ftp.whtech.com/ftp.whtech.com.tar/ftp.whtech.com/articles/reviews/OCT98.TXT

Text File | 2006-10-19 | 6KB | 92 lines

Microreview for October 1998 Micropendium
by Charles Good

DOWNLOAD FILE CONVERTER     by Bruce Harrison

When you download text files or the source code of web pages from the internet to a 99/4A the text files
often end up as a file in DF128 format.  The same thing occurs if you download text from a BBS.   Almost
all TI word processors (ôPRESSö is the exception) cannot handle this file format and require their text to
be in DV80 or sometimes DF80.  Bruce Harrison has written a pair of public domain assembly language
programs that convert DF128 text to DV80 text and visa versa.

These programs are very easy to use.  Just enter the path of the input file and the path of the output file.
Long path names will work so those with SCSI or HFDC hard drives will have no problems.  The DV80
output is nicely formatted with word wrap.  You see the conversion on screen as it progresses.

In addition to HarrisonÆs software there are two other older software products that accomplish DF128-to-
DV80 conversion and one very well known product that does DV80-to-DF128.  Richard PhillipsÆ
CONVERTIT v1.1 will do DF128-to-DV80 conversion.  It is written in extended basic and is thus very
slow.  It was written specifically to convert text downloaded from a MAC computer and is supposed to
recognize special symbol codes on the MAC and translate them properly on a TI.  These symbols include
copyright, trade mark, pound sterling, and all the common mathematics symbols.  I havenÆt tried
CONVERTIT with MAC text but I have tried it with  ôregularö DF128 text.  It works, but very slowly.

Ben Yates wrote PRINT128 in the ôcö language.  This does essentially the same DF128-to-DV80 job as
HarrisonÆs software, and like the Harrison product PRINT128 is hard drive and Geneve compatible and
does word wrap.  An unusual aspect of PRINT128 is that it will do DF128-to-anything, such as DF24 or
DV30.  I donÆt know why anyone would want to do this with text, but the ability is there.

Another thing I donÆt know why anyone would want to do is create DF128 text from DV80 on the TI.
HarrisonÆs software will do this and so will the Funnelweb word processor.  Using either the 40 or 80
column versions of the Funnelweb editor you can use PF (print file) to save a disk file in DF128 format
compatible with unix or MS Dos,  your choice.  For example,  in the Funnelweb editor after typing PF and
<enter> type M, a space, and a path name to save the text in the edit buffer as a DF128 file in Dos format
with cr and lf at the end of each line and ^Z at the end of the text.

Send me $1 and I will send you all the software described above on a TI DSSD disk.  Or email me and I
will email you the software as an attached file in PC99 format.  This software includes Bruce HarrisonÆs
new  Downlaod File Converter as well as the older Convertit, and Print128.
NOTEPAD 80 by Walid Malouli

This is 80 column word processing on the cheap!  If you can find an old 80 column terminal then this
software lets you do 80 column word processing without an 80 column card.  You hook the 80 column
terminal to the RS232 port of your TI, and it acts as a second monitor for 80 column work.

Yes, you do need two video displays for this software, your normal TI monitor and the 80 column
terminal.  The software is written in extended basic and is thus kinda slow.  It is, however, one of the most
full featured extenced basic word processors I have seen.  You start out on your TI monitor selecting
RS232 port, size of left/right and top/bottom margins, double or single space,  paragraph indentation, and
the number of text lines per page.  There is also, on the TI monitor, an indicator that tells you which page
of your document is being displayed on the terminal.  You get a 24 line 80 column display, about 1/3 of a
60 line document ôpageö.

When typing a new document keyboard response is somewhat slow, but adequate for most people.  Newly
entered text is word wrapped.  Documents are saved to disk as DV80 files.  While typing  or editing
existing text the following operations are possible:  line and character delete, blank line and new character
insertion, paragraph indent, destructive backspace, move cursor left/right one character of up/down one
line, quit program, write document to disk, print document to printer, load new document, go to end of
document, go to beginning of document, next page or screen, and previous page or screen.

Besides its slow speed, which is not unbearable, Notepad80 suffers from the same problem that affects all
word processors written in extended basic, namely that you can only modify one line of existing text at a
time.  Any changes you make to a line do not affect text on adjacent lines.  This makes it difficult to insert
lots of text within a line and have the whole document look good.  You can, of course, insert blank lines
within existing text and then add additional text to these blank lines.

Terminals that hook to the RS232 port are not easy to find.  I am not sure if they are still manufactured.
When you can find one they are either free or almost free.

Notepad80 is public domain.  The author asks no money for his efforts, but welcomes your suggestions
and comments.  Send me $1 and I will mail it to you on a SSSD TI disk.
.........................
ACCESS:

Walid Maalouli (author of Notepad80)
757 Main St.
Olean NY 14760
email [e-mail]

Bruce Harrison (author of Download File Converter)
5705 40th Place
Hyattsville MD 29781
email [e-mail]
phone [phone]

Charles Good (source of software described in this article)
P.O. Box 647
Venedocia OH 45894
email [e-mail]
phone [phone]