Software Vault: The Gold Collection/Software Vault - The Gold Collection (American Databankers) (1993).ISO/cdr11/mpc93jun.zip/HANKIES.TXT

Text File | 1993-05-31 | 19KB | 304 lines

     Digital Communications
     by Hank Volpe
     The 1992 "Hankies"

     Once again, friends, it's time to cross the barriers of space, time,
     good taste and transcend all the politically correct review
     processes. It's time for a breath of fresh air, time for a change,
     time for a new world order (sorry, living so close to Washington,
     D.C. makes one ramble a bit). As I was saying, it's time for
     something we've all been waiting for: the annual Hank Volpe awards
     of merit, better known as the Hankies. Unlike an author's receipt
     of meaningless industry awards from computer magazines and trade
     shows, the receipt of a Hankie represents an achievement beyond
     compare! Most authors who have received Hankies have been
     astonished, with comments ranging from "thank you, but my nose is
     not running" to "God, I've finally made the big-time."

     The Hankies have been known to produce even more emotional
     responses than these, for they spotlight the software authors who
     keep the BBS's alive and running: the shareware authors of America.
     Shareware and shareware authors go unheralded by most of the
     mainstream press. The reasons aren't clear to me; it could be due to
     lack of advertising, lack of publicity, or lack of really good,
     exotic, and expensive-to-throw parties for reviewers. In any case,
     it's a shame, for usually the best software products you can find
     are shareware.  Some of the past winners of this award speak to that
     fact: Qmodem, Procomm, Telix, PKZIP, Hard Disk Manager, Auto Menu,
     Mahjongg, Vacation Planner, Funnels--these and others are great
     examples of shareware. Although some packages have worked their way
     into the commercial market, they started on BBS's, being downloaded,
     used, and registered by people like you and me. Their excellence
     kind of explains how the Hankies got started.

     Now before we go any further, you must understand that the
     selection and voting process for such a prestigious award must
     always be above reproach and founded on high moral grounds. Each
     year, as the operator of a BBS, I receive thousands of files to look
     at and evaluate. Out of this group, I search for the best file,
     disk, video, and communication programs. Games and educational
     software are also important on my list (for I have two nintendo
     addicted rug rats who need constant guidance and distraction from
     the evils of MTV). After the review process comes a lengthy trial
     period during which the software is run through its paces. I check
     to make sure the program is well-written, well documented, and well
     supported. I've also been known to like poorly written stuff because
     it looks pretty neat!

     With all that in mind, I select the finalists, make myself a really
     strong cup of coffee, and ask my wife what she thinks. As we all
     know, that is the safest way to make sure you have not made an error.
     My motto is "If it works for the President, it works for me"! So now,
     without further ado, the 1992 winners!

     Best Disk Utility The best disk utilities you can find have always
     been shareware. Be it a disk compactor, disk organizer, or disk
     duplicator, shareware ventures have always out-classed anything
     commercially available. This year's winning entry fills a need all of
     us have: the need to make quick, accurate disk copies. "Disk Copy
     Fast" (distributed as DCF40B.ZIP) is a one-pass diskette duplication
     utility which makes copies of 1.44 MB, 720 KB, 1.2 MB, and 360 KB
     diskettes. Bench tests (assuming you aren't switching disks in and
     out of your machine) have shown that Disk Copy Fast will format and
     duplicate a disk up to 57% faster than any other DOS utility.
     According to the author, Chang Ping Lee, all this increase in speed
     is accomplished by precise timing without sacrificing compatibility.
     Mr. Lee states that "Every single read, write or format is done
     following the industry standard, strictly, no compromise!" In one
     pass, Disk Copy Fast performs the DOS commands FORMAT, DISKCOPY and
     DISKCOMP. Designed for both the occasional user and a mass
     production environment, Disk Copy Fast makes extensive use of Hot
     Keys and includes many command line switches that make it easy to
     run from a batch file. The program loads as much of the original
     disk into XMS memory as possible, thus speeding up disk duplicating.
     If XMS memory does not exist or is insufficient, Disk Copy Fast
     automatically buffers this storage to your hard drive. If you shy
     away from switches and command lines, Disk Copy Fast has a nicely
     constructed pull-down window environment for you to interact with.
     Disk Copy Fast comes complete with documentation and registration
     information. Those who register receive a copy of Disk Fast Plus, a
     utility that contains several extra features and some customizing
     ability for hot keys. If you need to make backup disks, especially
     for archive purposes, give Disk Copy Fast a try.

     Best File Utility

     Do you need more disk space? The ZIP'R utility, when used in
     combination with PKZIP, ARJ, or LHA, automatically compresses entire
     programs into a single compressed file, saving valuable hard drive
     space. Zip'r (distributed as ZIPR22.ZIP) is a safe, totally DOS
     compatible method of compressing more space out of your hard drive.
     As you know, there are commercial programs available that compress
     space. However, some of these programs have bizarre side effects
     or refuse to work in certain environments. For example, none of the
     commercially available space compression products will run on a
     Novell Network file server. File servers always need more space. In
     addition, none of the commercial on-the-fly compression/expansion
     utilities possess compression algorithms that approach what PKZIP,
     LHA, and ARJ offer. Zip'r has the ability to offer the disk
     compression and expansion you desire by working with your favorite
     archiver.

     Zip'r compresses directories, subdirectories, and the files
     contained in them into one smaller compressed file on your hard
     drive; so now you work with an entire subdirectory, filled with
     files, stored in compressed form when not in use. When a program is
     executed, Zip'r expands the desired directory and executes the
     requested program. While your program is running, Zip'r swaps itself
     to disk or EMS memory (only keeping a 2.5k TSR hook behind). When you
     exit the program, Zip'r automatically re-compresses the directory,
     saving any changes you've made to the archive.

     Zip'r does not offer you on-the-fly compression found with commercial
     programs, which means there will be a slight delay when starting or
     ending programs (while your programs are being expanded or
     compressed). However, as you know, there are many files on your hard
     drive that you do not use every day. Zip'r reclaims that valuable
     real estate. While testing, I compressed my entire hard drive with
     quite startling results. Treating every subdirectory as a file,
     Zip'r reduced my overall storage requirements by nearly 53% with
     PKZ204G and 52% with ARJ. Effectively, I've doubled my disk storage
     capacity. Zip'r has been tested under Desqview, Windows 3.1, and
     other multi-taskers; however, you can see some real potential
     problems if multiple windows are compressing and extracting data. For
     these special situations (and for use on a network), use the network
     version called Zip'rn. This version has features that places limits
     on simultaneous access while compression/expansion is taking place.
     If you need space and on-the-fly compressors make you nervous or
     don't work because of a hardware/software compatibility problem,
     give the job to Zip'r and your favorite file compressor.

     Best hardware utility

     My favorite category! As most of you know, I'm an engineer by
     profession. Computer programming has always been only a hobby. For
     me, then, hardware is the most exciting part about computers next
     to talking to the hardware. (Of course, the worst part is when the
     hardware talks back!)

     During the last few years, we have seen dramatic breakthroughs with
     video display adapters, modems, and hard drive units. With each of
     these improvements has come the unenviable task of installation. I
     have witnessed first hand the frustration of men who can send
     rockets to Mars but can't install a serial port. Even for the
     seasoned professional, installing or adding to a hard drive system
     from scratch can bring tears to the eyes. The documentation makes it
     all <U>soooo<D> simple. After all, you just need to answer a few
     simple questions: what's the drive type? how many cylinders? how
     many heads? what are the sector counts? ... Heck, what's a sector?
     All these values are stored in your computer's CMOS memory. What
     happens when the battery goes dead or the memory gets corrupted?
     It's enough to make a hardware guy go back to pen and paper, or
     better yet, carve notches on posts! The winner of the best hardware
     utility can solve these hard disk configuration problems for you if
     you are using an IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) hard disk drive.

     IDE Identify v1.40 (distributed as IDEI140.ZIP) returns information
     on all IDE hard drives attached to your system. IDE Identify shows
     head, cylinder, and sector counts for CMOS setup parameters. Unlike
     other utilities, your IDE hard drive only needs to be properly
     cabled. Even if the drive has not been prepared (including CMOS
     parameters), IDE Identify will give you a listing of all the proper
     values you need to enter into your system's CMOS memory. IDE
     Identify is Freeware (no registration fee required), and is
     distributed by Micro House International. If you have an IDE
     controller and drive, this file is a must for your utility
     collection!

     Best Video Utility

     On the whole, I really love my 486-DX 50mhz, supercharged, super
     slick, all function, 4-on-the-floor, all-wheel-drive computational
     wundermachine--that is until I do a chkdsk *.* /f/v. At that moment,
     I feel as if I'm watching the end of a cheap cable movie, where the
     credits are rolling by at such breakneck speed that you cannot
     possibly read even one entry. Of course, I know I can filter the
     output via "more", or redirect it to a file (to view later in some
     other way), or take a speed-reading course at the local community
     college. But who has time for these things? If you feel like I do,
     or you have occasionally felt like screaming when something
     important scrolls off the top of your screen, then you will
     appreciate the winner of the best video award, Scrollit.

     SCROLLit 1.5  (distributed as SCRLIT15.ZIP) is a screen scrollback
     buffer utility. It lets you scroll back, in full color, through
     lines of text that have scrolled off the screen. SCROLLit includes
     such features as searching, block-writing, 43/50 line mode, and
     XMS/EMS support. Compression is used to squeeze more  than twice the
     number of lines into the available buffer space. SCROLLit is
     Desqview-aware and only takes 9K of memory (which can be loaded
     into the UMB area) as a TSR after installation. To activate
     SCROLLit, just press the Scroll-lock key on your computer (see
     Virginia, someone finally did use the Scroll-lock key for
     something). While in SCROLLit, you can mark blocks of the buffer and
     send those blocks to a printer or file. SCROLLit would be "the
     perfect" video utility if it wasn't for the fact that it is
     distributed as something I affectionately call "annoyware".
     Annoyware is shareware that starts with an annoying commercial,
     making it hard to use out of an autoexec.bat file. Believe me, as a
     shareware author myself, I have nothing against an author enticing
     people to register. However, I urge the author of SCROLLit to
     consider using a carrot instead of a brick. Nevertheless, as I said
     earlier, the Hankies are firmly rooted in high moral principles, and
     SCROLLit deserves your attention and more, regardless of the
     "political views" of the Awards Committee. Once you start using it,
     you'll register it for sure.

     Best Communication Utility

     A communication utility is something that improves the ability to
     communicate with your computer, or saves you invaluable amounts of
     time and effort while doing so. Often in the past, this award has
     been won by a communications program (such as Procomm, Qmodem, or
     Telix), or a file transfer engine (such as DSZ). This year, I feel
     an interesting "new" need has emerged, primarily due to the
     "commercializing" of Qmodem and Procomm. Since these programs are
     no longer distributed as shareware, many of us are trying out new
     communication programs for the first time. Now quickly, what is the
     absolute worst thing about a new communication program? ...
     <U>Quickly<D>, I said! OK, a hint: it involves typing all your phone
     book numbers over and over again to use with different communication
     programs. YECH! Sometimes I think the deficit will be balanced
     before I finish entering all that information into another program.

     Wouldn't it be great if someone could do all that for you in a neat,
     easy-to-use package? (Cue the offstage announcer.) Well, look no
     further, for help is on the way! This year's Hankie award winner in
     the communications utility category goes to FONDIR (distributed as
     FONDIR59.ZIP). Granted, FONDIR is not the type of program you'll run
     every day, but it does save endless hours of entry into
     communication program phonebooks every time you try out a new comm
     program. FONDIR reads from a list of phone numbers, such as a BBS
     list, and creates a communications program dialing directory.  It's
     very fast, and it does a bundle of translations. It supports over 20
     different comm programs, including Boyan, Procomm, Procomm Plus,
     Qmodem, Gt-Powercomm, Telemate, Telix, Pibterm, PC-Talk4, Rcomm,
     K9-Express, Mirror 3, PC Anywhere, Carbon Copy Plus, A Dialer, Commo,
     Unicom, Ultiterm and Pilot. FONDIR performs long distance, local,
     and metro EMS dial conversions, handles modem speed adjustments,
     transfer protocol selections, and allows you directly to import or
     export phone numbers from those national BBS phone number lists
     you've seen around on BBS's. If the only thing keeping you from
     trying out a new comm program is the fear of typing in all those
     phone numbers, then download FONDIR and let your fingers do the
     walking ... somewhere other than on your keyboard.

     Best Games and Educational Software

     This year, I'd like to combine these two awards into one, general
     achievement award for Apogee's software. Apogee makes some of the
     most entertaining and graphically sophisticated game software you
     can find. Most Apogee games are distributed in this form: #1NAME.ZIP.
     <U>#1<D> identifies the program as the first of a multi-part game.
     Usually, <U>#1<D> is shareware, while other numbers are mailed to
     you after you register the program. The kids have enjoyed playing
     "Captain Keen" probably the most of all the non-educational games
     that Apogee distributes. If you're tired of Mario, or you've had too
     many turtles, try one of Apogee's different and challenging games
     for your kids.

     Now, as any parent knows, finding educational software that can
     teach and also can be configured for your child's developmental
     level is a tough chore indeed. Years ago, one of the local computer
     stores would let you open up the software (in the store) and try it
     out before you bought it, just to see if your child could
     understand how to use it. Well, those days are gone, and the only
     try-before-you-buy-it software that exists is shareware. There are
     many educational games out there, but most revolve around the old
     "drill and practice" approach.

     If you're looking for something a bit different, try Math Rescue by
     Apogee (distributed as #1MATH.ZIP). Episode #1 (shareware) allows
     your child to follow the Gruzzles into space. Depending on the game
     level (and the age of your child), you can configure Math Rescue to
     present up to 100 new word problems, including multiplication,
     division, addition, and subtraction. There are fifteen new worlds to
     explore, with each requiring a bit of hand-eye co-ordination and
     math skills in order to advance. There are three levels to play,
     including one perfect for the pre-schooler because it doesn't require
     any math at all in order to play. Math Rescue is programmed by Karen
     Crowther, the author of two other games, "Word Rescue" and
     "Talking ABC's." The artists, Jimmie and Dale Homburg, and the
     writer, Maya Watson, are students working on college degrees. What
     I like most about Math Rescue is its excellent use of graphics, the
     ease with which it plays, and the lack of a time-clock. Without time,
     a pre-schooler feels quite comfortable both playing and learning from
     Math Rescue. It would be hard to imagine a better game for your child
     that you could buy in a store.

     Hankie Award Considerations

     As a winner of a Hankie, each software author receives my gratitude
     for writing programs that have saved me time, helped me solve a
     difficult problem, or made me laugh a bit. Please, if you like any of
     these programs, or use shareware regularly, take the time to
     register your program with the author. This keeps the shareware
     concept viable for all of us. If you're interested in any of these
     programs, check your BBS for the filenames I listed above. If you
     have any questions about modems, computer hardware, or digital
     communications, drop me a line. Write to Hank Volpe, PO Box 43214,
     Baltimore, MD 21236. You can also reach me on the Modem Doctor BBS
     at 410-256-3631, where you will also find the files I mentioned in
     the review above.