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Text File | 1994-08-15 | 32.4 KB | 709 lines

******************************* * * * History of Changes * * * * CMFiler -- Version 5.36s * * * ******************************* Changes Since Version 5.32: The following features have been added or improved since Version 5.32, in reverse chronological order: ----- 5.36s ----- Added color to the editor, in the same scheme as selected for the main file services module. Also added option for colored border on VGA monitors when screen background is other than black. Added feature to diskette copier to make it easier to use previously stored diskette images from the hard disk. Select the directory with the diskette image you want to use, and put the cursor on the name of the image file before pressing Shift-K for disKopy. Answer the first question Yes, and the file name will be given as the default in the data entry window. Press enter to accept it, and continue with the session. Increased from 9 to 35 the number of duplicate filenames that can be soft-deleted and still accepted in the ~TRASH~ directory before "saturation". As multiple files of the same name are renamed for storage in ~TRASH~ during soft-delete, variations of the filename are attempted in which the last character of the renamed file is first 1 through 9, and then A through Z. If all variations fail, the soft-delete reverts to hard-delete for that file. Revised the support for PKZIP to allow ZIPping a long list of tagged files. The algorithm previously limited the number of files which could be ZIPped to the number that would fit on the command line. Algorithm expanded to take advantage of PKZIP's @filelist feature for ZIPping large numbers of tagged files. CMFiler creates a temporary filelist, passes it to PKZIP, and then erases it after the ZIP is complete. unlimited ----- 5.36r ----- In diskette copying routine (disKopy), added option to save diskette image as a file on the hard disk after reading master diskette, and to use a previously saved image as the master for making new diskettes. To assist blind people using Gateway Braille displays: a. The character * is printed in the column to the left of the filename to denote a normal-tagged file (the character 1-9 or a-z was already printed to denote an alt-tagged file), and the character denoting a directory is changed from the graphics character ASCII 249 (a small dot in the center of the character array) to a colon; and b. The TSR utility LOCKCURS.COM is included in the file set. This stay- resident program blocks attempts by any programs to change the cursor configuration from that recognized by the Gateway Braille display. ----- 5.36q ----- Optimized file copying routines to save time, overwrite old file as a data security measure. Added mouse help info to Help screens. Revised editor exit routine to be clearer, to permit editing the save file name, and to facility saves during a session. Added protection in file copying, deleting and editing routines for "system" files equivalent to "read-only". ----- 5.36p ----- Added feature to allow quick-executing .COM or .EXE files using Enter key as well as Q. Double press of Enter or double click of mouse left button while arrow symbol is highlighted in mouse bar executes file. ----- 5.36n ----- Corrected longstanding bug that generate "access denied" errors when attempting to copy certain files on network drives. ----- 5.36m ----- Added quick printout of registration form in shareware edition (Ctrl-R). Added mouse speed adjustment to mouse menu in main module, corrected minor bugs, and relabelled 5.36m (for "mouse"). Disabled old file wiping prior to file copying and moving when wipe-file option is set, based on a problem reported on one network. File wiping is still active during file deletion when wipe-file option is set. ----- 5.36e (Beta test version) ----- Added mouse support for navigation and some commands. The mouse features stay dormant until the mouse is moved. In the main module, the tree display and the file list display in the tree module, a five-character mini-mouse menu appears on the same line as the cursor and highlight, showing five operations that can be clicked with the left button: o The left-arrow character (ASCII 27) acts like the Enter key, for directory navigation and file viewing. o The three-line character (ASCII 240) pops a menu into the active window. o The up, down and left or right triangles act like PgUp, PgDn and Left or Right Arrow for navigation. In the cases of file lists, the right button toggles the state of the tag. Several files can be tagged by holding down the right button and dragging the mouse up or down the file list. The left button may in most cases be used to accept the default offering CMFiler -- Changes 1-2 in yes/no choices, same as the Enter key. In the editor/viewer, the left button has the same effect as the Enter key. Mouse movement navigates on the page like the arrow keys. Holding the right button down and moving the mouse up or down activates a variable-speed scroll feature. The escape options in the editor have been revised to reduce the number of keystrokes required to exit using the standard defaults (i.e., save edit, do not reuse original date/time, do not save original as *.BKP, and do not return to editor). The keystroke X or Enter after Escape exits the editor with the standard options. To save the edited file but use one of the non-standard exit options, press Y after Escape, and then pick the options desired. ----- 5.36d ----- Added * and ? wild cards to G and Alt-G "go to" functions in main module, and ? wild card to "find text" functions in editor and tree. Made filename display and Goto algorithm the same (name - extension) in all sort modes. Soft-delete no longer changes file date/time stamp when moving files to ~TRASH~ directory. ~TRASH~ purge now cleans out all files, not just those from yesterday and before. D command is now taken to be hard- delete for RAMDrives <10M, as for floppies. When expanded file size display is invoked by +, file size in bytes now uses attribute field for the extra space needed, instead of time field. When exit with Esc, restores all drives to the paths that were current on entry. When exit with Alt-Q, leaves all drives set to current paths. The \ and keypad Enter keys on British keyboards now respond as documented. "New drive" prompt now shows list of all valid drives. Added option in Shift-O menu to display file dates using the European convention (dd-mm-yy). Ctrl-K adjusts cursor size, decrementally on each keystroke. This is a savable configuration parameter. ----- 5.36c ----- Added diskette copier (Shift-K for disKopy), which copies a master disk from a floppy drive and makes as many exact images to formatted or unformated blank diskettes as desired. Added floppy disk formatter (Shift-M for forMat), and expanded the capability of the floppy fill function (shift-i) to accept unformatted disks, including the first disk in the sequence. Target panel need not be selected to the drive filling to. Floppy filler asks explicitly which drive to fill to, and then sets up the target panel to that drive for CMFiler -- Changes 1-3 you, after formatting the first floppy (if needed). Corrected logic error and expanded capacity for notes from 600 to 1200 per directory, memory permitting. ----- 5.36b ----- Options added to print fiLe facility: Issue form feed at end; print filename/date/time header on first page; provide left margin of 0, 5 or 10 spaces; route to printer 1 or 2 (LPT1 or LPT2). Settings can be saved to the .CFG configuration file to become the default offering for next printout. ----- 5.36a ----- New operators Ctrl-U/L/I added to editor. Ctrl-U forces alphabetic character at cursor to upper case, Ctrl-L forces to lower case, Ctrl-I inverts. Limit removed on number of filenames displayed in viewing contents of compressed files. Display screen size increased, PageUp/Down added. File mask now blinks whenever it is other than *.*, as a visual cue that what you see is not necessarily all that is there. Expanded file move command (Shift-C) to better accomodate cross-drive file moves (reduced number of keystrokes). Added date/time stamp to directories in display, and corrected minor anomalies. ----- 5.36 ----- Corrected miscellaneous minor anomalies, and repackaged for major release. ----- 5.35k ----- Corrected miscellaneous minor bugs and anomolies. ----- 5.35j ----- The permissible tree size was again increased, to 1700 directories, and a minor bug in the routine that reverses the function of the high-intensity bit was fixed. The default name assumed for Integrity Master's integrity data files, for the purpose of protecting them against inadvertent overwriting, was changed to ZZ##.IM, reflecting the default name assigned by Integrity Master in version 1.24a and later. This name can be changed using the command Alt-I (for IDname, where "ID" stands for integrity data). ----- 5.35i ----- The facility to view the file list within a compressed file has been expanded and improved to now include .EXE files (on the assumption that they are self-extracting files), and to find files in mixtures of CMFiler -- Changes 1-4 compression types packed together. An option has been added to the Shift-O user Options screen to allow the action of the color attribute high-intensity bit to be inverted. Some LCD color monitors take the purpose of the high-intensity bit to be just opposite the normal sense, ie, high intensity enable when bit is zero instead of one. The permissible tree has been increased to 1000 directories from 505, to accomodate large network directories. ----- 5.35g ----- The command line color mode "V" (for VGA) is now recognized, in the form of the argument @V, similar to the previous @C, @M, etc. Support for VGA 43/50-line display has been added, and may be invoked in one of two ways: o On the fly. The Shift-O user Options screen has a new line to set 25, 43 or 50-line display, on the screen below the monitor line. This line can only be accessed if CMFiler senses a VGA card installed. The choices are 2,4 or 5. Switch is stored immediately in the .CFG file for the next execution of CMFiler. o Through the command line. Simply add 25, 43 or 50 to the argument @V (or @C or @M). This will override the previously recorded mode in the .CFG file. ----- 5.35f ----- Further testing of CF's two sorting algorithms (the original bubblesort and the more recently used quicksort) for speed in sorting large directories reveals that neither one is superior under all conditions. Therefore, the user has been given the option (letter A in Ctrl-O Ordering menu) to select whichever one works best in the environment of that user's file structure. Much depends on the "natural" DOS order -- the order in which the directory was constructed, and in which DOS reads the directory table. Quicksort works best for directories that already have a high degree of natural order, or a high degree of disorder, and does poorly compared to bubblesort in "lumpy" directories, which have clumps of ordered files randomly arranged. If you use principally one ordering scheme and both algorithms are making you wait each time you read a large directory, there is a way to cause DOS to reorder the directory table so that quicksort in particular will do much better: - Make a new directory on the same path in the same level as the directory to be reordered, and select it in one panel. - Put the directory to be reordered in the other, and with the desired ordering option selected, tag all the files and move them to the new directory. They will be moved in the order listed, and thus the directory table being created will have a "natural" DOS order the same as the one you most use. ("Moving" is nothing more than renaming, so no CMFiler -- Changes 1-5 data reading/writing is involved, only directory table-making.) - Delete the old directory, and rename the new one like the old. To be sure, disorder will creep back in, and this procedure may need to be repeated. However, the occasional time investment will be worth it for the aggravation it will save waiting for sorts. A "floppy fill" function has been added to the main module, called by "Shift-I", which fills floppy diskettes in the drive selected in the target panel with the tagged files from the directory in the source panel. Diskettes must be preformatted, but need not be empty. User may specify a margin in kb to reserve on each floppy. To use the floppy filling function: 1. Put the first diskette to be filled in drive A or B, and select that drive in one panel. 2. Select the other panel to the directory containing the source files to be copied. Tag all the files to be copied (press A to tag them all), and press Shift-I. Specify number of kilobytes to hold in reserve on each floppy. (CF adds 2 just to be safe.) Filling starts. 3. When each diskette is full, the files that were successfully copied are untagged in the source panel, and, if there are still files to copy, CF gives the choice of Escaping from the operation, or putting in a new disk and pressing any other key to resume. You may suspend the filling with Esc, and then resume with Shift-I without loss of continuity as long as you leave the tags in the source panel alone. This function is "semi-smart". It first looks to see if any existing files on the target floppy are the same as files tagged in the source, and updates them as appropriate, untagging the corresponding source files that matched. Then it looks at the source for tagged files that will fit in the remaining space on the floppy, and adds them until the floppy is full. Thus the floppy-fill can be used for updating a set of backups previously created with the floppy-fill function. As a further safeguard against loss of data during file copying, if you leave "soft" delete enabled, in addition to files that you "soft" delete going to the ~TRASH~ trashcan directory, newer files that you overcopy with older files also go to ~TRASH~, even after you confirm the action. The method of ensuring against inadvertent carryover of unseen sensitive or classified data during file copying through the slack space of the DOS input/output buffers has been completely revised. This protection is now provided automatically all the time, cannot be switched off, and is operating system-inndependent. In fact, the method now used enhances the speed of file copying by up to 10-20%. Consequently, the option "Clear I/O buffers if located?" in the Shift-O screen is no longer needed, and has been replaced with the following: "Wipe old files during HARD Delete, Copy and Move?" When this is set to CMFiler -- Changes 1-6 Y, old files will be completely obliterated by overwriting all their data with the continuous sequence "cfcfcf..." before deleting them using the DOS file delete service. (As a point of information, the DOS "delete" service in fact only changes the first character of the file name in the directory table, and the cluster pointers in the file allocation table (FAT), and does NOT change or erase any of the data clusters themselves. Until they are overwritten by some other file, in whatever order DOS chooses to reuse the freed-up clusters, they are available for reading by any disk-scanning program that looks at the disk with absolute sector reads, ignoring what the directory table SAYS is on the disk. Much of the Irangate evidence was retrieved this way by investigators. This new feature in CF guarantees the obliteration of "deleted" data by overwriting all data in the file, from beginning to end, with "cfcfcf..." before using the DOS delete service.) All runtime questions requiring a (y/n) respond from the user now also offer a defauly, shown in capital letter at the cursor and chosen to reflect the more likely response under the circumstances, or the more conservative response from the standpoint of protecting files from inadvertent deletion. For example, when deleting files(s) with D or Ctrl-D, the default offering is Y in the confirmatory request, since it is more likely that deletion is what you intended, and you did not hit the D or Ctrl-D key by mistake. On the other hand, N is the default offering if a Read-only file is encountered during the delete operation, since assigning this attribute is a normal way of providing extraordinary protection of individual files, and if you are using the Read-only attribute correctly, you should typically NOT want to delete the file. ----- 5.35e ----- In the editor, a significant bug was corrected that resulted in loss of part of the file if the user returned to the editor after saving the file. In the tree module, a logic fault that was blocking the Esc bailout during file text searches. In the main module, minor logic errors were corrected in the command line support for masks. ----- 5.35c ----- In the main module, the file date/time change service has been expanded to permit mass date/time setting by tagging a collection of files, and pressing Alt-F as before. If files are tagged, the user must then confirm the desire to have all tagged files set to the same date/time stamp. The default values in the data entry windows are taken from the topmost tagged file in the listing. CMFiler -- Changes 1-7 The logic which retains knowledge of the current cursor position in the target directory during directory-altering operations, such as file copying, has been refined to remove some anomalies. ----- 5.35b ----- In the editor, to support easier updating of the on-disk file copy during long editing sessions, a fourth option has been added to the Escape sequence -- "Return to editor? (y/n)", with the default set to N, since in most cases the user wants to leave the editor. So to update the on- disk copy of the file being edited, the following keystrokes might be used in the middle of the editing session: Esc-Enter-Enter-Enter-Y. In the main services file module, pressing Enter to view a .ZIP, .LZH, .ARJ or .ARC file displays a listing of the names of all the files compressed in that archive file (maximum of 60 file names). In the main file services module, user now has the option to continue copying or moving tagged files after a disk file creation/write/read error, rather than having the operation automatically cancelled. Also, the error trapping routines were updated and one anomaly corrected. ----- 5.35a ----- Different users on a network may now specify their own configuration through the environment, by setting the environment parameter CF-CFG before running the network copy of CMFiler. For example, User 1 is assigned logical drive U in the network, and User 2 drive V. CF.COM and CF.OVY are on drive C. User 1 could execute CMFiler with a batch file that reads: SET CF-CFG=U:\SETTINGS\CF.CFG C:\PROGS\CF and User 2, using the same copy of CF.COM and .OVY, could execute: SET CF-CFG=V:\CONFIGS\CMFILER.CFG C:\PROGS\CF In these two cases, of course, U:\SETTINGS and V:\CONFIGS must be valid, existing paths. The files CF.CFG and CMFILER.CFG need not already exist. If it does not find the file in the path, CMFiler will create the file the first time configuration data is saved. Because of the incompatibility of the I/O buffer clearing feature with DR DOS, a safeguard was added that detects DR DOS, and blocks the buffer clearing option even if invoked by the user. The "trash can" directory for "soft-deleted" files has been renamed from "CF_TRASH.CAN" to "~TRASH~" for two reasons: in at least one case, a user's configuration included a TSR that caused system hangups in the presence of directories with an extension in their name (even though this is a perfectly legal DOS naming convention); and several users asked for CMFiler -- Changes 1-8 a new trash can name that would appear as the last directory of their listing, rather than in the middle of the listing. ***NOTE***: This will be a nuisance to previous users the first time running Version 5.35a or later, but will be worth it in the long run for the neater directory list it will bring. The upper limit of directory size was increased to 2400 in the main file services module, and the sorting algorithm changed from a bubblesort to a quicksort for improved speed. In the editor, the action of the Home and End keys has been expanded as follows: the first press of Home/End goes to beginning/end of line, if not already there; the second press goes to top/bottom of page; the third press goes to beginning/end of file. A function "Refresh panel from disk" (Shift-R) was added to the main file services module, used when you change disks in a drive as a one-keystroke alternative to N and the drive letter. The similar function which already existed in the tree module was remapped from Alt-R to Shift-R for consistency. ----- 5.34d ----- A new user option has been added to the Shift-O option facility to allow turning off the automatic screen saver. Two new ordering options have been added to the Ctrl-O ordering facility, to permit ordering by file size, either smaller first or larger first. The file mask (Ctrl M) in the main service module now only applies to the panel the cursor was in when the mask was specified. This is so that you can apply different masks to the two panels. ----- 5.34c ----- The NARATIVE.CF files, containing the file and directory notes, are well protected from inadvertent overwriting or destruction within the CMFiler environment. However, there is no provision for their protection from inadvertent erasure or overwriting in other environments, such as from the DOS command processor. To afford some level of protection, a switch has been added to the user option (Shift-O) screen to let you set the Read-Only attribute of the NARATIVE.CF files, in addition to the Hide attribute. Most command processors will prohibit deletion or writing to Read-Only files. ----- 5.34b ----- In trying other archive utilities in response to recent requests from users, I have discovered that CMFiler has always (accidently) supported LHA and ARJ, and perhaps others in addition to the PKWare utilities, simply because they all use the same syntax in the command line, namely: CMFiler -- Changes 1-9 archiver options archivefile file1[,file2,[...]] To clarify that other archivers may be supported by the Zip and Unzip commands in the main module, I have revised the help screen and the F10 user-definition screen. CMFiler still defaults to PKZIP and PKUNZIP unless otherwise specified. However, if you want to use ARJ or LHA instead, press Shift-F10 from the main screen, and change both the fields "Compress = " and " Extract = " to read "ARJ.EXE" or "LHA.EXE". Add the path to these file specs if ARJ/LHA is not on a path in the DOS path environment. Also make the "Compress Options = " line read "a" (this is both ARJ's and LHA's way of knowing you want to add or create a .ARJ or .LZH archive file), and the " Extract Options = " line read "x" (for extract). (Command line option parameters are necessary with ARJ and LHA because, unlike the PKWare utilities which have separate compression and extraction programs, the same program does both functions.) Use of LHA or ARJ by this facility is the same as use of the PKWare utilities. To compress, put the directory where you want the archive file to be created or added to in one panel and tag the archive file to be added to (if it exists); set up the other panel with the directory of the files to be archived, and optionally tag them (if none are tagged, the command line parameter defaults to *.*); press Z, check and edit the command line paramters if desired, and press Enter. Extraction is easier. Set up the target panel in the directory you want the extracted files to go, put the cursor on the archive file, press U, check the command line parameters, and press Enter. ----- 5.34a ----- The naming convention for backup files, created with the command B in the main module, has been changed so that the backup file will appear closer alphabetically to the original file. If the original file has a three character extension, the third character will be replaced with a tilde (~; ASCII 126). If the extension has less than three characters, it will be padded with one or two exclamation points (!; ASCII 33, 1 larger than blank), so that the third character can be a tilde. When creating appended files (ie, Alt-tagging several files followed by the command C to copy to the target, or B to copy to the source), a default appended file name will be generated (name of the first file in the append list plus extension APF). The user may edit this name before the file is created. ----- 5.34 ----- In the tree module, while the cursor is in the file list during a Show files or Goto file command, several commands are available for disk cleanup that mimic commands in the main module. Files may optionally be tagged with T or Spacebar, and then deleted individually (if no tags are set) or as a group with the D (soft) or Ctrl-D (hard) delete command. The command A (tagAll) clears any tags set, or sets all tags, as in the main module. In the editor, the keypad map to the cursor movement functions is now CMFiler -- Changes 1-10 independent of Num Lock. Shift-Up/Down Arrow moves to top/bottom of current video page. Gray+/Gray- function the same as Alt-Plus/Alt-Minus, toggling the delimiter and bottom displays. ----- 5.33b ----- Navigation and file-finding in the tree module was revised to follow the "G" and "Alt-G" conventions of the main module: - G ("Goto file") has replaced "F" as the file-finder command. Pressing "G" commences a filename search, and as each letter in the filename search string is typed, the tree and file list dynamically adjust to highlight the matches and position the cursor to the directory with the first match. Mode is toggled off with G, Alt-G or Esc. - Alt-G ("Goto directory") commences a directory name search in the same fashion. As each letter of the search string is typed, the matches are highlighted dynamically and the display is adjusted so that the topmost match is shown. Mode sets for both panels, and stays until G, Alt-G or Esc is pressed. An anomaly was fixed to let the directory be re-read in its "natural" DOS order after switching to Order mode 7. An anomaly was fixed which prevented CF from checking the CF_TRASH.CAN directory on execution. A workaround was devised for an anomaly in the directory structure of some netware, that prevented CF from navigating back through the parent directory in the main module. ----- 5.33 ----- The ZIP feature was revised to permit the use of either normal or Alt- tags to denote which files to decompress. The following improvements were made to the editor: - The notation of typeover/insert mode and wrap/no wrap mode has been shortened and moved to the upper right corner of the screen. It stays on the screen when the lower information area is blanked. - On color monitors, the lower five lines of text (which become the top five lines on PgDn) are in red vice white, to distinguish this area from the "active" video page (the top 20 lines), and to help the eye find its place in the text during scrolling. - The exit defaults after editing have been adjusted so that most users will be able to answer the three questions with three strokes of the Enter key most of the time. (Yes, save this edit; No, don't reuse the date/time stamp from the original file; No, don't save the original file as *.BKP). CMFiler -- Changes 1-11 - You may switch from View mode to Edit mode within the editor, with the combination Alt-S(witch mode). In the tree module, on the Show files screen, Enter views the file (same convention as main module), and Shift-Enter returns to the main module with the cursor on that file name. ----- 5.32b ----- The I/O buffer clearing feature was extended to support MS-DOS Ver 4 and 5. The file 4DOS2CF.COM was added to the CMFiler collection, with its companion documentation 4DOS2CF.DOC. 4DOS2CF does a directory-by- directory search and coverts any 4DOS/NDOS notes (in files called DESCRIPT.ION) into CMFiler format, and appends them to existing (or creates new) NARATIVE.CF files. This way, 4DOS/NDOS users don't have to reenter all their notes to take full advantage immediately of CMFiler's notes facility. ----- 5.32a ----- Memory allocation logic error in the tree module was fixed. This error resulted in fragmented memory for applications run from CMFiler after a call to the tree module. In the editor, a logic error was corrected which prevented use of the block move and copy operations when the screen lower information area was turned off. In the editor, the Home and End keys were redefined to move the cursor to the beginning or end of the line (same as Shift-Left and Right Arrow), rather than to the top or bottom of the current screen page, in keeping with the rest of the world. ----- 5.32 ----- Version number changed to 5.32 to avoid confusion with several versions of 5.31 released to selected users for beta testing. CMFiler -- Changes 1-12