^QS^X^[=^M]^S^V ^V^D^[![ ;soften hard-CR paragraph
(Note that "Esc" displays as "^[".)
------------------------- E. DEFAULT FUNCTION KEYS -------------------------
VDE also has a set of 40 Function Keys (available in command mode only!),
corresponding to the [F1]...[F10] keys in their normal, Shift-, Ctrl-, and
Alt- usage (sometimes referred to collectively as [F1]...[F40]). These are
identical in features and functions to the Macro Keys discussed above. You
can easily configure these to match the standard function-key configuration
for Wordstar's key overlay, to correspond to Word Perfect function-key usage,
or in any other way you like.
VINSTALL can use Function Key Definition files to store function-key
sets. These should have a file type of ".VDF", for ease of identification.
You have the option to read in or write out such a file, as well as editing
the keys individually. (VDF files can also be read or written with VDE's AltU
command, but only VINSTALL can display the definitions.)
VINSTALL gives you a display much like this:
Function keys 1-10: (___ bytes free) <---- note room (up to 982)
[F1]<>
[F2]<> <---- "<>" flag means empty
[F3]<>
[F4]<Q>^OL5^M^OR60^M <---- normal function key
[F5]<>
[F6]<>
[F7]<>
[F8]<>
[F9]<Q>^PS
[F0]<Q>^PY
This works just like the macro keys above, with four sets of 10 keys to define
(Normal, Shift, Ctrl, Alt).
VDE.ARC includes sample function-key files which you can read in to
define the function keys according to the usage of WordStar or Word Perfect.
The WordStar 4 default definitions in WS4.VDF are:
WS4.VDF NORMAL SHIFT CTRL ALT
[F1] ^J ^OB ^QF Vertical bar graphic
[F2] ^U ^OC ^QA Horizontal bar
[F3] ^V^PS^V ^L Upper-left corner
[F4] ^V^PB^V ^QI Upper-right corner
[F5] ^Y ^KY ^OL Lower-left corner
[F6] ^T ^KU ^OR Lower-right corner
[F7] ^KV Upper T graphic
[F8] ^KC Lower T
[F9] ^KS ^KB ^QS Left T
[F0] ^KD ^KK ^QD Right T
The WP.VDF file will not "turn VDE into Word Perfect", but it does provide a
considerable degree of keystroke compatibility. You can assign any other
functions desired to unused keys (eg, [F9]).
WP.VDF NORMAL SHIFT CTRL ALT
[F1] ^U Esc?Y AltR
[F2] ^QF ^QA
[F3] ^J Esc?C ^OD
[F4] ^I^OL^M Esc?B Esc?B
[F5] ^KF AltD ^PZ
[F6] ^V^PB^V ^OC ^OF
[F7] Esc?E Esc?P
[F8] ^V^PS^V Esc?T Esc?S Esc?S
[F9]
[F0] ^KS Esc?F Esc[
-------------------------- F. GRAPHICS CHARACTERS --------------------------
VDE allows text to contain a limited, but variable, set of 32 characters
in the range 80-FFh (on an IBM PC, these are typically graphics or foreign
characters; see GRAPHICS). In addition, the code ^Z (1Ah) must be treated as
a graphics character. VINSTALL lets you specify your own default graphics
set. Keep a fair amount of space free in it if you frequently work with files
with many graphics characters, in order to avoid overflowing the table.
You will be shown the current definitions, in the same format as the VDE
Graphics command. You may select any entry to redefine (A-Z, 1-5) whether
vacant or not; furthermore, you may type "-" to clear them all. (Graphic 6
cannot be changed; it always remains a fuzzy block.) In VINSTALL, new graphic
codes must be entered by hex value, from 80 to FF (and 1A); a full list of
graphics characters (80-FF) can be displayed for your selection if you need
it, by typing "?". Simply pressing [Ret] means "free" or undefined.
Note that your Printer Installation determines how graphics will print.
--------------------------- G. CHARACTER WIDTHS ----------------------------
In order to judge the margins correctly when formatting, VDE's
proportional printing feature (^OJ) needs to know how wide each character is
when it prints. The default width table will probably work fairly well with
any standard ASCII font (eg, "m" is wider than "i", and so on).
If you would like to fine-tune this table to correspond to your own
printer instead, you can measure your own font and modify the width table as
needed. (You must know the character widths in 1/256"; the easiest way to get
this is to print out a line of 64 of each character, measure the length in
multiples of 1/16", and divide by 4. The result is typically between 10 and
30.) Just type the character, then enter the width as a decimal value.
Note that this doesn't affect how your printer operates -- just how VDE
judges the length of each line for wordwrap, when ^OJ is on.
--------------------------- H. RESTORE DEFAULTS ----------------------------
This option on the VINSTALL menu is provided in the event that you want
to undo any changes that you (or someone else) has made to your copy of VDE.
This should return VDE to the state it was distributed in: installation for
IBM PC, all User Options restored to their defaults, printer driver set to
Simple, no Macro or Function Keys, original Graphics characters and Character
widths.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--- Eric Meyer, 401 12th Ave SE #139, Norman OK 73071 ---
===================================[end]======================================
WSNOTE.DOC
INSTRUCTION MANUAL
tm
wsNOTE
note formatter
(c)1989 E. Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139
Norman, OK 73071 USA
ABOUT wsNOTE
------------
wsNOTE is a small, fast, easily used program that enables you to produce
numbered footnotes or endnotes with your WordStar program. It has some
additional formatting features as well. wsNOTE is completely independent of
WordStar, and requires no modifications to your present copy of it; yet wsNOTE
can be run without ever leaving WordStar.
Its advantages include:
* - Simple,natural file format. No strange embedded commands; no control
codes to conflict with your printer installation, or other software.
* - Fast, one-pass operation produces either footnotes or endnotes from the
same source file; notes can be typed along with text or separately.
* - Can also function as a simple numbering utility, for example, numbering
items in a bibliography.
* - Figure Block feature offers space for illustrations without interrupting
the flow of text.
* - Large documents may be split into separate files,which can be chained
together for output or processed separately.
* - You have complete flexibility in format of note numbers and text.
wsNOTE works on text files created with WordStar or compatible programs
(like NewWord), including the new WordStar 4.0. The CP/M version runs on any
CP/M or compatible (eg, ZRDOS) computer. The MSDOS version runs on any PCDOS
or MSDOS computer with at least 128K RAM.
This manual contains no special codes other than formfeeds. It can be
printed out, or examined onscreen with any editor. It was written using VDE
(Video Display Editor) 1.31, a freeware program from the same author.
SHAREWARE POLICY
----------------
The wsNOTE program is "shareware", user supported software. There is no
initial obligation: feel free to give wsNOTE a thorough trial. But if you
decide to keep the program and to continue using it, this usage policy
requires that you send a modest contribution of $25 (individual user) or $50
(corporate site license) to the author:
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139
Norman, OK 73071 USA
CompuServe [74415,1305]
Mention the version of wsNOTE that you are using, and you will receive an
update to the current version if revisions have been made. Sorry, printed
copies of this manual are not available from the author.
****************************************************************
***** The wsNOTE utility and its documentation are *****
***** (c)1988 E. Meyer, all rights reserved. *****
***** They may not be circulated in any incomplete or *****
***** modified form, nor sold for profit, without *****
***** written permission of the author. *****
****************************************************************
DISCLAIMER: You undertake to use wsNOTE at your own risk. The author
accepts no liability for any damages resulting from its use or misuse. Direct
problem reports and suggestions to the author; include a stamped return
envelope for a reply if desired.
NOTES: Please observe in what follows that "WordStar", "NewWord", and
"Mailmerge", are trademarks of MicroPro International or NewStar Software.
The wsNOTE program was formerly sold as a commercial product; it is now
released as shareware by the author.
GETTING STARTED
---------------
The wsNOTE package should contain the following files:
WSNOTE.EXE (or COM) - the wsNOTE program
CONFIG.EXE (or COM) - a configuration utility
SAMPLE.FIL - a sample text file to practice with
In addition there may be a READ.ME file, containing last-minute updates to the
information in this Manual. If so, TYPE or PRINT this file, or edit it with
WordStar or VDE, to read it. Eventually you will want to move WSNOTE, and
possibly its CONFIG utility, onto your working WordStar disk (if there's room).
wsNOTE is a "post-processor": it reads through a text file that you
create with WordStar, and it creates a formatted file for you to print. This
means that wsNOTE consumes no memory, and will not interfere with your
existing writing process. The same input file may be processed to produce
either footnotes or endnotes, as desired. The output is a standard WordStar
document file, and any other software (like indexing utilities) may be used on
it prior to printing.
You can convert existing documents for use with wsNOTE. The easiest way
is to replace all the note numbers with "##" signs, and collect all the notes
in a separate ".XNT" file (see "EXTERNAL NOTE OPTION", below).
This Manual is short; please read it thoroughly. It covers:
1. How to create or modify text files for use with wsNOTE. (You may
want to examine the file SAMPLE.FIL as you read this.)
2. How to run the WSNOTE program itself, to format and number your
notes, and proofread and print the output.
3. How to use the CONFIG program to take advantage of the many
formatting options of wsNOTE.
You will need to be familiar with the use of WordStar itself on your
computer, including the "dot commands" used by WordStar (and Mailmerge) for
print-time formatting. If you find yourself needing to refresh your memory on
any of this, keep your WordStar manual handy as you proceed.
The following instructions apply to both the MSDOS and CP/M versions of
wsNOTE, and to the use of either WordStar or NewWord, identically.
FILE FORMAT
-----------
First, you need to know how to type a note call in your text, the place
where the note number should go. Just type it as you always have, except that
instead of an actual number like 17, type two or three "#" characters. The
number may be formatted in any way you like: in square brackets "[##]", or
superscripted "^T##^T", etc. The "#"s will be replaced by the actual note
number when you run WSNOTE. Use of two "#"s gives note numbers up to 99; use
three only if you expect you will need numbers larger than 99.
Once you make your choices of format and number of digits, every note
call in the file must be done the same way. Any call that is not done exactly
like the first will not be recognized. (There is one exception: when you want
the note number to reset to 1, as at the start of a new chapter, you may use
"#1" instead of "##", or "##1" instead of "###".)
EXAMPLE: Try the ^SwsNOTE^S^T#1^T program to format your notes.^T##^T
1 2
RESULT: Try the wsNOTE program to format your notes.
Second, you need to know how to type the actual notes. They can be put
after the end of any paragraph, either before or after their calls, though
they should be reasonably close. The natural place is at the end of the
paragraph in which the calls occurred. Keep the notes in the proper order,
and remember not to try to put them into the middle of a text paragraph; they
would not be recognized.
Each note (or group of several notes) must be enclosed as a "note block"
between the characters "{}" (curly braces), which distinguish a note block
from a paragraph of ordinary text. The "{" must be the first character on its
line, and the "}" the last on its. Neither brace will appear in the printed
output; they are markers only.
Each note within the block must have somewhere on its first line a number
"##" or "###" with the same number of digits as the calls have. They may be
formatted differently from the calls, but again all notes must be done the
same way. You can, for example, use "[##]" for the calls and "##." for the
notes. Use of "#1" and "##1" in the notes is allowed, if it helps you keep
things straight, but is not needed, and has no effect.
EXAMPLE: { ##. "wsNOTE" is a trademark of the author.
##. The program can produce either footnotes or endnotes,
depending on your preferences.}
EXTERNAL NOTE OPTION: Most users find note blocks integrated with the
text to be easiest to use and keep track of. However, if you prefer to type
your notes in a separate file (or have already done so), wsNOTE has an
"external note" option. Don't put any note blocks in your text. In the note
file, just type in the notes as desired, with "##" in place of the numbers;
don't use block markers ("{}"). Give the note file the same name as the text
file, and the type ".XNT"; for "PAPER2" or "MAGAZ.ART", use "PAPER2.XNT" or
"MAGAZ.XNT". If an ".XNT" (external note) file is present, wsNOTE will
automatically use it.
DOT COMMANDS
------------
When using wsNOTE, a few WordStar/Mailmerge dot commands should not
ordinarily be used. Others will operate somewhat differently than usual,
because wsNOTE interprets them itself at formatting time, and may or may not
pass them along to WordStar as well. Also, two new ones are available.
Dot commands that should usually not be used are: ".LH", which would
change the vertical spacing of lines; ".PF", ".LM", and ".RM", which would
cause print-time reformatting of text. If wsNOTE encounters these commands,
it will issue a warning message, but will keep going. Thus you can use them
if you really know what you're doing; but this is not encouraged, and page
misalignment may result.
(You should also avoid the formfeed character, ^PL.)
Dot commands whose usage differs under wsNOTE are:
".PL", ".MT", ".MB" can each be used only once, at the beginning of your
file, before any text, or page misalignment may result. If used, they
override any default set with CONFIG.
".CP" may not function as intended if the text it governs includes
footnote calls, since the notes cause the page to fill sooner than expected.
".LS" will affect the spacing of the output text, but not the notes. In
particular, ".LS 2" will produce double spaced text, while the notes remain
single spaced. This (rather than typing with ^OS) is the recommended method.
".FI" should be used only at the end of a file, where it will chain to a
new input file. Don't specify a drive; the file will be sought on the same
drive as the original one. This is the easiest way to break up a large
document. For example, PART1.DOC might end with the line ".FI PART2.DOC".
(Although ".LS" and ".FI" are Mailmerge commands, you don't need Mail-
merge for them to work, because wsNOTE is processing them itself.)
wsNOTE also has two new dot commands of its own:
".NN" (Note Number), sets the current note number the same way ".PN" sets
page numbers. This can be used to reset to 1 at the start of a chapter, or to
synchronize numbers across multiple files.
".FB" (Figure Block), provides an extra feature which WordStar lacks.
".FB nn" causes the next 'nn' lines of text (or blank space) to appear
together on the next page, while the surrounding text continues to flow around
normally. Thus in contrast to ".CP", no premature page break occurs. If you
can't see immediately how this is useful, try it out! This feature is used
for printing tables intact, or setting aside space for an illustration to be
pasted in, without interrupting the text in an unnatural way. Figure blocks
can be no larger than one page.
(WordStar will of course not recognize ".NN" and ".FB" as valid dot
commands; don't be disturbed by the "?" shown in the flag column.)
RUNNING wsNOTE
--------------
Once you've done the work of writing your file, actually formatting it is
easy. You can do this either from the operating system prompt, or from within
WordStar via the Opening (No-File) Menu "R" command. If you've never used the
"R" command, now is the time to discover it. It allows you to run nearly any
command or program, without exiting from WordStar. At the Opening Menu, type
"R". WordStar asks "COMMAND?", and you simply type in the name (followed by
any required arguments) and press <RETURN>. When the program is finished, the
message "Hit any key to return to WordStar" will appear; doing this brings
back the Opening Menu.
In either case, WSNOTE takes two arguments. The first is your text
filename, and is required. Include the drive, if different from the current
drive. The second is an optional flag "-e", if you want endnotes; omit it if
you want footnotes.
EXAMPLES: (from DOS, with endnotes) A>wsnote b:sample.fil -e
(from WordStar, with footnotes) COMMAND? wsnote sample.fil
There must be enough free space on the disk in use for another complete
copy of your document. Remember to add together the sizes of any files you
are chaining together, and add a few extra K just to be safe. When wsNOTE
stops, there will be a new file on the disk, with the same name as the (first)
input file, but the type ".PRN". (SAMPLE.FIL will produce SAMPLE.PRN.) This
is the formatted output, all set to print using WordStar's "P" print command.
It is wise to make a habit of proofreading the ".PRN" file before
printing it, in order to check the page layout. Edit it in "D" (document)
mode, and scroll through it at will. But remember, to make corrections you
should edit your source file, then run wsNOTE again. Make changes directly in
the ".PRN" file only when needed to get it to print the way you want; and
never do anything resulting in a net change of the number of lines. This
would cause pages to become misaligned in printing. (Make sure WordStar's
page break indicators agree with the wsNOTE "..page" markers.)
If you selected endnotes ("-e"), there will be a second output file with
the type ".NOT", containing your notes. It is also a document file, but may
be edited or reformatted as you like before printing. (You may, for example,
want to insert a ".PN" command to get the right page numbering.)
NUMBERING OPTION: It is also possible to use wsNOTE to simply number
items in a list, for example a bibliography. Just enter the usual "##" (or
"###") for the number of each item, making sure that all are formatted exactly
the same way. Then run WSNOTE on the file, with the option "-n":
EXAMPLE: COMMAND? wsnote bibliog.104 -n
The numbering will proceed sequentially from 1 (unless modified with "##1" or
the .NN command). Other wsNOTE features (such as figure blocks) also remain
active. The output file will have the type ".PRN".
USAGE TIPS
----------
Make sure that you either (1) use CONFIG to set the page length, top and
bottom margins in wsNOTE to agree with the defaults you have installed in your
copy of WordStar, or (2) always put ".PL", ".MT", and ".MB" commands at the
top of your file. Otherwise wsNOTE and WordStar won't agree on the page
format, and pages will get misaligned.
Follow the "FILE FORMAT" instructions exactly. If a note call or number
is not done correctly or consistently, wsNOTE won't recognize it, and notes
may start getting mismatched, or an error may occur. If a note block is not
correctly marked off, it will appear to be missing, or not to end, and an
error will result.
Be careful if you "block move" a note block, to be sure that it still
stands as a paragraph: begins after, and ends with, a hard carriage return.
If you use right justified text, don't use three "###" signs unless you
will need numbers over 99. The extra one will add an unnecessary space.
wsNOTE features don't "nest": you can't put dot commands, note calls, or
note blocks inside of other note blocks or figure blocks.
The .LS command is the easiest way to produce double-spaced text. The
alternative, multiple line spacing with ^OS in WordStar, can cause problems in
the spacing of notes, and is not recommended. If you must use ^OS, be sure
that only a single <RETURN> precedes and follows each note block.
If you want a blank line between each note in your output, insert an
extra <RETURN> after every note in the source file. Remember to do this for
the last note in each block, too (before the closing "}"), or some notes will
not be spaced properly.
There are two ways to handle a document consisting of multiple files.
First, you can chain the files together with a ".FI" at the end of each. This
will produce a single ".PRN" file, with the name of the first input file. (If
you are using external notes, they must also be in a single ".XNT" file with
that name.)
Alternatively, you can process each file quite separately. At the start
of each file, you can use the ".PN" and ".NN" commands to synchronize the page
and note numbers. This is best if a single output file would be unwieldy.
Problems can occur in printing the ".PRN" file, if a page ends while an
alternate print mode (underlined, compressed, etc) is in effect. For example,
the footnotes and next page header may also print in that mode, or the text
may fail to return to it on the next page. In this event you will need to
stop the printing, edit the ".PRN" file, and manually insert extra print codes
where needed to correct the problem. Then print out the offending pages
again. Be careful not to insert or delete any lines in the process, or pages
will become misaligned.
The smaller the capacity of your disk drive, the smaller you should keep
your text files. WordStar always makes temporary and backup files; this can
quickly fill up a small floppy disk. Delete ".BAK" files when you can, and
".PRN" files once they're printed.
USING CONFIG
------------
The CONFIG utility offers you a number of quick, useful ways to customize
the use of wsNOTE to suit your tastes, or the requirements of a style manual.
Most people will only need to run CONFIG once. If you often have to use
different styles, you will need to either keep CONFIG on your disk with WSNOTE
or set up several different copies of WSNOTE.
CONFIG takes a single argument, the name of your wsNOTE program. (In-
clude the drive if it's not the current drive.) Again, CONFIG may be run from
either the system prompt or the "R" command in WordStar.
EXAMPLE: COMMAND? config wsnote.exe
You will see a menu of all the parameters you can change, which are
described below, and their current values. Type the menu letter of the one
you wish to change, then enter the desired value. When you're through, hit
<RETURN> to save your changes, or type ^C to abort without saving. This copy
of WSNOTE.EXE (or COM) will be modified as you chose.
Read this list now, to familiarize yourself with the control you have
over the appearance of the printed output. The choices, in order, are:
A: note number character. The default is "#". If you want or need to
use a different character to designate note numbers, you may.
B,C: note block delimiters. The defaults are "{}". Again, if you
prefer different characters you may change these.
D,E: note line character, length. The character to use for the note
separator line between text and footnotes (D), and how long the line should
be (E). Defaults are "-", 20 characters. You may prefer "~", "_", etc, or
a longer line. If you want no line, set the length to 0.
F,G: blank lines before, after line. These are the number of lines you
want to skip before and after the note separator line. Defaults are 1 line
before (F), and 0 after (G).
H: minimum lines for note start. Setting this to "n" means that if
there is not room on the page for the first "n" lines of a footnote, the
note will be postponed to the next page. Default is 1 (no postponement).
I,J: printer codes for notes. You can get your notes to automatically
print in a different mode from the text (such as compressed), if you want.
Enter the WordStar control code you've installed to turn on the printer mode
desired for the notes (I), and the one to return to your text mode (J).
These might be, for example, ^Q and ^R; type these codes in directly.
If you use a print mode with a different character width, be sure to
format your note blocks with appropriately adjusted margins, so their prin-
ted width will match that of the text.
Defaults: no codes. (This displays as "none", and may be entered from
the keyboard by typing <RETURN> alone.)
K: physical page length. This is the number of lines on a page. Set
it to agree with whatever you have installed in WordStar. This setting is
overridden by the .PL command, if used. Default: 66 lines (for ordinary 11"
paper, 6 lines per inch).
L,M: top, bottom margins. Again, set these to agree with the defaults
you have installed in WordStar. These settings will be overridden by the
commands .MT or .MB, if used. Defaults: 0 lines top, 0 lines bottom.
N: new page resets to note 1? To change this, enter "Y" or "N". If
you set this to "Yes", the first note number on each page starts over again
at 1. Default: "No", note numbers continue to increment.
O: notes up on short pages? Enter "Y" or "N". Ordinarily "No", and
footnotes always print at the very bottom of the page. If set to "Yes", on
a partly filled page, notes (if present) print up right under the text.
P: avoid widow text lines? Enter "Y" or "N". Ordinarily "No"; if you
set this to "Yes", wsNOTE will avoid beginning a paragraph on the last line
of a page (it will begin on the next page instead).
Q: right justified text? Enter "Y" or "N". Ordinarily "Yes", and
extra (soft) spaces are inserted where necessary to preserve justification
(for example, after one-digit note numbers). Set to "No" to avoid these
extra spaces in unjustified text.
R: buffer size in K. There are four buffers in wsNOTE, each of this
size (default: 6K). The minimum is 2K. If you start getting "buffer over-
flow" error messages from wsNOTE, increase this size. If you get "buffers
exceed available RAM", decrease it.
CONFIG ERRORS
CONFIG modifies the actual WSNOTE.EXE file. This cannot be done if the
disk WSNOTE is on is write-protected, or Read/Only. In such cases, a BDOS
Error message will appear, and the changes will not be made.
Note that CONFIG will refuse to save if you have specified a buffer size
below 2K, or a page length that's too small for the margins. Correct the
offending value(s) and try again.
In addition, two error messages may appear when you try to run CONFIG:
"can't open input file" - The name you gave for your wsNOTE program doesn't
exist. Either it's misspelled or incomplete, or it's on another drive.
"can't CONFIG that file" - The file exists, but it either isn't wsNOTE, or
isn't the correct version.
ERROR MESSAGES
--------------
Every effort has been made to trap and identify errors neatly. When an
error causes wsNOTE to abort formatting, the output file(s) will of course be
incomplete. Take a look at the end of the ".PRN" file, to get an idea of
where in your source file the problem occurred. Then refer to this alpha-
betical list, for some suggestions as to the likely cause.
"bad dot command argument" - The number following a dot command appears to
be invalid or missing.
"bad figure block" - A figure block was still being read in when the end of
your file was reached. Either some of its text is missing, or you need to
decrease the number of lines in the ".FB" command.
"bad note block" - A note block was still being read in when the end of your
file was reached. This means the note block is not terminated properly
with "}", <RETURN>.
"bad option specified" - The only thing allowed on the command line after
"WSNOTE INPUT.FIL" is "-E" or "-N". You typed something else.
"buffers exceed available RAM" - Your computer doesn't have room for four
buffers of the current size. Use CONFIG to decrease your buffer size.
The maximum under CP/M will be about 10K; under MSDOS, about 15K.
"can't open file" - The file specified in a ".FI" command can't be found.
There is an error in the filename, or you tried to specify a drive.
"can't open input file" - The file you gave on the wsNOTE command line can't
be found on the current (or specified) disk. Did you misspell it, or is
it on a different disk?
"can't open output file" - wsNOTE can't write its output on the current (or
specified) disk. Either it's read-only, or its directory is full. (This
error can occur if your input file has the type ".PRN" or ".NOT", which
you should avoid.)
"figure block exceeds page" - A ".FB" command has requested a figure block
larger than the current number of free lines on a page. Decrease the
header and bottom margins, or make the figure block shorter.
"figure buffer overflow" - The text of a figure block filled the available
buffer. Decrease the amount of text in the block, or use CONFIG to
increase your buffer size.
"foot buffer overflow" - The text of footnotes already scheduled to print
has filled the available buffer. Don't call so many notes from a single
page, or make them shorter, or use CONFIG to increase your buffer size.
"missing note block" - A note block was still being searched for when the
end of your file was reached. Either some notes are missing, or there are
too many calls in the text.
"no file specified" - You didn't give wsNOTE the name of your text file, so
it couldn't even get started.
"no note in buffer" - The contents of a note block don't look like notes,
because there is no proper "##" number on the first line. There is
probably a simple error in its format. The same error in a subsequent
note in the block will cause it to become part of the preceding one.
In external note mode (with an ".XNT" file), this message indicates
that there weren't enough notes in the file for all the calls in the text.
"note buffer overflow" - Your note block appears to be too long to fit in
the note buffer. Probably, the block isn't terminated properly with "}",
<RETURN>. Possibly you've left out some calls, and so have too many
notes. If your notes are simply too large, or you've put in too many
before their calls, you need to increase your buffer size with CONFIG.
In external note mode (with an ".XNT" file), this message means that
one single note was too large to fit in the buffer.
"page align error" - This is very unlikely. It indicates that wsNOTE can't
cope with the combination of page length, header and bottom margins that
you have set with CONFIG, which must be pretty strange.
"source line too long" - There appears to be a line in the text file that
exceeds the maximum length, currently 256 characters. You probably forgot
to reformat a paragraph.
"text buffer overflow" - While looking ahead to find a note block, the text
buffer filled up. You need to put this note block closer to the point in
the text where it was called, or to increase your buffer size with CONFIG.
"[Warning: extra notes]" - This is only a warning. wsNOTE has finished, but
there still seem to be unused notes. Probably you left out a call in the
text, and the following notes may all be mismatched as a result. Proof-
read the output carefully.
In numbering ("-n") mode this error means that a note block was found.
"[Warning: found .XX]" - This is only a warning; formatting does not stop.
You have used a dot command that is not recommended, and will likely cause
misaligned pages in your printout. Abort wsNOTE with ^C if this was a
mistake. Proofread the output carefully.
"[Warning: multiple spacing]" - This is only a warning. wsNOTE has found
text that was multiple-spaced with ^OS. This may cause spacing problems
in the notes. Proofread the output carefully.
[END]
wsNOTE Manual Rev. 1.35 (04/89)
ZIP.DOC
ZIP.DOC
-------
Instructions for ZIP.COM
IBM PC Fast Serial File Transfer Utility
Version 1.43 (03/28/90)
(c)1988-90 E. Meyer
Requires: two IBM PC compatible computers with DOS 2.x or above;
appropriate serial (null modem) cable.
ZIP is a tiny, fast utility to transfer files between two IBM compatible
computers over an ordinary serial cable connection. This is especially useful
when large amounts of data are involved, and essential when the computers
don't share a common disk size or format.
ZIP is ideal for laptop computers: it requires only 7k of disk storage,
and consumes no memory when not in use, yet it can transfer files or groups of
files with a single command.
=============================== USAGE POLICY ===============================
The ZIP utility and its documentation are copyright (c)1988-90 Eric
Meyer, all rights reserved. They may not be circulated in any incomplete or
modified form, nor sold for profit, without written permission of the author.
The use or sale of ZIP is subject to the following terms:
INDIVIDUAL USE: ZIP may be freely used and shared with others; there is
---------- no required registration fee. (If you like ZIP and find it
useful, please do consider sending a contribution!)
INSTITUTIONAL USE: Any corporation or institution wishing to use ZIP in the
------------- course of its business must purchase a SITE LICENSE. A
standard license, allowing the use of ZIP on up to 20
different computers, can be ordered for US $50.00; write
for terms concerning larger quantities. A disk containing
the latest release of ZIP will be included at no additional
charge (please specify 5.25" 360k or 3.5" 720k disk).
COMMERCIAL SALE: Any software dealer or library may offer ZIP for sale,
---- as long as the price of the disk containing the program
does not exceed US $5.00. With this single exception, the
sale of ZIP for profit, either alone or together with other
software or hardware, requires a contract to provide for
royalty payments. Please write to the author for terms.
CUSTOMIZATION: It is often possible to develop modified versions of ZIP
for special applications. Contact the author for details.
Eric Meyer
401 12th Ave SE, #139 CompuServe [74415,1305]
Norman, OK 73071 USA
DISCLAIMER: You undertake to use ZIP at your own risk. The author
assumes no liability for damages of any kind resulting from your use of ZIP.
=============================== INTRODUCTION ===============================
Anyone with two computers probably needs to transfer programs or data
between them... If you have compatible disk drives, you can just swap disks,
though this gets tedious if done frequently or with large amounts of data.
And if you have incompatible drives, like old-style 5.25" versus the 3.5"
drives on laptop computers, you're out of luck!
Rather than shuffling stacks of disks, or buying expensive additional
hardware, a simple (null modem) cable connected between serial ports can be
used to transfer data instead -- at rates approaching 14K per second! There
are good commercial programs for this purpose, though they typically cost over
$100; if you're willing to find or make your own cable, you can do the same
job with ZIP instead. ZIP doesn't have all the features of the fancy
programs, but then it doesn't consume precious system memory either; it just
transfers files when you need to, as simply as using the COPY command.
ZIP is as fast as a serial transfer program can be, and faster than some
free/shareware programs that claim to operate "at 115200 bps" (twice as fast
as PCMag's ZCOPY, for example, which uses a slower I/O technique). ZIP can
transfer data up to 6 times faster than a telecom program over a serial
cable... 48 times faster than typical modem transfers.
Telecom programs: modem 2400 bps 0.3 K/sec
: cable 19200 bps 2.3 K/sec
ZIP: cable 115200 bps up to 14.1 K/sec!
If you don't own the latest '386, ZIP will come about as close to this amazing
throughput as your computer speed allows. (Between an 8MHz XT clone and
4.77MHz laptop, it reaches about 10K/sec.) Of course, disk access also takes
time; with any system, large amounts of data can be sent more quickly using
hard or RAM disks, rather than (slow) floppy disk drives.
-------------------------------- I. USING ZIP --------------------------------
Transferring files with ZIP requires a copy of ZIP.COM on both computers,
and the correct cable connection between them. For more on null modem cables,
see the Technical Information section below. If incompatible disk formats
prevent you from getting ZIP.COM itself onto the second computer to begin
with, you can "clone" a copy of ZIP with the ZIPDUP utility (see below).
Transferring a file between computers with ZIP is as easy as copying it
from one disk to another. To transfer files, once the cable is properly
connected to the serial ports of the two computers, from the DOS prompt:
1. MENU-DRIVEN OPERATION. Simply type "ZIP" on both
machines; the program will step you through all the necessary
choices, including transferring or receiving files.
You will also have the option to view file directories
and/or delete files.
2. Command line operation, for experienced users. (See
full explanations and usage examples, below.)
C>zip FILENAME to send a file
C>zip /R to receive
C>zip FILENAME /F to fetch a file from serer
C>zip /S to enter server mode
As each file is transferred you should see a line of "=" signs
representing the remaining file length (if over 64k), with a blinking asterisk
("*") at the end.
During communications, ZIP can be aborted by pressing ^C (or Ctrl-Break):
(1) on either end, during initial handshaking
(otherwise ZIP waits as long as necessary for connection)
(2) on sending end, during file transfer
(will abort once current file is finished)
(3) at confirmation or string input prompts.
SENDING FILES
In menu mode, simply select "S"end, and you will be prompted for the
filename(s). For command-line use, specify the name(s) of the file(s) to send:
C>zip FILENAME
The "FILENAME" can be a single file (including directory), or a GROUP
specified by wildcards (eg, *.BAK), or a LIST of these delimited by commas
(FILE1,FILE2). Each item assumes or continues the same drive/directory as the
previous one (unless the new one begins with a drive or root directory). Thus
C:\WRK>zip B:\SF\GORT,LTRS\*.892,KLAATU
will send files B:\SF\GORT, B:\SF\LTRS\*.892, and B:\SF\LTRS\KLAATU.
Any desired options may follow the filename(s). Files will appear with
the same filename, in the receiving directory. Take care not to send two
files with the same name, as one would overwrite the other.
RECEIVING FILES
In menu mode, simply select "R"eceive, and you will be prompted for the
directory to receive into. For command-line use, specify the option "/R" for
RECEIVE:
C>zip /R
Each file will appear with its original filename. Files are received into the
current directory, unless you specify another. In command line mode, this can
be done in square brackets after the /R option:
C>zip /r[DIRECTORY]
(Note: ZIP also still accepts the syntax of earlier versions, where the
directory was specified from the command line by typing:
C>zip DIRECTORY /r
but this tends to seem confusing, and may not continue to be supported.)
SELECTING THE SERIAL PORT
IBM-compatible computers have anywhere from one to four serial (RS232)
ports. By default ZIP uses the COM1 port. The standard port addresses are:
COM1: 03F8h COM3:03E8h
COM2: 02F8h COM4:02E8h
Some computers (including PS/2s!) use different port addresses for COM3 and
COM4; to use a nonstandard port address, you must modify ZIP.COM with ZIPCFG.
You can select any standard COM port during operation of ZIP: in menu
mode, just select the choice to modify "P"arameters. In command line mode,
specify one of the following options:
/1-4 = Use port COM1-4.
You will see a note in the ZIP signon message, "Port=____", giving the
port address in use.
SELECTING FILES FROM A GROUP
If you want to transfer only certain files in a group (such as *.BAK)
with ZIP, you can request that you be prompted to confirm each file
individually: you will be asked to hit a key (Y/N) to determine whether the
file is to be sent. (In menu mode, you can select "O"ptions for a help
message describing the selective copy operations.) After the names of files
to be transferred, in menu or command line mode, specify this option:
/P = PROMPT to confirm files individually
This option (which can be combined with others) can be specified on
either end -- but the option on the SENDING (or active) end governs each
transfer. You will see a note in the ZIP signon message, "Option /P", if this
option is in effect.
OVERWRITING FILES
It is possible that a file already exists on the receiving end with the
same name as the one being sent. By default, ZIP doesn't care: it will
transfer all files specified, whether or not they overwrite existing ones.
Several options are provided to modify this behavior. (In menu mode, you can
select "O"ptions for a help message describing the selective copy operations.)
After the names of files to be transferred, in menu or command line mode,
specify one (or two) of these options:
/N = copy NONexisting files only
(cannot be used with /E or /T)
/E = copy EXISTING files only
/T = TIMESTAMP determines files sent
The /N option will prevent all files from being overwritten. The /T
option will allow overwrites only when the new copy has a more recent time
stamp. The /ET combination is especially useful for backup purposes: it
transfers only more recent copies of files that already exist.
These options can be specified independently on either computer -- but
the options on the SENDING (or active) end govern each transfer. You will see
a note in the ZIP signon message, "Option /_", if an option is in effect.
SERVER MODE
It would obviously be easier to transfer files if you could do all the
typing from one keyboard -- and "server mode" lets you do just that. In
server mode, ZIP stays "on line" on one end, ready to send or receive files,
or answer directory requests, from the other end automatically. To enter
server mode: in menu mode, just select the choice for ser"V"er. In command
line mode, specify the option /S for SERVER:
C>zip /S
ZIP will then remain ready to exchange files until such time as you press
^C or Ctrl-Break to exit server mode.
From the other ("active") keyboard, you can then transfer files TO the
server; these will be received into the default directory, either the current
one or another that you specify in square brackets:
C>zip /s[NEWDIR] = Server mode, default directory NEWDIR.
In any event, when you send files to the server, you will be prompted for
a destination directory (if desired) to override the default on the server end.
In command-line mode, you can specify this on the command line in brackets:
C>zip sendfile /[DESTDIR]
(Specify "/[]" if you simply want to avoid the prompt and use the default, for
example, when running ZIP from a batch file.)
You can also fetch files FROM the server. In menu mode, just select the
choice to "F"etch files. In command line mode, specify the option:
/F = Fetch specified files from server.
You must specify the directory with the filenames, if they are not in the
default directory on the server end. You will be prompted for a directory to
receive the files into, unless you specify one in square brackets after the /F
option:
C>zip filename /f[DESTDIR] = Fetch into directory DESTDIR.
(Again, specify "/f[]" to avoid the prompt and use the current directory.)
A fetch request will not be completed until server mode is detected on
the other end.
VIEWING DIRECTORIES and DELETING FILES
When ZIP is in menu-driven mode, you will see choices for "D"irectory and
d"E"lete, offering simple file maintenance from within ZIP.COM itself.
The directory function provides an alphabetized file listing for your
reference, and the free space left on the disk. You will be prompted for the
files to list. If you just hit RETURN, ZIP lists all files (*.*) in the
default directory.
The delete function prompts for a filename to delete (as always, a
directory may be included). Note that wildcards ("*,?") are NOT allowed.
If the other computer has ZIP running in SERVER MODE, you can also
request a directory from it, or delete files on it. Simply type a ">" before
the filespec for the server. This can be done alone, or together with a
request on the active end:
Directory: \WORK\*.BAK active alone
Directory: >B:\BACKUP server alone
Directory: \WORK\*.BAK >B:\BACKUP combined
and similarly,
Delete: \WORK\THIS.FIL >B:\BACKUP\THAT.FIL
A server directory or delete request will not be completed until server
mode is detected on the other end.
BACKING UP A HARD DISK
At times you may need to transfer the entire contents of a sizable disk,
including several levels of directories. ZIP is not specifically designed to do
this: it does not create directories while copying, nor does it look for files
within subdirectories. However, it is easy enough to put the receiver in
Server mode, then run a BAT file containing a separate command for each
desired directory (once corresponding directories exist on both ends):
zip \work\*.* /t[\work]
zip \work\ed\*.* /t[\work\ed] ...
USAGE EXAMPLES (Command line mode)
SENDING FILES:
C>zip b:myfile,*.doc sends files B:MYFILE, B:*.DOC
C>zip my.* /2 /p sends files C:MY.* over COM2, with
prompts to confirm each file individually
C>zip *.* /n sends all files which don't already exist
on receiving directory
C>zip a:chapter.* /et sends all files A:CHAPTER.* of which an
older version exists on the receiving end
RECEIVING FILES:
C:\WORK>zip /r receives files into directory C:\WORK
C:\WORK>zip /2 /r[\temp] receives over COM2 into directory C:\TEMP
ENTERING SERVER MODE:
C>zip /s waits as server to send or receive files
C>zip /s[d:\] waits as server, with default directory D:\
EXCHANGING FILES WITH SERVER:
C>zip *.bak /[] sends files *.BAK to server's default dir
C>zip *.bak /[b:\recs] sends files *.BAK to directory B:\RECS
C>zip b:\recs\my.* /f fetches files MY.* from directory B:\RECS
C>zip b:\recs\my.* /f[\orig] fetches files MY.* from directory B:\RECS
on server into directory C:\ORIG
---------------------- II. UTILITIES: ZIPDUP AND ZIPCFG ----------------------
ZIP comes with two utility programs: ZIPDUP and ZIPCFG. If you need to
duplicate ZIP on your other computer in order to begin using it, you can do so
with the ZIPDUP utility. If you want to configure the default values in ZIP
differently, you can use ZIPCFG.
USING ZIPDUP
In order to duplicate or "clone" ZIP itself on another computer, ZIPDUP
runs DEBUG, remotely, to receive and write the file to disk. This is a
feature most people need only once, so it is not part of ZIP itself. ZIPDUP
will duplicate any version of ZIP (indeed, any file, though it's slow and
cumbersome compared to ZIP itself).
1. Connect the cable to the desired serial ports (COM1 or COM2 only).
The cable must have the DTR wires connected, as well as the data lines -- see
cabling diagram under "Technical Information" below -- or ZIPDUP will not work.
2. Set up the receiving end: Make sure the MSDOS utilities DEBUG and
MODE are available (either in the current directory or accessible via PATH).
Be certain that the last character of your DOS prompt is ">". (Yes, this
actually matters!) If in doubt, type the command:
PROMPT $P$G
Then prepare to receive data by typing these two commands:
MODE COM#:96,N,8,1 ("#" = 1 or 2 only)
CTTY COM#
(The CTTY command gives control to the sending computer, via the COM# port.
The receiving system will seem to "lock up" -- the keyboard is ignored, etc.)
3. Now, on the sending end, to duplicate your copy of ZIP.COM, type:
C>zipdup FILENAME
(If you omit the filename it defaults to "ZIP.COM".)
You will be asked to specify the COM port (1 or 2 only) that the cable is
connected to; if the connection can be made, the transfer will proceed. When
ZIPDUP exits, you will find a duplicate copy of FILENAME in the current
directory on the receiving computer. You can transfer ZIPCFG the same way,
but it's easier to send it using ZIP itself!
USING ZIPCFG
If you don't instruct it otherwise (via command-line options or menu
choices), ZIP assumes its built-in "defaults" of port COM1, 115200 bps, no
delay. You can, however, configure your copy of ZIP.COM to change these
defaults as you like, using ZIPCFG.COM: just type
C>zipcfg FILENAME
(If you omit the filename it defaults to "ZIP.COM".) You will be given the
chance to specify any new default values you like. They can, of course, be
overridden by the usual means when running ZIP.
Please DO NOT distribute modified copies of ZIP.COM; this could confuse
other users. They are for your personal use only. (ZIPCFG includes an option
to restore the original default values.)
--------------- III. TECHNICAL INFORMATION and TROUBLESHOOTING ---------------
Like many communications programs, ZIP does full CRC (Cyclic Redundancy
checksum) verification on the data to guarantee accurate transfer, although
ZIP uses its own transfer protocol. Be sure to use the SAME version of ZIP on
both ends: the transfer protocol may have changed. Do not disturb the cable
when ZIP is running, as this may cause the program to stall, requiring a
reboot of your computer(s).
Using any communications software in a multitasking environment often
requires special precautions. ZIP, in particular, may need to be given a
"non-swappable" or "foreground-operation" status, so that other tasks will not
interfere with its operation. You should allocate at least 96k of memory to
run ZIP, though it will operate with as little as 48k. You may also need to
set a somewhat slower baud rate (see below) for ZIP to work reliably.
Do not use ZIP while any serial ports are in use by other software. In
particular, potential conflicts exist between COM1 and COM3, and between COM2
and COM4, because they use the same interrupt vectors.
Cabling
Your SERIAL CABLE should be a "null modem" cable: if you're building or
shopping for a cable, the transmit and receive data lines should be crossed,
the signal ground straight through. (The pin numbers depend on whether you
have a 9-pin DB9 or 25-pin DB25 connector, see figure.) No other connections
should be needed; ZIP uses no hardware handshaking lines. (NOTE: ZIPDUP does
require the connections between pins 20/4 and 6.)
|--COMPUTER 1--| |--COMPUTER 2--|
DB9 DB25 DB25 DB9
2 - - - - 3 - - - - - - - 2 - - - - 3 \ transmit &
3 - - - - 2 - - - - - - - 3 - - - - 2 / receive data
5 - - - - 7 - - - - - - - 7 - - - - 5 - signal ground
4 - - - - 20 - - - - - - 6 - - - - 6 * \
6 - - - - 6 - - - - - - - 20 - - - 4 * \handshaking (optional)
7 - - - - 4 - - - - - - - 5 - - - - 8 /(* required for ZIPDUP)
8 - - - - 5 - - - - - - - 4 - - - - 7 /
Actually, any serial cable that doesn't work by itself, should work with a
"null modem adapter" attached. If possible, use a properly shielded cable;
high speed transmissions can be especially susceptible to RF interference.
I am not an expert on RS232 hardware: find a good book if you need further
assistance.
Adjusting the Baud Rate and Delay
BAUD RATE: ZIP normally transmits data at 115200 bps. For some
specialized applications, such as multitasking environments, it may be
necessary to set a somewhat slower baud rate. There is no run-time option for
this; it can only be set with ZIPCFG.
DELAY: Most users also will not need to worry about the "delay factor".
(In fact, it will be removed from future versions unless users notify me that
they still need it.) In theory, due to large differences in raw CPU speed,
when sending files from a very fast '286 or '386 AT to a very slow PC, the
receiver might be unable to keep up, and the transfer would be aborted.
Therefore a delay factor is provided, ranging from 0 (the default) to 9, to
slow down the sending rate. You can experiment with delay settings in menu
mode (select the choice to modify "P"arameters), or make modifications with
ZIPCFG to the copy of ZIP on the "fast" computer.
This option can be specified on either computer -- but the setting on the
SENDING end governs each transfer. You will see a note in the ZIP signon
message, "Delay=_", giving the current default.
ERROR MESSAGES
<Argument error> invalid command line argument(s).
<Out of memory> less than 64K free RAM available.
<No connection> no files transferred. (Bad cable? Wrong version?)
<No server> function requires server mode on other computer.
<Too many files> global filespec (eg *.*) includes over 512 files.
<Conflict with NAME> name conflicts with a directory or read/only file.
<Cannot delete> specified file didn't exist, was read/only, etc.
<Disk error> trouble writing to disk. (Disk full?)
<Aborted> you pressed ^C.
<Error> error on other end; or, unrecoverable error.
PROBLEMS USING ZIP
ZIP now works well on the vast majority of systems; please let me know if
you encounter trouble. Under certain software environments, particularly
memory resident programs (TSRs) such as disk caches or multitasking, ZIP may
fail to work; if you experience problems, do not use ZIP with that software.
VERSION HISTORY
ZIP 1.0 (4/88) - trial release.
1.1 (4/88) - improved protocol; batch transfers; receive directory
option; original file time/date preserved.
1.2 (5/88) - improved error handling; patchable default port also
allows use of COM3,4; small bug fixes.
1.21 (5/88) - slower speed options; fixed bug in initializing ports.
1.22 (8/88) - improved protocol; fixed bug in deleting temp file.
1.23 (1/89) - menu-driven operation; detects disk-full errors.
1.3 (4/89) - selective copy options /P,N,E,T; server mode, fetch;
file directory; internal improvements.
1.4 (9/89) - true error correction; delete file function; directory
shows free space; ZIPCFG utility; small improvements.
1.41 (11/89) - DesqView aware; multiple file arguments.
1.42 (2/90) - minor improvements; ZIPDUP utility.
1.43 (3/90) - simplified multiple argument syntax; corrected instructions
for ZIPDUP.
(One final note -- this should be obvious but I'll say it anyway: ZIP is not
related to the new PKZIP series of file compression utilities by Phil Katz.)
====================================[end]=====================================
Directory of PC-SIG Library Disk #1273
Volume in drive A has no label
Directory of A:\
LQCHR123 ZIP 21664 3-29-90 6:56p
ZIP143 ZIP 18352 3-28-90 5:34p
PI12 ZIP 5680 4-06-90 4:22p
VDE152 ZIP 91011 4-06-90 2:16p
READ ME 370 3-25-90 4:25p
PKUNZIP EXE 21440 7-21-89 1:01a
DIRCMP12 ZIP 3314 3-25-90 4:28p
ARCOPY14 ZIP 8769 3-25-90 4:30p
DLT10 ZIP 4664 3-25-90 4:30p
DTA13 ZIP 7726 3-25-90 4:31p
QKRP12 ZIP 2961 3-25-90 4:33p
WSNOT135 ZIP 30395 3-25-90 4:34p
GO BAT 38 10-19-87 3:56p
GO TXT 771 4-23-90 7:51a
FILE1273 TXT 3775 4-23-90 9:15p
15 file(s) 220930 bytes
95232 bytes free