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LyneWriter version 2.3 Evaluation Version R E F E R E N C E M A N U A L Copyright (c) 1988-1990 Roger Cope All Rights Reserved Mr J R Cope 6 St Margaret's Drive Craig-y-don LLANDUDNO LL30 1YD Great Britain CompuServe : 100010,277 LyneWriter 2.3 Page 1 LyneWriter 2.3 is a text utility. It can be used as a typewriter replacement, in which case it offers a powerful emulation of an electronic typewriter environment. In this mode, it can also be used as a printer setup utility and is particularly suitable for experimenting with printer control sequences. Increasingly though, LyneWriter's development is concentrating on it's text editor mode, in which it offers all of the basic text editing functions in a simple to use package. New for version 2.3 is the ability to embed printer control sequences in text files, beginning LyneWriter's move towards the goal of being a quality low end wordprocessor. This version of the software and the documentation was completed during December 1990. This documentation is distributed with the Shareware version of the program in order to allow a full evaluation to be made. A separately written, desk top published manual is included with the registered version. The names of hardware and software used in this manual may be trademarks or trade names of specific manufacturer's or publishers. All such names are acknowledged. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 2 LICENCE LyneWriter is NOT public domain or free software, but is distributed through the Shareware system. This means that you may copy the shareware version freely and give the copies away to anyone you wish, at no cost. They in turn are requested to use the software for evaluation and to register their copy if they use it regularly. The user supported software concept (often referred to as Shareware) is an attempt to provide software at low cost. The cost of offering a new product by conventional means is staggering, and hence dissuades many independant authors and small companies from developing and promoting their ideas. User supported software is an attempt to develop a new marketing channel, where products can be introduced at low cost. If user supported software works, then everyone will benefit. The user will benefit by receiving quality products at low cost, and by being able to 'test drive' the software thoroughly before purchasing it. The author benefits by being able to enter the commercial software arena without first needing large sources of venture capital. But it can only work with your support. The money you may have paid to obtain this evaluation copy of LyneWriter was a distribution fee only. None of it will go to the author. If you find this, or any other, shareware program useful you should register the program with the author or his/her registration agent. The benefits to you of registering LyneWriter are described in Appendix A together with a scale of fees and registration forms. A standard single user registration costs £25 Sterling. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 3 DISCLAIMER This software is supplied as-is for the purposes of evaluation only. Users have not purchased the right to claim support from the author, other than that required to enable a reasonable evaluation of the software to take place. No warranties, expressed or implied are given with this software. The author assumes no liability for any damages, either direct or consequential, that arise from the use or misuse of this software product. If you are having problems when evaluating this software, please contact the author at the address given in the appendix headed 'Registration'. Please bear in mind that you have NOT paid for this software and that support is only guaranteed to registered users. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ...Installation Modes of Operation Editing Keys ...Extended ASCII Characters ...Shell to DOS ...Block Functions ...Reformat Paragraph ...Search and Replace ...Using Printer Control Sequences The Menu System ...Fonts Menu ...Printer Menu ...Options Menu ......Print ......File ......Tabs Appendix A ...ASCII Character Set Acknowledgements LyneWriter 2.3 Page 5 INTRODUCTION LyneWriter was originally written to fulfil a simple need: although computers are generally good at most things, they tend to be lousy when it comes to typing labels, envelopes and short notes. Today's powerful wordprocessors are fine for most jobs, but they are far too clumsy to efficiently emulate an electronic typewriter. Early versions of LyneWriter concentrated on combining an easy to use 'correctable electronic typewriter' interface with an equally easy to use printer setup capability. Version 2.1 expanded on the basic idea by adding a text editing mode to the program and subsequent versions have enhanced this text editing mode so that LyneWriter is now a capable low end text editor featuring search and replace and block cut and paste, in addition to a full range of editing commands. The original concept has not been ignored and LyneWriter still boasts one of the best electronic typewriter emulations on the market. Printer support has also been enhanced to include full Hewlett Packard support and printer macros - a feature allowing total control over your printer with the minimum of fuss. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 6 INSTALLATION Before installing LyneWriter take a backup of the original shareware disk using DISKCOPY. Note that LyneWriter is not archived when delivered to shareware libraries - if it is delivered to you archived, you should unarchive it before proceeding. You should also review the README.LW text file for any last minute information. The following files are required for using LyneWriter: LYNE.EXE LYNE.CFG The LYNE.CFG should contain information pertinent to the printer you will use with LyneWriter. Files are provided for the HP laser/inkjet type, the Epson FX type, the Proprinter type and the Diablo daisywheel type. The supplied LYNE.CFG file sets up some suitable system defaults, but doesn't contain any printer information. The file LYNE.MAC is optional and contains sample printer macros. You are likely to want to create your own version of this file using the supplied file as a guide. Floppy disk systems: On a floppy disk system, format a new floppy. If you wish to make the floppy bootable, format it using the command: FORMAT A:/S Copy the file LYNE.EXE from the distribution disk to the new floppy disk. Select the configuration file appropriate to your printer and copy it to the new floppy, renaming it LYNE.CFG. If you have the distribution disk in drive A:, a suitable command would be: COPY A:LYNE.PRO B:LYNE.CFG assuming that you have a Proprinter type printer. Copy the LYNE.MAC file to the new floppy if desired. LyneWriter is now ready to go. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 7 Hard disk systems: Create a subdirectory called \LYNE and copy the LYNE.EXE file into it. Select the configuration file appropriate to your printer and copy it to the subdirectory, renaming it LYNE.CFG. If you have the distribution disk in drive A:, a suitable command would be: COPY A:LYNE.PRO C:\LYNE\LYNE.CFG assuming that you have a Proprinter type printer. Copy the LYNE.MAC file to the subdirectory if desired. Finally, you should create an environment variable to tell LyneWriter where to find it's support files. This allows you to run the program from any directory on your hard disk (assuming that LYNE.EXE is in your PATH). The following command creates an evironment variable called LYNE: SET LYNE=C:\LYNE\ Note that the directory name (\LYNE\) must be sandwiched between backslashes. You should amend your AUTOEXEC.BAT file to contain a command setting this environment variable. LyneWriter is now ready to go. LyneWriter is started by typing the command LYNE. When you start up LyneWriter you are presented with a copyright message, a shareware message and a message asking you to press a key to start. If you start LyneWriter with a filename as a command line parameter (e.g.: LYNE TEXTFILE.TXT), LyneWriter will load that file immediately it starts up. The filename is remembered for later use. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 8 THE MAIN SCREEN LyneWriter's main screen has a inverse video bar at the top. This bar contains a reminder to press [ESC] to enter the menu system and, on the right, a display of the current line and column position of the cursor (the cursor is the flashing line or block showing you where the next type character will appear). The next line of the display is blank. This is used for system messages telling you that you have begun defining a block or are positioned on a printer code, or asking you whether you wish to delete a printer code or make a replacement. In Screen mode, most of the remainder of the display is the editing window. In File and Typewriter mode, the editing window occupies seven lines at the bottom of the display. In all modes the editing window has a border. The bottom line of the display contains a ruler line showing left and right margin positions, tabs and bells. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 9 MODES OF OPERATION LyneWriter has three distinct modes of operation. The first mode is called TYPEWRITER MODE. In this mode you can type and edit one complete line of text. If you type the line beyond the right hand margin it will print on the printer and if necessary will wordwrap the last word on the line. A line can also be sent to the printer by pressing [RETURN]. This mode emulates the type of display found on electronic typewriters with a single line LCD display which can be edited before committing it to paper. When a line is sent to the printer it scrolls up the screen and cannot be re-edited (though it can be reprinted). Mode 2 is called FILE MODE. This mode is a full text editor mode allowing all the features of LyneWriter to be used, but the text is contained within a seven line window. This mode is specifically designed for people using LyneWriter for typing labels or envelopes. The window (or part of the window) can be printed and users will probably create a file containing names and addresses that can be used in conjunction with the search feature to locate individual addresses. Mode 3 is called SCREEN MODE. This is the default mode. Although LyneWriter has no pretensions to be another QEdit, it has all the basic text editing functions and users should find it perfectly adequate for simple tasks like editing batch files and writing short letters. The user can change mode while working through the Options Menu. As mentioned above, the default mode is Mode 3. The default mode, along with many other start up parameters, can be changed by editing the configuration file 'LYNE.CFG'. There are full details about this file later in this manual. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 10 EDITING KEYS Using the keyboard editing keys. Where appropriate the editing keys are available in all modes. The HELP menu lists the additional editing keys over and above the accepted IBM editing keys. The cursor keys are fully supported in Screen and File mode and restricted to left/right in typewriter mode. Users should note that LyneWriter does not allow you to cursor into 'free space'. If the cursor is moved from the end of a long line onto a shorter line, it will move to the end of the shorter line. In Screen and File mode, the cursor reacts slightly differently when it is moved onto a printer control sequence. The sequences are not displayed on screen, so the cursor pauses when it encounters a sequence and the type of control code encountered is displayed on the message line at the top of the display. A faster method of traversing a text line is available in all modes. Holding the [CTRL] key down when pressing the left or right cursor key produces cursor movement by word. When moving leftwards the cursor is biased to the end of a word and when moving rightwards it is biased to the beginning of a word. To get to the beginning of a line use the standard [HOME] key and to get to the end of a line use the standard [END] key. Both these are situated on the numeric keypad cluster. (Extended keyboards also have standalone editing keys.) When editing lines that extend beyond the right hand margin in Screen and File mode, you should note that cursor movement will not affect the line, but if you begin to enter text the line will wordwrap at the right margin. Typewriter mode will not allow text to be edited beyond the right hand margin. The [BACKSPACE/DELETE] key deletes text to the left of the cursor, closing up the line as it does so. The [DEL] key (on the keypad) deletes characters at the cursor position. Note that when you are deleting printer codes, you are asked to confirm the deletion (a prompt is displayed on the right of the message line). This prevents the codes being accidentally deleted. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 11 In Typewriter mode the [RETURN] (or [ENTER]) key sends a line to the printer, provided that the cursor is at the end of the line. Some cheap keyboards have a tendency to 'double bounce' the [RETURN] key and care should be taken when selecting menu items. In Screen and File mode [RETURN] splits the current line at the cursor position inserting the text in a new line below the old. If the cursor is at the end of a line it simply inserts a new line. Note that you cannot cursor beyond the last line typed in Screen and File mode and that a text file must be extended by the [RETURN] key or the natural word wrapping action. The [TAB] key will send the cursor to the next tab stop (if any). Tabbing actually inserts the required number of spaces into the text. If the cursor is in the middle of a line of text the text to the right of the cursor position is pushed to the next tab stop (in Typewriter mode there must be enough space on the line as text is not allowed to go beyond the right margin). The [INS] key toggles the typing mode between INSERT and OVERTYPE. The default is overtype, but this can be changed in the LYNE.CFG file. The current mode is indicated on the status line at the top right of the screen. The cursor is a solid block in overtype mode and an underscore in insert mode. In Screen and File modes The [PgUp] and [PgDn] keys scroll the edit window up or down by one screenful. To get to the end of a file use [CTRL] in conjuction with [PgDn], and to get to the top of a file use [CTRL] in conjunction with PgUp. The final editing key is [ESC] which takes the user into the menu interface. Once in the menu system. [ESC] will take you back up one level, ultimately bringing you back to the text window. Special editing keys. The function key [F1] is the delete text key. [F1] on it's own will delete text on the current line from the cursor position to the end of the line. Pressing [SHIFT] in conjunction with [F1] will delete the whole of the current line. In Screen and File modes any text lines below the current line are scrolled up to fill the gap. Pressing [ALT] in conjunction with [F1] will delete the whole of the current document in memory (any version on disk is not affected). Before LyneWriter deletes the document it asks you to confirm your decision. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 12 Extended character set The function key [F2] gives access to the extended character set feature. The pop up menu is self explanatory. You will of course need to have the extended characters available on your printer in order to print them. Some low cost printers do not have double line graphics built in - they simply repeat the single line graphic set. Characters below character 32 are not supported, though LyneWriter can edit documents that contain control characters without problems. Extended ASCII characters can also be entered using the [ALT] key in conjunction with the numeric keypad. For example, holding the [ALT] key down and keying 156 on the keypad will produce a '£' symbol. Shell Holding down [SHIFT] in conjuction with [F2] will allow you to 'shell' out of LyneWriter and return to MS-DOS. The MS-DOS file COMMAND.COM (or an equivalent such as 4DOS.COM) must be available. Although this feature returns you to DOS, LyneWriter (and any text) is still in memory and you can return to it by typing EXIT and pressing [RETURN] at the DOS prompt. Block functions [F3] enables the block feature. This is disabled in Typewriter mode. Press [F3] once to mark the start of a block of text (the words 'Block On' appear at the left side of the message line), move the cursor to the end of the text you wish to mark (or continue work) and then press [F3] again to mark the end of the block ('block on' disappears). If you have pressed [F3] by accident and do not wish to mark a block you should press it again before you move the cursor. This will cancel block mode. Once you have selected a block the text will be highlighted and you are presented with a menu. If you wish to move or delete the current block you should select REMOVE. If you wish to copy the text block select COPY. You can cancel the operation by pressing [ESC]. Pressing [SHIFT] in conjunction with [F3] will paste a previously selected block of text into the text at the cursor position. Paste operations can be repeated as often as required with the same text block. If there is no selected block the operation is ignored. This function is disabled in Typewriter mode. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 13 Switching into Typewriter mode and then out again will preserve any block in the paste buffer. You can move text from one document to another by blocking it, deleting the document in memory, loading the second document and pasting the block into it. Deleting a text block is accomplished by selecting it as above, REMOVEing and then ignoring it. The block is deleted from memory when you select the next one. Reformat paragraph [F4] reformats the current paragraph. It always reformats the complete paragraph, irrespective of the cursor position. LyneWriter 2.3 does not support justification. Paragraphs are text blocks separated by either blank lines at top or bottom, or by indents on the first line. Note that text to the left of the current left margin will be incorporated in the new paragraph. Moving the left margin leftwards will create indents in front of each line of the old paragraph, and you will have to delete these indents before reformating the paragraph. Search [F5] starts the SEARCH/REPLACE function. Selecting SEARCH from the menu brings up a dialogue box where you can type in the word to be searched for. Having typed the text to be searched for you are presented with an options box. The options are: W - search for complete words only (the default is to search for any occurence of the search text). I - ignore case (the default is to be case sensitive). N - no query on replace (ignored in SEARCH mode). G - global search (the default is to search from the cursor position to the end of the document). To select an option, simply type the key letter. Thus 'WG' would select a Global search for Whole words. You can press [ESC] at any stage to abort the operation. If the search text is not found a message is displayed. If the text is found it is displayed and the search stops. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 14 The search feature is disabled in Typewriter mode. The search can be repeated at any time by pressing [SHIFT] in conjunction with [F5]. Replace If you select REPLACE from the SEARCH/REPLACE menu you are asked for the word to be searched for. When you complete this dialogue box you are asked for the replacement text. The replacement text need not be restricted to a single word. When the replacement text has been entered, you are presented with the options dialogue box. The options are: W - search for complete words only (the default is to search for any occurence of the search text). I - ignore case (the default is to be case sensitive). N - no query on replace. The default is to query each replacement. In addition to saying yes or no to each replacement, query also allows you to abort the search. G - global search (the default is to search from the cursor position to the end of the document). To select an option, simply type the key letter. Thus 'WG' would select a Global search for Whole words. If you have not switched query off, LyneWriter will display each occurrence of the search text and at the right of the message line you will see the prompt 'Replace Y/N/ESC >'. Typing Y will replace the text as specified and go on to the next occurrence. Typing N will leave the text as before and go on to the next occurrence. Pressing [ESC] will abort the search. You can repeat the replace operation by pressing [SHIFT] in conjuction with [F5]. This should be done with caution if you previously specified no query on replace. [F6] is the Centre Text function. It centres the text on the cursor line between the current margins and places the cursor at the end of the line. Note that subsequent changes of margins do not update the position of the text. Leading and trailing spaces are stripped from the text line being centred. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 15 THE MENU SYSTEM LyneWriter has an interactive pop up menu system consisting of a main menu and five submenus. These are: the Lyne Menu, the Fonts Menu, the Printer Menu, the Options Menu and the Help Menu. The Help Menu has been referred to previously and contains help prompts for the editing keys. The Lyne Menu contains a copyright message. The main menu is accessed through the ESC key. Menu choices can be selected by either pressing the highlighted (and capitalised) key, or by moving the lightbar down through the menu using the cursor keys and pressing [RETURN]. You can exit from any menu by pressing [ESC]. This interface is standard throughout the program. Additionally, the Main menu has a Quit option which asks you for confirmation before exiting in Typewriter mode or asks you if you wish to save your file in File and Screen mode. If you do wish to save the file before exiting you are asked for a filename and can either use the name you gave the file when it was loaded, or change it to something else. Pressing [ESCAPE] aborts the save and returns you to the main menu. The three interactive menus are the Fonts Menu, the Printer Menu and the Options Menu. These menus are traditional 'light bar' menus in which you move a light bar through the choices using the up and down cursor and press RETURN to select. Alternatively, press the highlighted letter key. All the lightbar menus remember the last position of the lightbar when they are called up again. The Fonts Menu All the choices in the Fonts Menu work in the same way. Pressing RETURN selects a printer effect and brings up a pop-up menu where you select whether to send the printer control code sequence to turn the effect on or off. The printer control sequences are set up in the configuration file, LYNE.CFG. A number of tailored configuration files are supplied with the evaluation version and the LYNE.CFG file itself is covered later in this manual. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 16 Effect name Control sequence names NLQ NLQON/NLQOF Elite ELTON/ELTOF Enlarged ENLON/ENLOF Condensed CONON/CONOF Bold BLDON/BLDOF Underline UNDON/UNDOF Double Strike DBLON/DBLOF Proportional PROON/PROOF Italic ITLON/ITLOF Superscript SUPON/SUPOF Subscript SUBON/SUBOF Codes can be sent one after the other for multiple effects, provided that your printer supports them. LyneWriter operates slightly differently in Typewriter mode to how it works in the remaining modes. In Typewriter mode, all the printer control sequences are sent directly to the printer when they are selected. In File and Screen mode, all Fonts menu printer sequences are embedded in the text file at the current cursor position. You cannot see the printer codes on screen in File and Screen mode, but you can move the cursor left one character after selecting a control code and see the code name displayed at the right of the message line. The Printer Menu The Printer Menu can be used to alter printer defaults. Line Feed Moves the paper up 1 line Form Feed Moves the paper up 1 form (page) length LyneWriter 2.3 Page 17 Character Set This option can be used to alter the character set on many printers. The character set is what makes printers print £ signs instead of # and creates even bigger headaches for our continental cousins. The pop up menu is self explanatory. The parameter can be between 0 and 15, though most printers offer less than 15 character sets. See your printer manual for details of the available character set. This is the first of the options asking for you to enter a parameter. If you enter a parameter larger than the maximum LyneWriter will tell you. You can use the delete key in the entry area as normal if you make a mistake. If you decide you don't wish to send the code sequence press [ESC]. Line Spacing Default is usually 1/6 inch - i.e. 12/72 inch To use this option enter the number of 1/72 inch increments per line. E.g. To alter the line spacing to 25/72 inch enter 25. Micro Spacing Similar to above in smaller increments. Page Length Enter the page length in lines. Note: this command sets the page length at the printer (the number of lines the printer will feed after a form feed) and has no effect on LyneWriter's own page length setting. You can alter LyneWriter's page length setting by altering the NOLIN and TOPMG parameters in the configuration file LYNE.CFG or by using the Set Paging option in the Print option of the Options menu. Reset Printer This command resets the printer as if you had switched it on and off. Note that the Line Feed, Form Feed and Reset commands are always sent directly to the printer. The remainder are embedded in text in File and Screen mode. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 18 Options Menu Print Text This option is used when you wish to print text in File and Screen mode (or when you wish to reprint text in Typewriter mode). On selection you get a pop-up window asking whether you wish to print the whole text (the complete file), the contents of the edit window or whether you wish to set the page length parameters. In Typewriter mode you can only print the contents of the window. In File mode you can print either the text in the window or the whole file in memory. In Screen mode, you can only print the complete file. If you decide to print the text in the window you are offered a pop-up menu with the numbers 1 to 7 in it. These correspond to the 7 lines in the edit window. If you only wish to print the TOP 4 lines of text select 4 on the menu. Typewriter mode you may need to press RETURN a couple of times to put the text in the window in the correct position. In this case you'll have to re-adjust the paper in the printer before printing the window. In File and Screen mode you can print the document in memory by selecting 'Print' from the menu. Printing starts straight away. LyneWriter defaults to printing 56 lines of text per page with a top margin of 6 blank lines. At the bottom of a page LyneWriter uses a formfeed to move the paper to the top of the next page. You can alter the default page length and top margin values by selecting the 'Paging' option from the menu. You can permanently alter these settings by editing the LYNE.CFG file. File Utilities Use this option to load a file into LyneWriter, or save one out. If you wish to create a pure ASCII text file from a file with LyneWriter printer sequences embedded in it you should use the ASCII save option. It is not necessary to have an ASCII load option as LyneWriter edits ASCII files as well as it's own directly. Naturally, these options are not available in Typewriter mode. Selecting any of the options will produce an entry field asking for a filename. If you are saving a file previously loaded through LyneWriter the original name will be displayed and you can just press [RETURN]. The delete key functions normally if needed. Filenames should be specified using standard DOS conventions and can include pathnames. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 19 If a file doesn't exist when you try to load it LyneWriter will produce an error message. Error messages will also be produced if LyneWriter encounters a physical error while trying to load or save a file. In these cases LyneWriter will attempt to recover from the error without losing your text. When saving text LyneWriter will erase any file with the same name as the one being saved. (In effect overwriting the old file.) In between loading and saving files LyneWriter closes all disk files, therefore files on disk are safe if your computer crashes while LyneWriter is operating. Change Mode The change mode option is used to swap between LyneWriter's three modes of operation. You can switch between all modes without losing text in memory. Switching into Typewriter mode will clear the document on the screen, but it will be recovered when you switch back to File or Screen mode. Set Tabs and Margins This option is used to set tabs and margins. Pop up help is provided if you press [F1] (this is noted at the left of the message line). The pop-up help is self explanatory. Moving the cursor left while at the left margin moves the margin left, while moving right at the right margin moves the margin to the right. The maximum line length is very long indeed (but you'll only get one line in a document!). Setting a bell will produce a two tone bell when the cursor passes during text entry in Typewriter mode. Altering the margins has no effect on text already entered, but if you alter the left hand margin to the right you will make it impossible to edit text that is now to the left of the new margin. More importantly, pressing [BACKSPACE/DELETE] when the cursor is at the new left hand margin will erase any text to the left of the new margin when the line is attached to the one above. To join two lines together in this instance you should position the cursor at the end of the line above and press [DEL], which will join the two lines without loss of text. Change Output Port This option is self explanatory. LyneWriter supports LPT1:, LPT2: and LPT3:. To use a serial port you should redirect output using the MODE command as described in your DOS manual. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 20 User Codes This option is where users can send their own codes to their printers. Codes to be sent should be in decimal (eg ESCAPE=027). Enter the control sequence one code at a time and conclude by pressing [RETURN] when there is no code number in the User Codes box. You can abort the User Code feature at any time by pressing [ESCAPE]. Pressing [RETURN] immediately in the User Codes box will invoke the printer macro facility. This feature is intended to let users store common printer sequences on disk where they can be sent to the printer at any time. Modern printers are so complex that the LYNE.CFG file cannot possibly cope with all the possible printer sequences. Macros are discussed later in the manual. In Typewriter mode all User Codes are sent directly to the printer. In the two remaining modes, the codes are embedded in the text at the cursor position. The printer sequence name displayed on the message line when a cursor movements runs over a User Code sequence is USRCD. Load Configuration File The option to load a new configuration file can be used to change LyneWriter's default settings while the utility is being used. After selection, you are asked to specify the name of the new configuration file. The default is the standard LYNE.CFG file, and can be changed. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 21 THE CONFIGURATION FILE The LyneWriter configuration file is called LYNE.CFG and is a plain ASCII file containing keywords and data. The configuration file must be available to LyneWriter when it is run. If it is not then LyneWriter will display an error message and use it's defaults for the system parameters. Note that there are no defaults for the printer control information so you will not be able to use the printer control functions. We strongly recommend that if you use LyneWriter as a general purpose text editor, including the LYNE.EXE directory in your PATH statement, that you use the LyneWriter environment variable as described in the installation section of this manual. This will allow you LyneWriter to locate it's support files whenever it is run. The LYNE.CFG can be created and edited using LyneWriter. Each line of the file should contain a keyword and an optional set of parameters. The basic pattern of a line is: KEYWORD=/nnn/nnn/.../ All possible keywords are listed and explained below. Some keywords are optional, but we recommend that you use all of them in your own configuration files, keeping the defaults where you're happy with them. To the right of each keyword is a note of the type of parameter required. NLQON - NLQ text on Printer control sequence NLQOF - NLQ text off Printer control sequence ELTON - Elite (12 CPI) on Printer control sequence ELTOF - Elite off (10 CPI) Printer control sequence ENLON - Double width on Printer control sequence ENLOF - Double width off Printer control sequence CONON - Condensed on Printer control sequence CONOF - Condensed off Printer control sequence BLDON - Bold text on Printer control sequence BLDOF - Bold text off Printer control sequence LyneWriter 2.3 Page 22 UNDON - Underlining on Printer control sequence UNDOF - Underlining off Printer control sequence DBLON - Double strike on Printer control sequence DBLOF - Double strike off Printer control sequence PROON - Proportional text on Printer control sequence PROOF - Proportional text off Printer control sequence ITLON - Italic text on Printer control sequence ITLOF - Italic text off Printer control sequence SUPON - Superscript on Printer control sequence SUPOF - Superscript off Printer control sequence SUBON - Subscript on Printer control sequence SUBOF - Subscript off Printer control sequence RESET - Reset printer Printer control sequence LFEED - Linefeed Printer control code FFEED - Formfeed Printer control code CHCAR - Change character set Variable printer sequence LNSPC - Linespacing Variable printer sequence MSSPC - Microspacing Variable printer sequence PGLEN - Page length Variable printer sequence Where numeric parameters are required to follow the keyword they MUST be in the form /nnn/ - that is, a '/' character followed by 3 numbers followed by a '/' character. If a parameter has less than 3 figures you should add a leading zeros to it. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 23 A printer control sequence is a set of numeric parameters. Each number represents a decimal ASCII code for a character. These codes form an escape sequence and are used to control printers. Most printer manuals list the sequences used to perform various functions to the printer. An example is: SUPON=/027/083/000/ Where 83 represent ASCII 'S'. A printer control code is a single ASCII number implying that the keyword will only need one character to perform that function: FFEED=/012/ LyneWriter will accept a full printer control sequence on these keywords if necessary. A variable printer sequence is a printer sequence which requires a variable parameter to be supplied. These take the form: PGLEN=/027/067/NNN/ where /NNN/ is replaced by a user supplied variable. This is entered in the dialogue box which LyneWriter provides when these functions are accessed from the Printer menu. This parameter allows Hewlett Packard type printers to contain variables which are not at the end of the printer control sequence e.g: PGLEN=/027/038/108/NNN/080/ Some printers do not support all the keywords offered by LyneWriter. For example, standard Hewlett Packard series 2 lasers do not have an Italic font. In these cases you can delete all the keywords which are not supported by your printer, but it is recommended that you give them a dummy parameter instead. The dummy parameter is /999/ this will prevent LyneWriter sending any code to the printer, even if the function is accessed by the user e.g: PROON=/999/ Comments can be added to the file by prefacing them with an asterisk (*), e.g: *This is a comment LyneWriter 2.3 Page 24 All good printers should list their printer control sequences in an accompanying manual. The parameters in the control sequences listed above are decimal numbers representing ASCII values. This is the format that almost all printers expect to be used for control sequences. LyneWriter includes a small number of printer drivers that should allow most major makes of printer to be used with the utility. If you need a special printer driver for your printer, we are willing to write one provided that you supply us with a manual (or a photocopy of the relevant pages). All manuals will be returned when the driver is delivered. The following keywords set LyneWriter's default characteristics. RITMG - sets the right margin RITMG=/100/ sets the right margin to column 100. LEFMG - sets the left margin LEFMG=/010/ sets the left margin to column 10. TBPOS - sets tab positions TBPOS=/020/040/060/ sets three tabs at columns 20, 40 and 60 respectively. RITMG, LEFMG and TBPOS are used to create a 'default' ruler for LyneWriter. START - a series of control codes to send to the printer before the first print is started. START=/027/120/001/027/067/070/ selects NLQ and A4 paper at startup on Epson printers. TOPMG - sets the default number of lines to skip at the top of a page when printing TOPMG=/006/ causes six lines to be skipped at the top of each page. NOLIN - sets the number of lines of text to be printed on each page NOLIN=/054/ allows up to 54 lines of text to be printed before a form feed. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 25 The number of lines on a page minus TOPMG minus NOLIN equals the bottom margin. SMODE - sets the starting mode SMODE=/001/ - Typewriter mode SMODE=/002/ - File mode SMODE=/003/ - Screen mode (Default). OPORT - sets the default output port OPORT=/LPT1/ sets LPT1: (default) OPORT=/LPT2/ sets LPT2: OPORT=/LPT3/ sets LPT3: COLnn - allows the default colour scheme to be changed. There are 8 keywords controlling the colour scheme - COL01 through COL08. There are 8 possible colours to choose from: 000 Black 001 Blue 002 Green 003 Cyan 004 Red 005 Magenta 006 Brown 007 White COL01 and COL02 describe the text editing window, COL03 and COL04 describe the main menu, COL05 and COL06 describe the second level menus and COL07 and COL08 describe the third level menus and dialogue boxes. *FSIZE - sets the maximum file size in lines. Version 2.3 of LyneWriter can edit large files, but the maximum file size must be predefined. Having a large number here is wasting memory if you do not edit large files. The default is 1000 and the minimum is 100 lines. The following keywords do not take parameters. INSRT - sets insert mode as default at startup. NOBEP - this 'silences' LyneWriter by switching off the warning beep that comes with error messages. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 26 TSTPN - stops LyneWriter checking the printer status. This is a work around for a failing in the program. If you always get an error message when trying to print anything, even when your printer is on line, you should insert this keyword in your configuration file. HPGLN - tells LyneWriter you have a Hewlett Packard type printer. This is necessary to ensure that variable parameters are used correctly. All users with Hewlett Packard compatible printers MUST have this line in their configuration file. PRINTER MACROS Printer macros are held in a file called LYNE.MAC. This file must be available to LyneWriter when you attempt to use a macro. LyneWriter will use the environment variable to locate this file if the environment variable is being used. If LyneWriter cannot find the macro file it will give you an error message and return to the Options menu. Printer macros take a similar form to entries in the LYNE.CFG file. The file can be created with LyneWriter and should have one macro per line. The basic layout of a line in the file is: PRINTER MACRO=/nnn/nnn/nnn/.../ Note that the printer macro name should be in CAPITAL letters and not longer than 64 characters. The macro parameter consists of several decimal numbers separated by a backstroke. The numbers should have three figures and you must add leading zeros to the numbers if required. Most printers require decimal numbers to be used in command sequences, where each number represents an ASCII value. Most good printer manuals include information on command sequences in a 'programming' or 'technical reference' section. A typical macro may be: HP DOWNLOAD 10 POINT SCRIPT=/027/040/048/085/027/040/115/048/117/ 049/112/057/046/057/054/118/049/115/048/098/055/116/050/081/ Note that the command sequence is split onto multiple lines for layout purposes only and must be on a single line in the LYNE.MAC file. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 27 The above macro would be sent to the printer by entering 'HP DOWNLOAD 10 POINT SCRIPT' in the macro dialogue box. Incidentally, it represents the following Hewlett Packard command sequence: <ESC>(0U<ESC>(s0u1p9.96v1s0b7t2Q but no-one ever said printer programming was easy! A selection of macros for several printers is included in the LYNE.MAC file on the LyneWriter distribution disk. Each printer section is headed by a comment line. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 28 APPENDIX A - REGISTRATION Although you may have paid to receive this evaluation version of LyneWriter, none of that money will reach the author, and you will not have 'purchased' the product in the usual sense of the word. Registration is the name given to the actual purchase of a licence to use this software from the author. Registration offers the following advantages: 1. Support. Registration of a version of LyneWriter entitles you to support for that version for as long as my memory holds out, or as long as I have a copy of the version to hand. Support is by post, enclosing an SAE (or International Reply Coupon) in the first instance. We endeavour to reply as soon as possible, on average a week after receiving your letter. 2. Upgrades. We are continually developing LyneWriter and our upgrades usually represent major enhancements. All registered users receive notification of upgrades to LyneWriter and may also have the chance to upgrade at low cost. 3. Last but not least, a desktop published manual with illustrations which covers LyneWriter in more detail than this document file. Registration costs £25.00 Sterling. We are happy to accept registrations from (and give support to) users worldwide. Registrations from outside the UK should be by International Money order or equivalent. Bona fide shareware organisations suggest writing to authors to confirm their continued existence before sending any money. Since we do not have the stability of the major organisations we can only agree with the sense in this. All such enquiries must be accompanied by an SAE (in the UK) or an International Reply Coupon from your local post office. A form is included with this shareware release called REGISTER.TXT which can be used for registration purposes. To create a paper copy type COPY REGISTER.TXT PRN: and press [RETURN] at the DOS prompt, or load the file into LyneWriter and print it out. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 29 CORPORATE LICENCES LyneWriter is licenced for personal use only. All corporate, business, government or other commercial organisations using LyneWriter must be registered. A standard LyneWriter registration fee covers small businesses and organisations for simultaneous use of LyneWriter on up to 3 machines. Using LyneWriter on 4 to 10 machines costs £75 sterling, an ex- tra £50 is charged for every 10 machines up to 50 machines and an extra £30 on top of that for every 10 machines to 100. The licence fee for 100 machines costs: £ 75.00 10 machines 200.00 50 X 4 (additional 40 m/c) 150.00 30 X 5 (additional 50 m/c) --------- 425.00 Organisations with greater needs should contact the author. We will only accept purchase orders from bona fide companies or similar organisations, and only for amounts of £75.00 and over. All other orders should be prepaid. Special arrangements are possible for registered charities and educational institutions - contact the author for details. UK organisations - VAT is not currently chargeable. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 30 APPENDIX B - ASCII CHARACTER SET For best results your printer should be able to print the full extended IBM character set. Decimal 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 ├──────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII <SP> ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * Decimal 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII + , - . / 0 1 2 3 4 5 Decimal 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII 6 7 8 9 : ; < = > ? @ Decimal 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII A B C D E F G H I J K Decimal 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII L M N O P Q R S T U V Decimal 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII W X Y Z [ \ ] ^ _ ` a Decimal 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII b c d e f g h i j k l Decimal 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII m n o p q r s t u v w LyneWriter 2.3 Page 31 ASCII TABLE - CONTINUED Decimal 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII x y z { | } ~ Ç ü é Decimal 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII â ä à å ç ê ë è ï î ì Decimal 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII Ä Å É æ Æ ô ö ò û ù ÿ Decimal 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII Ö Ü ¢ £ ¥ ₧ ƒ á í ó ú Decimal 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII ñ Ñ ª º ¿ ⌐ ¬ ½ ¼ ¡ « Decimal 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII » ░ ▒ ▓ │ ┤ ╡ ╢ ╖ ╕ ╣ Decimal 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII ║ ╗ ╝ ╜ ╛ ┐ └ ┴ ┬ ├ ─ Decimal 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII ┼ ╞ ╟ ╚ ╔ ╩ ╦ ╠ ═ ╬ ╧ Decimal 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII ╨ ╤ ╥ ╙ ╘ ╒ ╓ ╫ ╪ ┘ ┌ LyneWriter 2.3 Page 32 ASCII TABLE - CONTINUED Decimal 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII █ ▄ ▌ ▐ ▀ α ß Γ π Σ σ Decimal 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII µ τ Φ Θ Ω δ ∞ φ ε ∩ ≡ Decimal 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 ───────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼────┼ ASCII ± ≥ ≤ ⌠ ⌡ ÷ ≈ ° ∙ · √ Decimal 252 253 254│ ───────┼────┼────┼────┤ ASCII ⁿ ² ■ │ LyneWriter 2.3 Page 33 APPENDIX C - MISCELLANEOUS Acknowledgments: LyneWriter 1.0 was compiled in Turbo BASIC 1.0 LyneWriters 1.1 - 2.2 were compiled in Turbo BASIC 1.1 LyneWriter 2.3 was compiled in PowerBASIC 2.0 and 2.1 The source code was edited in the PowerBASIC environment and in QEdit V2.1 when I needed a real editor. Hardware used was an Amstrad PC2286 in the early stages, a Dolan 386SX (Taiwanese clone) for the later stages and an Amstrad ALT-286 portable for the moving stages. All documentation was written using LyneWriter 2.3 (for the first time!). Much of the development was, as ever, inspired by comments from YOU - the users. Keep 'em coming! I continue to be indebted to my brother, Andrew, for his technical suggestions and criticism. He's now hacking his own PC code, though not working on text editors, thankfully. Check out his 'organiser' software, File O' Facts, from shareware dealers or from me. LyneWriter 2.3 Page 34