[]PC action Help File
=====================

[]DISK SPACE
All the programs on this disk have been thoroughly tested on a variety of
different PCs, but for one reason or another, they may not work on your
computer.

One reason is lack of space. When extracted from their highly compressed
archives the programs on this disk can occupy as much as 4Mb of disk space.
Before extracting the programs make sure you have sufficient disk space by
typing at the Dos prompt:

{}CHKDSK C: /F

The /F parameter will ensure any errors on your hard disk are fixed. One point
to bear in mind is that DoubleSpace, SuperStor, Stacker and other disk
compression utilities fool CHKDSK into reporting more free space than there
really is. For instance, they may say you have 5Mb free when, in fact, you have
only 1Mb.

[]MEMORY
Some programs need a lot of free memory. Even though you may have a PC with 4Mb
or more, the amount free for Dos programs is less than 640k (0.64Mb). It's all
to do with the way the PC was designed over 12 years ago.

You may need to change AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS to take out all unnecessary
drivers, TSRs and other stuff which generally bungs up the memory. First copy
these two files to somewhere safe, like this:

{}COPY AUTOEXEC.BAT AUTOEXEC.TMP
{}COPY CONFIG.SYS CONFIG.TMP

Now run a text editor like MS-DOS 5's EDIT and load each file in turn. Delete
any lines which aren't important then save them. Reboot the PC. Generally
speaking, most lines can be removed, however, don't take out any lines to do
with disk compression, such as a SuperStor driver.

With MS-DOS 5 and 6 Dos can be loaded high and drivers and TSRs can be put in
upper memory. To use these facilities make these three lines the first three in
CONFIG.SYS:

{}DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS
{}DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE NOEMS
{}DOS=HIGH,UMB

Now replace any DEVICE= commands in CONFIG.SYS with DEVICEHIGH= and if any TSRs
are loaded in AUTOEXEC.BAT, add an LH followed by a space to the start of the
line, like this to load a mouse driver:

{}LH C:\MOUSE.COM

While on the subject of mouse drivers, make sure your is up to date, otherwise
some software won't work properly. Unless the software specifically says don't
load a mouse driver, it's a good idea to try it with the driver loaded. Many
programs benefit from mouse control.

Some programs - mainly games - require expanded memory. You can simulate this
on 386/486 PCs by changing the EMM386.EXE or EMM386.SYS line in CONFIG.SYS. If
you want 512k of EMS memory change the line to this:

{}DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE 512

then reboot the PC. For PCs that can handle it, the best CONFIG.SYS contain
these three lines:

{}DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS
{}DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE RAM 3072 frame=E000
{}DOS=HIGH,UMB

which give you 3Mb of expanded memory and access to upper memory for loading
TSRs and drivers.

Some programs need the BUFFERS and FILES settings changed. You'll need to edit
CONFIG.SYS and either change the existing lines or add new ones if they aren't
there. These settings should be sufficient:

{}BUFFERS=40
{}FILES=49

You'll need to reboot for these changes to take effect.

After fiddling about with CONFIG.SYS AND AUTOEXEC.BAT you may want to restore
things as they were before. This is easy if you made a backup:

{}COPY AUTOEXEC.TMP AUTOEXEC.BAT
{}COPY CONFIG.TMP CONFIG.SYS

[]INSTALLATION
Some programs can be run as soon as they have been extracted from their
archives on this disk. Others may need further installation. You'll be told in
the instructions what's required. Look for a file called INSTALL and run it if
necessary.

Windows programs nearly always need further installation. You should run
Windows and then click on Run on the File menu. Type in the drive, directory
and filename of the program to run - usually SETUP.EXE or INSTALL.EXE.
Alternatively, click on the Browse button and use the file selector to locate
the file.

You will sometimes need to install the program icon into a group window on the
desktop. Click on File,New,Program Item,OK,Browse and then use the file
selector to find the file. Double click on it then on OK to get back to the
desktop. You should then see the program icon.

[]VIRUSES
This disk has been thoroughly tested at all stages of production for all known
viruses. Dr Solomon's Anti Virus Toolkit, Norton Anti Virus, McAfee Anti Virus
Utilities and Microsoft Anti Virus are always used. It has been passed as clear
by all of them. However, putting this disk in a PC that is ALREADY infected
with a virus will infect this disk too.

[]DOCUMENTATION
Please set aside some time to read all the available documentation - on disk
such as README.TXT or whatever, and in the magazine in the disk tutorial pages.

[]IF ALL ELSE FAILS
If you really can't get the software working, ring our technical support
hotline on 0625 859675 on Wednesday afternoon between 3pm and 5pm and we'll do
our best to help.