Mesa 2 (tm) Spreadsheet for OS/2 from Sundial Systems Release Notes (README.TXT) for Mesa 2 2.2 PreRelease October 1997 IMPORTANT: THIS IS A PRELIMINARY RELEASE; SEE THE LEGAL FINE PRINT BELOW! Thank you for trying Version 2.2 or Mesa 2 for OS/2. This file contains information which became available after the printed materials went to press. The Legal Fine Print By installing this preliminary version, you agree that you have read the PreRelease License Agreement accompanying the software and that you agree to its terms and conditions. You also acknowledge that the software is experimental in nature and that Sundial Systems Corporation may not be held responsible for its use in any way. Mesa is a trademark of Athena Design, Inc., and is used by Sundial Systems Corporation under license. Other phrases used herein may be brand names, trademarks, or registered trademarks of Athena Design, Inc., CompuServe Incorporated, Corel Corporation, Lotus Development Corporation, IBM Corporation, Microsoft Corporation, Sundial Systems Corporation, or others. All such names and trademarks remain the property of their respective companies. What is Version 2.2? Version 2.2 is a major upgrade of Mesa 2 with features significant ease- of-use enhancements and new functionality when compared to the 2.0 and 2.1 series of Mesa 2 products. The details can be found in the "What's new in Mesa 2.2" section of the on-line documentation. This PreRelease of Version 2.2 is fully functional and has been through several earlier testing cycles. As such, it is anticipated that the released product will match this PreRelease quite closely. However, the PreRelease is preliminary in nature, may contain errors, and will automatically cease to function at some future point in time. Thus, we strongly recommend that you do not install it over a working copy of an earlier version of Mesa 2. Also please note that version 2.2 uses a smaller, more compact file format. Mesa 2.2 can read files created by all previous Mesa versions -- but those versions cannot read the new file format. However, as an option, Mesa 2.2 can create files for use with Mesa 2.1.x (but not 2.0.x). To do this, simply select the "Mesa 2.1 Workbook File" type when you save the file. OS/2, Presentation Manager, and Workplace Shell Compatibility: Mesa 2 is designed specifically for use with OS/2 Version 3, or 4 and the Workplace Shell. This includes all of the following releases: OS/2 Warp 4 "General Availability" release OS/2 Warp Server "General Availability" release OS/2 Warp Connect "Red Box" (for use with Windows) release "Blue Box" (with Win-OS2) release OS/2 Warp (OS/2 Version 3) "Red Box" (for use with Windows) release "Full Pack" (with Win-OS2) release Most "FixPak" levels of OS/2 Warp, Warp Connect, and Warp Server have also been tested. Note that releases prior to OS/2 Warp (including OS/2 2.0, 2.1, and 2.11) are not supported. Support for OS/2 2.11 will be included in the released product. Limitations Listed below are some known limitations which may impact your use of the current version of Mesa 2. * Under some circumstances, certain operations (including copying data to the clipboard and customizing the toolbars) will stop working after frequent, repeated use. This is due to a problem in the graphics processing at some FixPak levels of Warp 3 and Warp 4. The problem is known to be present in Warp 3 FixPaks 17 through 30 as well as in Warp 4 GA (no FixPak) and Warp 4 FixPak 1. Under normal circumstances, the problem is unlikely to appear since large numbers of repeated operations are required. However, the problem occurs significantly sooner on Warp 4 than Warp 3. Further, some inherently repetitive operations, such as updating a graph based on real-time feed data, will eventually cause the problem to appear. (In this particular case, turning off the Buffered Graphs option will avoid the problem.) When and If the problem appears, exiting and restarting Mesa 2 will temporarily resolve it. However, the problem will now reappear sooner than it did the last time. Repeating this process enough times eventually requires the system to be rebooted. The only way to completely avoid the problem is to move to a later FixPak level (at least FixPak 30 for Warp 3 or FixPak 2 for Warp 4) in which IBM has corrected the problem. * If you have multiple copies of Mesa 2 installed on your system, you may see a SYS2070 error when you try to run one copy or the other. Similar problems may also occur if an older version was not completely removed from your system. While newer versions of Mesa 2 have been designed to avoid this problem, the conflict cannot always be automatically avoided when an older version (typically, 2.0.4 or earlier) is involved. Almost always, this is caused by a LIBPATH conflict between the different directories involved. The general solution is to be sure the LIBPATH statement in your CONFIG.SYS file contains ".;" before any "\MESA;", "\MESA\DLL;" "\MESA2;", "\MESA2\DLL", or similar entries related to previous Mesa 2 installations. This resolves most such conflicts. If this solution does not work or doesn't apply to your situation, please, contact technical support for further assistance. Be sure to include information on the versions involved and be prepared to supply a copy of your LIBPATH information. * When loading files, the Type of File listbox refers to extended attributes as well. If you have (for example) Lotus 123 files created from a DOS or Windows version of Lotus, those files probably do not have the 123 DOS Spreadsheet extended attribute set, so you must set the Type of file to All Files, and then type the filename mask that you desire in the Open Filename box. * Not all formatting information is necessarily preserved when importing or exporting, and this varies to some degree from one file format to another. * There is a known problem with OS/2 Warp 3 FixPak 17 and Mesa 2 such that when Mesa 2 is open, windows won't come to the front when activated. This is corrected in later FixPaks. * There have been reports of SYS0147 problems when exiting from Mesa 2 on OS/2 Warp 3 with FixPak 17 installed. If this happens, do not attempt to restart Mesa 2 without shutting down the system. Technical Support We at Sundial Systems are committed to supporting you, our customer. We track all questions, comments, and "bug reports" concerning our products and use this information in planning future releases. If there are features you particularly like or things you think should be added to our products, please let us know. Please consult your license agreement and the on-line documentation for details about the level of technical support to which you are entitled. If you have questions or suggestions, please call us at (562) 596-5121 between 9:00 AM and 4:30 PM Pacific time, Monday through Friday. You can also FAX your questions and comments to us at (562) 598-9851. On the Internet you can send email to mesa@sundialsystems.com, or to mesa@ibm.net; or visit us on the web at www.sundialsystems.com. Technical support is also available on CompuServe through the Sundial Systems section of the OS/2 Application Vendor forum. Start connecting with Sundial Systems and other CompuServe members by calling 800-524-3388 and ask for Representative #456. (In the United Kingdom, call 0800 289 378. In Germany, call 0130 37 32. In the rest of Europe, call (+44) 272 255111. Outside the U.S., Canada, and Europe, call 614-457-0802. Be sure to ask for Representative #456). If you're already a CompuServe member, enter GO OS2AVEN at the ! prompt to access the Sundial Systems Section of the OS/2 Vendor Forum on CompuServe. Thanks in advance, Sundial Systems Support Services.