ASP Advantage 1993/The Association of Shareware Professionals Advantage CD-ROM 1993.iso/files/writions/boxer50b/readme.1st

Text File | 1993-04-06 | 10KB | 209 lines

Getting Started Quickly:
________________________

Start BOXER by entering the file name(s) to be edited:

    B MYFILE.TXT

All key assignments are displayed in the pull-down menus.  The Help key
(F1 or Alt-H, depending on the keyboard layout selected) will summon a
pop-up help window for the current menu item, or for whatever command is
in-process.  "B -?" will show a display of various command line options;
"B -?p" will print that display to the printer.

If you'd like to resume the previous edit session, just enter "B" without
naming any files to edit.  BOXER will load the files last edited and
restore the cursor position in each.  Use "B -0" if you prefer to select
a file from a menu upon startup.

This may be all you'll ever need to be told about BOXER.  Now go PLAY!

The file DESCRIPT.ION serves double-duty as both a packing list and a
descriptor file for 4DOS/NDOS users.  Look at this file for a short
description of each of the files in the BOXER release.

If you are upgrading from a previous version of BOXER, or just want to see
what changes have been recently made, be sure to read HISTORY.DOC for a
complete list of recent enhancements.

In order to be able to use BOXER from any directory you will need to add
the directory into which you installed BOXER to the PATH statement within
AUTOEXEC.BAT.  If you plan to edit only from within BOXER's home directory
you will not need to make this change.

The file README.2ND contains answers to some commonly asked questions.

See the file TKO.DOC for information about BOXER/TKO, our new product which
can edit multi-megabyte files.

Blind Users: use the -B command line option to enable special cursor
positioning and other features for easier use with Speech Software.

How to Create a Reference Manual:
_________________________________

To create a printed Reference Manual, move to BOXER's home directory and run
the MAKEMAN.EXE utility.  It will create a formatted file called MANUAL.REF
which can then be printed:

    COPY MANUAL.REF PRN

This will provide you with hard copy documentation of all of the editor's
features.  The key assignments within the file DEFAULT.KEY, if present,
will be used during the creation of the manual.  If you intend to use an
alternate keyboard layout you should make sure that DEFAULT.KEY contains
the assignments you desire before creating a manual (see RECONFIG.DOC).

You can also create a reference listing of the key assignments by invoking
the RECONFIG utility with the name of the file which contains the key
assignments, for example:

    RECONFIG DEFAULT.KEY

This will create a file called DEFAULT.REF which lists the default key
assignments.

(Note: the file DEFAULT.KEY is not present in the release file set.  Since
B.EXE contains the default BOXER key assignments, a DEFAULT.KEY file is
needed only when changes are made to BOXER's default assignments)

A keyboard template which details BOXER's function key assignments can be
created by printing the file FKEYS.REF - see the notes therein.


How to Obtain Technical Support:
________________________________

All users can obtain Technical Support either by U.S. mail or CompuServe
Email (70242,2126).  We will try our best to fully support unregistered
users during their evaluation period, but we will give priority to
registered users, if necessary.  Registered users become eligible to
receive free, unlimited Technical Support by telephone.

If you have access to either the FIDONET, ILINK or RIME networks, you can
leave mail to David Hamel in the Shareware conference on any of these
networks.  We try to monitor the Shareware conference in each of these
networks regularly, but even if we miss your question, another BOXER user
is almost certain to jump in and help out.

Users can also obtain support by calling our Home BBS, Software Creations,
and leaving mail on the Main Board for David Hamel.  Software Creations is
nicknamed "Home of the Authors", and is used by many ASP authors for
technical support.  With 53 lines and more to come, Software Creations is
dedicated to the development and distribution of great software.  Here
are the phone numbers:

                       1200/2400    508-365-2359
                       CompuCom     508-365-7009
                       USR HST      508-368-4137
                       v.32bis      508-368-7423

BOXER also has its own File Section on Software Creations where you can be
assured of finding the latest version available.  Select F)iles from the
Main Menu, and then select File Section #6.

Users within the U.K. and Europe can receive technical support by
contacting The Thompson Partnership by post: Church Croft, Bramshall,
UTTOXETER, Staffs.  ST14 5DE, U.K. or by Telephone or FAX on 0889 564601.


What SHAREWARE is:
__________________

Shareware describes a method of distributing copyrighted software in which a
user is allowed to fully evaluate the software before purchasing it.  After
an evaluation period, the user is required to register the product if s/he
decides to keep using it.

Shareware distribution addresses all of the legitimate complaints that users
have with commercial software distribution.

  o Shareware allows a user to fully evaluate a product, free of charge, in
    his or her home, *before* deciding to buy it.

  o Shareware programs can circulate freely on Bulletin Boards, through
    Shareware disk distributors, or through user groups.

  o Because Shareware distribution reduces the need to advertise, Shareware
    is less expensive than commercial software.

  o Shareware authors can often be more responsive to users' requests for
    help or bug fixes than large software companies.

  o Shareware software, needless to say, is never copy-protected.


In short, Shareware is a user's dream come true.  Users show their
appreciation to developers for this extremely flexible distribution scheme
by registering their software.  Without user registrations Shareware
software would gradually disappear.  It is not sufficient to simply let the
"other guy" pay the registration.  You are the other guy's "other guy".


What SHAREWARE is not:
______________________

Shareware is not "free" software.  Shareware is not Public Domain software.
The fee that you may have paid to receive a Shareware program does not mean
that the software has been paid for.  This money was paid to a Shareware
disk vendor, User Group, Bulletin Board Service or retailer to cover their
cost of getting the program to you.  Shareware software is paid for by
registering your copy with the author.


The History of BOXER:
_____________________

BOXER has been under development for over six years.  During that period it
has been in constant use by its author and several other Software Engineers
in New England.  BOXER was originally developed for the IBM PC.  Early
versions were rudimentary by comparison with the editor you are evaluating.
It was later ported to run on Atari ST computers.  There it was enhanced and
marketed commercially - but very briefly - under the name of SPROUT.
Original SPROUT diskettes are certain to be collector's items.  It returned
to the PC some time later, where it was further enhanced and renamed to
BOXER.

BOXER was written almost entirely in the C programming language.  It
currently consists of over 30,000 lines of source code.  BOXER was compiled
with the Borland C++ compiler.  The BOXER source code has been edited with
BOXER since the editor was old enough to crawl.  This raises the old chicken
and editor question: What text editor was used to write the first editor?  I
believe that text editors enter the market more bug-free than other programs
because they were likely to have been used extensively by their developers
during their own development.  This is certainly the case with BOXER.


The Future of BOXER:
____________________

BOXER is a dynamic program.  BOXER has changed considerably since its
conception, and it has been further enhanced since its Shareware release.
I have called myself a perfectionist, and so long as BOXER is imperfect, I
will persevere.  I have already spent thousands of hours developing this
editor.  The development of BOXER has been an extremely rewarding project;
BOXER has grown with me as my own programming skills have grown.

By distributing BOXER as Shareware I am expressing my confidence in the
public to "Do the Right Thing".  I would like you to evaluate BOXER for as
long as 30 days before deciding whether you want to keep it.  If you do
decide to keep it, you must register your copy.  Full details on registra-
tion can be found in the REGISTER.DOC file.  I would be anxious to hear your
comments about BOXER.  Please feel free to contact me with your suggestions
for new features, etc.

                          _______
                     ____|__     |                (R)
                  --|       |    |-------------------
                    |   ____|__  |  Association of
                    |  |       |_|  Shareware
                    |__|   o   |    Professionals
                  -----|   |   |---------------------
                       |___|___|    MEMBER

David R. Hamel                                              CIS: 70242,2126
[phone]                          Internet: [e-mail]

BOXER Software  *  P.O. Box 3230  *  Peterborough, NH 03458-3230  *  U.S.A.