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1986-11-19
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FARGO IBM-PC USERS GROUP
NEWSLETTER
NOVEMBER 1986
Meeting Notes-------------------------------------------------------------1
Shareware: SST20.ARC------------------------------------------------------1
Shareware: PKX33A12.COM---------------------------------------------------1
Editor's Corner-----------------------------------------------------------2
Need Floppy Disks?--------------------------------------------------------2
Wordprocessing: Better Yet------------------------------------------------2
Electronic Bulletin Board-------------------------------------------------2
User Group Officers-------------------------------------------------------2
** MEETINGS **
The Fargo IBM-PC User Group meets the third Monday of every month at 7:00
p.m. Our current meeting place is the classroom located in Bethany Homes,
201 University Drive South, Fargo. Meetings are free to the public and
new computer owners are encouraged to attend.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEETING NOTES
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
October Meeting. The focus of our October meeting was the Paradox
database program. Michael Merker, senior sales representative of Ansa
Software, demonstrated the program and answered questions regarding its
operation. Paradox was extremely impressive. Mr. Merker stressed the
query features of the database, which enable the user to generate reports
without learning details of a programming language.
Overall, the users were impressed by the product. Several times we
remarked, "You mean it's done already?" Though we can't begin to describe
the features of this product in detail, you editor will go so far as to
urge anyone who is looking for a powerful relational database to buy no
software without first looking at Paradox.
We wish to thank Mike and Ansa for this excellent presentation of what
may be the next generation in database software.
We also took a few moments to playfully tease Loren and wish him out
best as he prepares to marry November 15th. Our best wishes to you, Loren
and Gail!
In November we will celebrate Thanksgiving with a "Great Turkey Swap &
Sale." If you have any software and/or hardware that you wish to sell,
trade, or whatever, bring it to the November meeting! Our feature for the
month will be networking.
The theme of the November meeting will be resources. We'll be
discussing where to go for hardware, software, peripherals, and
accessories. Where have our users group members found the best value?
Come and find out.
In December Karl Peterson will give us a shake down cruise through the
Novell local area network operating system. If you want to learn how
microcomputers can be trained to work together, you'll want to make this
meeting.
In January we plan a demonstration of the NorthStar Dimension computer,
courtesy of Software Solutions, Ltd. This is a multi-user PC compatible
that is finding a niche where many minis used to dominate. Our president
expects you will be impressed with the performance of this machine.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHAREWARE: SST20.ARC
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SST20 is the acronym for Seek Stopper 2.0 by Alfred J. Hayman. The
program falls in the class of programs called disk optimisers.
DOS will fit a file on a disk wherever it can. It can break a file up
without damaging it. There is a price to pay, however--speed. When parts
of a file is are located in different places (fragmented), it takes longer
Page 1
for the heads of the drive to retrieve the information. Disk Optimizers
are programs that group all portions of a file together on a hard or
floppy disk.
We recently reviewed another shareware optimizer program called Disk
Organizer (DOG). SST functions much like DOG in that it rewrites your
files to disk in such a way that the information in each file is
contiguous.
SST is different from DOG in two ways--it is faster and it is a bit
more risky. This advantage and disadvantage are tied together. In order
to run more quickly than other optimizers like DOG, SST reads information
into RAM memory. This saves much time by not stopping to record
information about the file locations on the disk itself. However, should
something happen to your system while this process is happening, you will
have to kiss your data good-bye.
If you backup your disks regularly, the risk of using a memory based
optimizing program like SST won't frighten you. If backup is an unknown
word, or a grueling process, you'd best stick with a slower method that
safely writes the information to disk.
I spared my hard disk for now and used SST on floppies. Using DOG and
its third option, which moves free space to the outside tracks, the
process moved 108 clusters and took 122 seconds. A duplicate floppy using
SST moved 46 clusters and took 20 seconds--about six times faster than
DOG.
Because SST works in memory and reconstructs the FAT table when
finished, it reorganizes fragmented files very quickly. If you don't
worry much about crashing while running a program and have ample backups
of your hard disks, SST looks like an effective way to keep on top of
fragmented files. If you are more cautious and/or want more options
during the process, a shareware product like DOG might suit you better.
--JL
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHAREWARE: PKX33A12.COM
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ever wish you could find a better way of storing old files? Archive
utilities enable you to do this by storing a compressed version of one or
more files under a single filename.
This program creates an archive file, which is a compressed version of
one or more program or data files. PKX33A12.COM writes Phil Katz's arc
and un-arc utilities (and related .DOC files) to your disk. A version for
the PCjr is also produced. Simply run the program and then delete or
rename the resulting files as you choose.
PKX33A12.COM is a 54K file. Fortunately, the resulting utilities you
actually use are much smaller. The utility to create ARC files (PKARC--
version 1.2) is 16K; the file which extracts files from an archive
(PKXARC) is 10K.
Because the program is written in machine language, it runs much faster
than other ARC utilities.
Even as the true identity of a file can be soon lost to the user in the
cryptic DOS directory, so it can disappear within an archive. PKXARC
allows the user to reduce the typical head-scratching confusion by
inserting comments into new or existing archive files. You can now add a
comment describing each file in the archive. The description may have a
maximum length of 32 characters. You don't have to re-create existing
archive files to use this feature, but you may want to anyway, since PKARC
will probably compress the files better than before.
Loren has chosen to make this the standard archive utility of the
board. If you need to save space and store files in an organized manner,
this is THE program to use.
Page 2
Phil Katz requests a $20 contribution from those who find the program
useful. A $45 contribution will entitle the user to a disk containing the
next version of PKARC, when released.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
EDITOR'S CORNER
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The microcomputer industry seems to be in the doldrums today. It's not
that users have lost interest, or that sales are tumbling. Yet in the
midst of falling prices and better values something is missing--creative
innovation.
Most manufacturers, foreign and domestic, are busy churning out XT and
AT boxes. The options and prices vary, but the basic unit remains the
same. New EGA clones appear every month.
Yes, Compaq's 80386 is available, but it more or less twiddles its
thumbs until Microsoft writes a DOS that can take advantage of it's state-
of-the-art technology.
Users slowly and cautiously are beginning to embrace the 3-1/2" disk
format. The same can be said for optical disks.
Software developers seem to be following a similar course. More
features for less money. Enhanced versions. Yet we see no quantum leaps
forward like the jump from VisiCalc to Lotus or Peachtext to WORD.
Pausing to catch our breath isn't all bad. We'd all be broke if rapid
advances continued unabated! Still, I'm hoping the true innovators
haven't been replaced by the accountant types Lee Iacocca calls the
"marble counters."
I know IBM isn't in business to thrill the socks off users. Even so,
wouldn't it be great if their next product announcement did just that?
--JL
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEED FLOPPY DISKS?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The User Group has a limited supply of DS/DD 360K floppy disks
available. These come with tyvek sleeves and have a lifetime guarantee.
Your cost is only 75 cents each. Contact Loren if interested.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
WORDPROCESSING: BETTER YET!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the friendly rivalry between Loren and myself regarding WORD and
WordPerfect, I remarked that although WORD featured an integrated
outlining program (unlike WordPerfect), it lacked a thesaurus. The folks
at Microsoft just silenced that criticism.
Microsoft recently announced a new upgrade of WORD (3.1). In addition
to the outliner, spelling checker, and style-sheet features of version
3.0, the new release includes Microlytics highly praised (220,000 entry)
Word Finder thesaurus. It also offers support for line and column
numbering after repagination as well as support for new laser printers.
Upgrades are only $25--less than one-third the cost of the thesaurus
itself. I sent for mine two weeks ago. You can be sure you'll see an
outline of its features when it comes!
--J. Levitt
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ELECTRONIC BULLETIN BOARD
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This month we have great news to report regarding the Fargo RBBS. The
AT-Compatible Loren obtained from Gerrells of Devils Lake has worked well
as the server. Three lines are now available. We continue to offer a
free public access line. In addition, two additional subscriber lines are
available. Users tired of busy signals can enjoy easier access and spend
more time each day leaving messages and transferring files.
Page 3
Loren replaced the power supply and the keyboard of the Atronics AT
clone, still looking for the mysterious glitch that occasionally sends the
board into a tailspin. He's enthusiastic about the Maxi-Switch keyboard,
which can emulate either the old PC or the new AT layout.
With modem prices falling, there has never been a better time for you
to consider accessing hundreds of shareware and public domain programs
available through our RBBS.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
USER GROUP OFFICERS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
President & Sysop-----Loren Jones
Vice-President------James Grettum
Librarian----------Calvin Paulson
Newsletter Ed.---------Jim Levitt
Treasurer-------------Loren Jones
Printing----------------TLC Press
Address: Box 9121, Fargo ND 58109
Newsletter Address: c/o Jim Levitt, Box 97, Wolverton, MN 56594
User Group Phone: 1-701-280-2608
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Page 4
FARGO USERS GROUP RBBS UPLOADS (Oct. 10-Nov. 13, 1986)
page 5
720KDISK.ARC 6144 11-08-86 How to use 360K disk as 720K on AT w/DOS
3.2
ABORT1_0.ARC 2816 10-17-86 alt to ctrl-bk, more powerful, bit messy
ALL_CARD.ARC 8704 10-19-86 Info on the AllCard expansion board
ALLFIL.ARC 8448 11-02-86 Scrolling file selection for TPascal
ANESTH.BBS 10240 10-17-86 Anesthesia Information Database BBS
ANSIAN15.ARC 68608 11-01-86 Draw ANSI graphics with animation
ANYWHERE.ARC 11264 10-24-86 Find Files Across Multiple Drives
AOLA104.ARC 64512 10-12-86 NEW! ANSI of LA ver. 1.04 VG ANSI
driver
ARCDOOR.ARC 50176 11-01-86 Online viewing .arc fi content PCBoard
ARTART.ARC 31616 10-31-86 Tired of drawing. ARTificial ART!
ASDKEYS.ARC 13824 11-12-86 Keyboard macro utility
ASTRO2.ARC 12800 10-30-86 New Astronomy Program
ATC.ARC 45440 11-02-86 Great Air Traffic Controller Game
AUTOMAXX.ARC 79872 10-19-86 *Menu Generator : formerly AUTOMENU II
BABY.ARC 32384 10-18-86 *Don't drop the BABY'S! - Lot's of fun!
BASECALC.ARC 6144 11-01-86 Binary/Hex/Decimal conversion in TP
BBSJUNKY.ARC 1664 10-31-86 This could happen to YOU
BIRTHDAY.ARC 13592 10-13-86 Never forget another birthday again!
BITBAT.EXE 34304 11-03-86 Another shoot 'em up game
BORNAGIN.TXT 6016 10-22-86 Life changing information for all!
BOX.COM 2048 11-08-86 Rotating box on screen
BREAKIN.ARC 19072 10-31-86 Break dancing demo. Lots of fun
CARDGAME.ARC 13952 10-23-86 Two solitaire card games
CEDINS.ARC 1152 10-29-86 Change CED default to insert mode
CFP.ARC 10752 10-30-86 Cash Flow Projector Worksheet for Lotus
CHANNEL.ARC 19456 10-29-86 Multi-tasking, like Carousel
CHEAPCAD.ARC 27520 10-12-86 Bare bones CAD program
CHECMATE.ARC 198656 11-14-86 Great Checkbook/home financial manager !
CHK.LST 21632 10-15-86 RBBS setup checklist from CTSA
CLONEINV.ARC 56320 10-27-86 Clone Invader - C/G Arcade Game
COLLIE.ARC 277376 10-23-86 Nice BBS like Fido with extensions
CONSTIT.ARC 19584 11-11-86 US Constitution (latest ver.) full text
COOKIE.ARC 30208 11-11-86 Collected wit for software engineers
CTSA1186.NWS 29312 11-14-86 newletter & bbs list CenTex Sysop Assn.
DATETIM2.PQS 2048 10-24-86 Date & Time routines for Pascal
DB3LOGO.ARC 1152 11-06-86 Make the logo stuff disappear
DB3PLUS.PAT 1536 11-07-86 Remove startup/ending message for dB3+
DB3SCR1.ARC 4864 11-12-86 Makes boxes fast in dBase III
DB3STR.ARC 10880 11-12-86 Display DB3 file structure without DB3
DBF2TPV3.PAS 29056 10-14-86 convert dbase files for turbo pascal
DBFLOW.ARC 26496 10-18-86 Flowcharts dBase prgs. to screen & file
DD.ARC 3712 10-29-86 Double dir's, side by side
DECEIVE.ARC 15360 10-13-86 PopUp dummy screen of your choice
DEDMATIC.ARC 126053 11-13-86 Deduct-a-Matic computer usage tracker
DISK-425.ARC 68224 10-17-86 Lots of Turbo Pascal Routines
DISKVR43.ARC 51200 10-20-86 Best COVER program Bill Brendel has seen!
DOSCOL.ARC 37194 10-21-86 Set DOS colors! w/source
DSCAR1.ARC 59520 10-15-86 Dbase III+ Syntax Checker.
DU.EXE 44160 10-26-86 Easy disk utility : Shells to utilities
DX160.ARC 126976 10-18-86 Directory Extended v 1.6 (sorted
directory)
DYNAPACK.ARC 17408 11-07-86 Fast pack dBase files from DOS
EBL304A.ARC 65664 10-31-86 Extended batch language 304A
EGABLANK.ARC 1408 10-26-86 EGA compatible screen blank utility
EGAEPSON.ARC 8064 10-19-86 EGA version of GRAPHICS.COM from DOS disk
EMPLOYEE.ARC 161024 10-23-86 Schedules up to 500 employees--Terrific
5
FARGO USERS GROUP RBBS UPLOADS (Oct. 10-Nov. 13, 1986)
page 6
FAKE2.ARC 6016 11-04-86 V.2 of the Fake Hacker series
FAKEPHRE.ARC 2723 10-26-86 Pretend to be a hacker, just a joke
FARGODIR.ARC 89671 10-26-86 Master List of Fargo files as of 10/1/86
FASTYP22.ARC 144406 11-13-86 Fas-Type v.2.2 typing teacher
FBR154.ARC 13312 10-13-86 File Backup/Restore ver. 1.54
FFUN10.ARC 138184 10-27-86 "FootballFun" Football Pool Manager v.1.0
FILEDUMP.EXE 15530 10-16-86 Hex/ASCII general file dump to console
FILEIT.ARC 23552 11-09-86 Pop-up quick reference bibliographic tool
FIXFAT.ARC 32256 11-09-86 Recover lost files & repair damaged FAT
FKEYV20.ARC 25600 10-31-86 *Function Key Template maker v2.0 - VG!
FLIP.ARC 4096 11-13-86 Flips graphics screen after n minutes!
FLITPLN2.VVV 41344 10-19-86 Ver. 3.2 of Flight Plan, a pilot's aid
FROG.ARC 26624 10-15-86 frogger game
FSDEBUG.ARC 32392 10-16-86 GREAT Full screen debugger with windows
FUNBASIC.ARC 7168 10-31-86 Variety of small interesting BASIC pgms
GALXY12C.ARC 90880 10-20-86 Galaxy Word Processor V 12.C Excellent!
GALXY13.ARC 105728 11-10-86 Galaxy V 1.3 Great Word Processor
GOODLOOK.ARC 48384 10-31-86 v 2.1 of a great visual file comparer
GOODLOOK.TXT 2425 10-31-86 What GoodLook is--ASCII description
GRCP2.ARC 27392 11-10-86 TSR Graphics Cut & Paste Ver. 2.0
GT1012-1.ARC 95232 11-12-86 GT PowerComm v10.12 comm prg - 1 of 3
GT1012-2.ARC 95232 11-12-86 GT PowerComm v10.12 comm prg - 2 of 3
GT1012-3.ARC 45056 11-12-86 GT PowerComm v10.12 comm prg - 3 of 3
HACK.ARC 252416 11-05-86 UNIX Hack game for PC. Super game!!!
HANG.ARC 62848 10-12-86 VERY GOOD Educational Hangman Game
HDUTIL.ARC 24704 10-20-86 Extended hard disk utilities
HEADER.ARC 16384 11-12-86 Prints dBaseIII file structure to a file
HEAREYE.BAS 4352 10-30-86 Hearing/Eye examination on your PC
HIDDIR.ARC 3200 10-28-86 Allows creation of Hidden Sub-Dirs
INSULTS.ARC 25929 11-13-86 Generates 22 million insults for
pranksters
JUMPJOE.ARC 53504 10-18-86 Arcade type game - mult. levels
K&R.ARC 25840 10-31-86 C source code for K&R examples
LASTRUN.ARC 5888 11-12-86 Nice IF..GOTO date check for autoexec.bat
LAWBBSFD.ARC 6784 11-13-86 Frolic & Detour listing of law BBS's
LBARGEN.ARC 19456 11-12-86 Generates lite-bar menu code for dBase
III
LIGHTPAT.ARC 3712 10-26-86 Patched for Borland's Turbo Lightning
LIST60J.ARC 19456 10-27-86 LIST Vern Buerg's classic v6.0j
[10/13/86]
LOAN.ARC 66432 10-19-86 Another finacial helper program - good.
MARKS.ARC 34304 11-06-86 *Teacher's grading recorder
MAXHEAD2.ARC 30720 10-11-86 Max Headroom he he hear. TV commercial.
MOVBASV3.ARC 11264 10-19-86 Run IBM BASIC (incl. ver 3.2) on clone
MTASK.ARC 16384 11-08-86 Two partition multi-tasking
MTGPAY.ARC 19072 11-09-86 Mortgage calculator - Lotus .WKS
worksheet
MULTITSK.ARC 35300 10-26-86 Multitasking routines for Lattice C
NEWENTER.ARC 512 10-19-86 Change the grey + key to a 2nd Enter key
NT.EXE 10752 11-09-86 BestDirectory Tree program around!
NYWORD20.ARC 160768 10-28-86 NY WORD processor v2.0-rewritten & VG!
OCTNEWS.ARC 13440 10-13-86 Fargo User Group October Newsletter
OPTMENU.ARC 2944 11-12-86 Adds Lotus style menus to dBase iII+
PC-ARENA.ARC 50432 11-09-86 *Play Othello with a friend by modem!
PC-DT104.ARC 129739 10-24-86 *PC-DeskTeam 1.04 - BETTER than SideKick!
PCBOWL.ARC 65408 10-21-86 C/G Bowling Game
PCLOK11A.ARC 27008 10-20-86 Password Protect your Hard Disk
PCOAIDS.ARC 8192 10-14-86 PC Outline aids
6
FARGO USERS GROUP RBBS UPLOADS (Oct. 10-Nov. 13, 1986)
page 7
PCOPY4.ARC 54272 10-31-86 Copy Utility (Untest!!)
PCOPY5.ARC 56448 10-19-86 Copy anything anywhere w/DOS shell
PCOPY51.ARC 58368 11-10-86 Artiquin's COPY util ver. 5.1 - GREAT for
HD
PCPURST.ARC 11264 11-09-86 Info on Telenet's PC-Pursuit - cheap
modeming
PCSWP210.ARC 75776 10-19-86 *PC Sweep V2.1
PCW27-1.ARC 107520 11-05-86 PC-Write 2.7 1 of 5.
PEPORES.ARC 7168 10-16-86 SUPER mem res debugger.
PERSON.COM 20480 10-15-86 Personal phone and address directory.
PFM222.ARC 68608 10-24-86 Personal File Mgmt-visual directory mgmt
prgm
PIBMDOS.ARC 30208 10-26-86 TurboPascal routines f/multitasking
interface
PIKDIR.PAS 14976 11-02-86 Scrolling file selection in TPascal
PIRATE.ARC 16256 10-24-86 A pirate adventure game-use ARC512
PKX33A12.COM 53248 11-03-86 Newest PKXARC3.3 & PKARC1.2-self unpacks
PROCM242.ARC 141312 10-26-86 ProComm 2.4.2 - Fixes bugs in 2.4.1
PROSORT2.ARC 31881 10-21-86 Ver2-Sort for ProComm dial dir w/source
PULLDOWN.ARC 6144 11-02-86 Pull Down menus for TURBO Pascal
QDR.ARC 4096 10-25-86 Buerg's quick re-formater
QDR26.ARC 5120 11-12-86 Vern Buerg's Diskette Reformatter-update
QFILER23.ARC 87936 11-13-86 QFILER v2.3 - great file/disk mgmt util!
QMOD-KER.ARC 7936 11-12-86 Use Kermit protocol with Qmodem 2.x RdB
QMOVE15.ARC 26752 10-20-86 Full scrn file mover across subdr/drives
QWRITE11.ARC 14976 11-02-86 Quick screen writing for TURBO ver 1.1
RATKEY20.ARC 8064 11-08-86 TSR key redefiner v2.01, 10/23/86, A.Lin
REBUILD.EXE 18432 10-13-86 Rebuild damaged dBase files
RISK.ARC 100352 11-08-86 Risk - Just like the board game
ROBOTRON.ARC 26240 11-02-86 good c/g, just like arcade game
SCRGEN.COM 65024 10-12-86 Turbo Pascal source code screen generator
SETATRIB.COM 14080 10-31-86 Change disk file status
SHIPS.ARC 15104 10-30-86 Battle ships game
SMOKING.ARC 34176 10-31-86 What are your smoking risk factors?
SMURF.BAS 4224 10-21-86 its omega mans latest
SST-V201.ARC 44032 11-09-86 *SeekStopper to unfragment hard disk files
STDERR.COM 384 10-26-86 Sends DOS error mssgs to CTTY output
STRESS.ARC 3712 10-31-86 Determine your stress level
SWATCH.COM 19072 10-27-86 Analog clock display on graphics adapter
TAXCUT87.ARC 206774 10-30-86 *PC-TaxCut Tax Planning prgm for '86/'87
THELP3A.ARC 30720 10-17-86 Improved resident Turbo help program
TIMSAV26.ARC 130048 11-06-86 *IME Saver v2.6 Calendar/Appt. Mgr - VG!!
TPRO.ARC 8576 10-24-86 Turbo utilities
TRONCYCL.BAS 3456 11-02-86 Cycle game from TRON
TSW.ARC 80896 10-24-86 Turbo Screen Works 1.0 for Turbo Pascal
UPDATE51.ARC 90624 11-04-86 Backup New/Changed[/Old] Files
VISITYPE.COM 1152 10-14-86 Expand kybrd buff./display buffered keys
VMODE.ARC 10240 11-02-86 Set video modes CGA EGA Mono PCjr
WEIGHT.ARC 2176 10-31-86 Are you overweight???
WHATIS3.ARC 19456 10-16-86 Add a one line description to programs.
WHO.ARC 4096 10-11-86 Bud and Lou's famous baseball routine.
WIND4MSC.LIB 10240 10-19-86 Windows for C / Microsoft C V3.0 up
WRDPRF42.ARC 11520 11-10-86 Brief description of WordPerfect 4.2
WT.ARC 24320 10-22-86 Full Screen World Time
YAPP.ARC 48128 11-03-86 Program for amateur radio packet use
ZAPDIR.ARC 4224 11-03-86 Delete unwanted directories
ZENITH.ARC 92160 10-27-86 Info for Zenith Owners
ZOOBAD.ARC 3072 10-30-86 Sage advice on ZOO arc util from Mahoney
7
FARGO USERS GROUP RBBS UPLOADS (Oct. 10-Nov. 13, 1986)
page 8
ZOOPLAN1.ARC 19072 11-09-86 Response to critics by author of ZOO
8