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Software Vault: The Gold Collection
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CLOCK.DOC
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1993-05-09
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Documentation and Licence Agreement
CLOCK.COM Version 2.1 Copyright (C) 1987 Brian O'Neill
April 1, 1988
Description
───────────
CLOCK.COM is a TSR real-time digital clock with a few features that
may commend it to your attention. As of this writing, it has been in
use on several computers for two years; no reports of bugs or
incompatibilities with other TSRs have emerged. In response to an
unexpected number of recent requests, and despite the late date
("Just what the world needs: another real-time digital clock."), I am
releasing the program.
The present version (2.1) of CLOCK sports the following features:
* both the clock colors and the clock location (screen
coordinates) can be specified on the command line, and
can also be queried with a command; the report(s) of
its state take the form of the commands necessary to
restore that state (more on this below);
* CLOCK can be toggled with a hotkey (Alt-Shift-Ctrl-
Esc);
* when resident, CLOCK consumes only 757 bytes
(not counting the size of the environment in force
at the time of installation, which neither DOS nor
CLOCK frees);
* of course, it checks to see if it is already resident
before installing itself, and will not install itself
twice.
Hotkey
──────
The time display can be toggled on/off with Alt-Shift-Ctrl-Esc.
On "enhanced" (sic !) keyboards, either the lefthand or righthand
shift keys (i.e., all three of them) may be used.
Syntax
──────
To install:
CLOCK Defaults are:
location: upper right of screen;
attributes: digits = 9,
colons and "?m" = 4
Subsequent invocations:
CLOCK [no parameters; turns time display on]
or CLOCK -<param>, where the parameter (singular !) can be :
N [turns time display off]
Y [turns time display on]
Ahh,ii [changes attributes to
hh(digits), ii(colons and "?m")
where hh, ii = 2-digit hex]
A? [writes "CLOCK -Ahh,ii" to stdout]
Ldd,ee [changes location to
dd(row, 0-24), ee(column, 0-79)
where dd, ee = 2-digit decimal]
L? [writes "CLOCK -Ldd,ee" to stdout]
If any other parameter is given, CLOCK writes its syntax (including
the hotkey !) to stdout.
Thus,
CLOCK ?
provides a crib-sheet.
Examples of Use
───────────────
For the palette-conscious, the -A? and -L? parameters can be used
to control and restore the colors and location of the displayed
time. The following batch file, SAVCLOCK.BAT, redirects the output
of "CLOCK -A?" and "CLOCK -L?" to another batch file,
C:\RSTCLOCK.BAT:
echo off
clock -L? >C:\RSTCLOCK.BAT
clock -A? >>C:\RSTCLOCK.BAT
Note that CLOCK's responses to the "?" parameters are precisely
the CLOCK commands necessary to restore CLOCK's state (location
or attributes) to that currently obtaining. For instance, running
the above batch file immediately after installing CLOCK would cause
C:\RSTCLOCK.BAT to contain the commands:
CLOCK -L00,69
CLOCK -A09,04
Subsequently executing C:\RSTCLOCK would restore this location and
these attributes.
Suppose an application called APP uses the upper right corner
of the screen, and does not use the 11 columns starting at column
63 of the next line (line 1, with line 0 being the top line).
Suppose furthermore that APP displays other information in this area
of the screen in bright white on a blue background. Suppose that
when in APP, you would like the time displayed at line 1, column 63,
using bright white for the digits and red for the ":"s and "?m" on
a blue background. In a batch file that runs APP, the following
sequence of commands could then be used to ensure that the time will
always be displayed where you want it and how you want it:
echo off
...
command /c savclock
CLOCK -L01,63
CLOCK -A1F,14
APP
...
command /c rstclock
...
Limitations
───────────
A few of CLOCK's current limitations - or, less charitably,
shortcomings - should be mentioned. Currently, CLOCK cannot
display on lines below the 25th (e.g., the bottom of the screen
in EGA 43-line mode). It will only display on page 0. Neither
of these limitations are in fact much of a hindrance. Also, the
displayed time is refreshed on every timer tick, and there is
presently no way to specify a greater number of ticks between
screen-writes. NO checking is performed for adapters that "snow";
if you are using an IBM CGA, the display might prove irritating.
Suggestions, Bug Reports
────────────────────────
Suggestions for enhancements to CLOCK or to its documentation, and
reports of bugs or anomalies, should be communicated to the author:
Brian O'Neill Compuserve [72617,1541]
License
───────
This program, CLOCK.COM, and its accompanying documentation are
copyright (C) 1988 of the author, Brian O'Neill.
You are hereby licensed to use this program on any number of computers
simultaneously; and to distribute the program together with its
documentation (this document), either by copying them to storage media
or by telecommunicating them.
You are expressly prohibited, however, from distributing the program
without an unaltered copy of this document; and from distributing an
altered version of the program together with this document, without
also distributing, along with the altered program and unaltered
documentation, a separate document stating the nature of the
alteration to CLOCK.COM and identifying the party or parties
responsible for said alteration(s).
Non-profit organizations are prohibited from charging any fee for
distributing the program and its documentation that exceeds by more
than $10 the currently prevailing cost of materials distributed.
Neither the program nor its documentation may be included in any
commercial package whatsoever, without prior written consent of
the author.
The author shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, consequential
or incidental damages resulting from, or seeming to result from, use
or distribution of the program.
Use of this program constitutes agreement to the preceding seven
paragraphs, as well as to the proposition that by such use you become
bound to the terms of this agreement.