The World of Computer Software/The World of Computer Software.iso/pbclon21.zip/PBCLONE.NEW

Text File | 1993-01-12 | 19KB | 453 lines

PBClone 2.1, 01/12/93:

   *** WARNING ***
   Note that the Num2Phone and Phone2Num functions rely on the
   current format of phone numbers, which is apparently going
   to change in a year or so.  You are advised not to use these
   functions, as they will not be reliable with the new setup.

   The registration fee for PBClone has been raised to $35.
   New releases will be coming out less often-- perhaps once or
   twice per year-- since the library has become too large for
   casual updates.

   My thanks, this edition, to Bruce Guthrie and Raymond T.
   Schwarz for bug reports and wise suggestions.  They have
   been awarded free upgrades.

   The order form has been renamed from REGISTER.TXT to
   ORDER.FRM, since that seems to be a more common convention.
   Also, CREATE.BAT has been renamed to MAKEDEMO.BAT.

   Some of the DECLAREs were not compatible with VB-DOS due to
   use of VB-DOS reserved words.  Thanks to Douglas E. Carr for
   bringing this to my attention-- it has been fixed.

   In the interest of keeping the size of the PBClone archive
   manageable, the .EXE versions of the demo files have been
   removed.  Use MAKEDEMO.BAT to make them after installing the
   PBClone library as explained in PBCLONE.DOC.

   Fixes:
      Any2Dec, FileCopy, ForceMatch, GrafPrint docs, HiByte
      DECLARE, LoByte DECLARE, Month0 far string version,
      PSortSt, SInput, SSrch, StripSpaces for trim left,
      WindowMan4 top line.

   Improvements:
      Any2Dec converted to asm.
      CenterSt converted to asm.
      FindFirstA now supports the new PKZIP 2.0 "deflated"
        format, and can read ZIP2EXE self-extracting files.
      IdentifyFile covers more file types.

   Additions:
      BoxMenu, BoxMenu1, CheckSum2, Command2, DataSeg2,
      DReadAbs, DReadAbsBig, DWriteAbs, DWriteAbsBig, FileMenu,
      FLock, FUnlock, FromPostal, GetMemBox, GetPrtSc, GetPSP,
      IStrNB, MMCheck2, PrintBox, ReadScreen, RotateL,
      RotateLL, RotateR, RotateRL, SCrunchSS, SetLogiDrive,
      ShowIcon, ToPostal, TVIdle, UnSCrunchSS



PBClone 2.0, 10/19/92:

   From AdvBas to PBClone, I've kept a registration price of
   $25 for the last seven years.  What was a good deal for a
   library of some 100 routines turned into a ludicrously low
   price for the 525+ routines in PBClone, however.  In order
   to scale the price back to a mere outrageous bargain, I am
   raising the registration fee to $35 as of January 1, 1993.

   Special thanks to Bruce Guthrie for his many suggestions and
   attentive bug reporting, which have been of great benefit to
   PBClone on a continuing basis.  Kudos!  (AND a free update!)

   My BasWiz and PBClone libraries had a name conflict: both
   contained FOpen and FClose routines.  To resolve this, I've
   renamed the PBClone versions to FOpen1 and FClose1.

   Instructions are now included for creating a PBClone library
   for use with the Visual Basic for DOS compiler.

   Among the new additions are file routines for numeric I/O,
   get/set individual palette values, convert a numeric ASCII
   code to uppercase, read 4DOS-style file descriptions, get
   mouse info, center a string, get CPU speed, and others.

   A number of routines have been converted from BASIC to ASM.
   This has caused changes in the DECLAREs for the following
   routines:
      GetScreen, InitPtr, PutScreen

   A mistaken assumption about far string handling caused
   problems with many far string routines.  These have been
   fixed.  Note that since far string support was added to the
   shareware version of PBClone as of v1.9, these routines have
   not been tested in use as much as the near string routines,
   and I expect more bugs will probably settle out within the
   next few releases.  If you run into any problems, tell me!

   The ArcView demo program now works smoothly with archives
   containing filenames that include path specifications.

   Fixes and improvements:
      DriveSpace& and DrvSpaceL recognize invalid drives.
      IdentifyFile recognizes many more file types.
      ObjScan now screens out VB-DOS internal symbols.
      SubExist and SubExist2% now screen out wildcards.
      Upcase1 now uses National Language Support if it can.

   Additions:
      BRead, BWrite, CenterSt, CPUSpeed, FDescRead, FReadLn,
      GetMouseVer, GetTick, GetVGAColor, IRead, IWrite, LIRead,
      LIWrite, LRead, LWrite, SetVGAColor, UpcaseI, UpcaseI1



PBClone 1.9, 07/27/92:

   The source code for the PBClone routines which are written
   in BASIC is now included in the shareware version.  A set of
   near and far string libraries for the assembly language part
   of PBClone is also included.  This allows you to create a
   PBClone library for QuickBasic 4.x and PDS 6.0-7.1, rather
   than just for QuickBasic 4.5 as in previous versions.

   Fixes and improvements:
      Elapsed & ElapsedTime$ allow times that cross midnight.
      FileCRC is much smaller and faster.
      FindFirstA can now scan self-extracting LHARC archives.
      PCDat$ works properly with far strings.
      Processor & Processor2% can now identify 80486 CPUs.
      StrUsqu2 and StrUsqu3 now support far strings.
      SubExist & SubExist2% now check drives as well as dirs.
      WeekDay1 now works.

   Many routines have been converted from BASIC to assembly
   language.  In the case of the following routines, this
   caused the DECLARE to change as well:
      CheckDate, DateA2R, StripBlanks, StripRange, StripSpaces

   As Microsoft adds time and date functions to BASIC, the
   names of certain PBClone routines become a problem.  I've
   renamed Month to Month0 and WeekDay to WeekDay0 in order to
   resolve the conflicts.  In addition, the variables Hour%,
   Minute%, Second%, Month%, Day%, and Year% have been replaced
   by HourNr%, MinuteNr%, SecondNr%, MonthNr%, DayNr%, and
   YearNr%.  Sorry for any inconvenience.  Such is progress.

   Added LIB_BI.DOC, a tutorial which explains how to use
   libraries and include files.  This is included with PBClone
   by the kind permission of Daniel M. Smith, Jr., the author.

   Additions:
      AscM, DupeVar, HiByte, HiLite, HiWord, LoByte, LoWord,
      StrSqu, StrSqu3, StrUnsq, StrUnSqu3



PBClone 1.8, 05/08/92:

   A bug was fixed in SetComm, which was setting the baud rate
   incorrectly. More importantly, however, I ran into a serious
   Microsoft bug which I'd thought had long since been fixed.
   It appears that QuickBASIC 4.0-4.5 and BASCOM/PDS 6.0-7.1
   destroy vital comm port information in the BIOS data area,
   making it impossible for any of the PBClone comm routines to
   function. I have enclosed patch information for QB 4.5 in
   QBPATCH.TXT.  If you have a different compiler or do not
   wish to modify your BASIC libraries, use the following
   work-around:

      SaveComm$ = SPACE$(8)
      DGetSt &H40, 0, 0&, SaveComm$        ' save comm info
      ' OPEN the comm port as desired
      DPutSt &H40, 0, 0&, SaveComm$        ' restore comm info
      ' now you can use PBClone comm routines

   In the new QBPATCH.TXT file, there is information about how
   to permanently eradicate that comm-killer bug, among other
   things.  It's been many years since Microsoft upgraded QB.
   Maybe it's time for us to start fixing the bugs ourselves.

   Speaking of bugs... a lot of 'em have settled out in the
   last few months.  Bugs were fixed in the MaxL and MinL
   functions, which would return the wrong results if both
   parameters were negative. A bug was fixed in FCreate, which
   would lock the computer. A bug was fixed in the near-string
   version of Xlate. A bug was fixed in the far-string version
   of GetExecPath. Bugs were fixed in SubExist and SubExist2,
   which changed the path.  They were also made insensitive to
   a DR-DOS flaky. The PSortSt and SortSt routines were
   incorrectly documented. The Date2Int and Int2Date routines
   had a problem and return different values now.

   The various sort routines would not compile under BC7/PDS
   due to use of a STACK array (STACK is a PDS reserved word).

   The TimeN2S routine will no longer translate zeros to the
   current time.  After all, although "00:00:00" is an unusual
   time, it is a valid one.  Getting the current time can be
   more easily done with the TIME$ function anyway.

   The CatchError/GetError routines don't work any better than
   they used to, but you can replace them with the new
   GetError2% function, which appears to be more effective.

   The VARCDEMO program has been renamed to ARCVIEW.  As well
   as the filename-only listing, it now allows a detailed view
   of an archive-- try the /V option.  A new demo has been
   added, DIRVIEW, to show the use of the LoadDirAll routine.

   If you use the excellent 4DOS command shell, try the new
   ADD4DOS batch file-- it adds descriptions of all PBClone
   files which will show up when you type DIR.  No more
   guessing about filenames!

   Microsoft's simplified segment directives made it much
   easier to create assembly language routines.  Unfortunately,
   when you have a library as big as PBClone, they're
   counterproductive.  I've converted the PBClone sources to
   use the old-style full segment directives.  The added
   flexibility this gave me provided a number of benefits:

     - the .QLB library is smaller, providing more QB/QBX
       environment space
     - data areas have been consolidated, providing more data
       space
     - common code has been consolidated, reducing memory
       requirements (and often improving the speed, since near
       calls can be used)
     - improved granularity

   Many of the routines that were in BASIC have been converted
   to assembly language.  Although few of these routines were
   particularly time-critical, the translation allowed for
   fewer segments and improved memory usage.

   Doc files have been converted to 64 col x 59 row pages to
   allow printing on a greater variety of printers.  You may
   want to think twice before printing out the PBCLONE?.MAN
   files, though, as they total over 10,000 lines.

   Additions:
      CeilD, CeilS, ExplainFAttr, FarPeekI, FarPeekL, FarPokeI,
      FarPokeL, FileCount, FloorD, FloorS, GetError2, GetFSize,
      Int2DateSt, Int2TimeSt, IsAlNum, IsAlpha, IsASCII,
      IsCntrl, IsDigit, IsLower, IsPrint, IsPunct, IsSpace,
      IsUpper, IsXDigit, LoadDir, LoadDirAll, LogicalDrives,
      MPrint, MWindow, Num2Phone, Odd, OddL, Phone2Num,
      PrinterInit



PBClone 1.7, 01/08/92:

   Argh, drat.  In the rush to release a fix for PBClone 1.5, I
   forgot that I'd pulled the ARCHIVE.OBJ routines out to add
   new capabilities.  Result? A bug fix that only had different
   bugs!  My apologies.  I've added a group of beta testers to
   prevent this sort of thing in the future.

   Bug fixes affect: CheckDisk, CheckDsk, CRC, GetTimeFx,
   RenSub, SInput.

   I'm breaking PBClone away from its obsession with following
   ProBas.  I am taking this opportunity to remove dummy
   parameters from routines which only included them for ProBas
   compatibility, and to delete routines which are obsolete or
   have no function except in ProBas.  My apologies for any
   inconvenience these changes may cause you.  This is a
   one-time thing.

      Altered: CtrlKey, DCal, FindPatch, GrafRest, GrafSave,
      HCls, HLine, HMode, HPrint, HSetPixel, HTestPixel

      Deleted: DrvSpace, GetMoveBack, GetSizeF, HInit, HPage,
      SetRows

   The FindFirstA set of routines now supports ARJ and ZOO
   archives.

   Some of the territory covered by the new routines includes
   Windows and 4DOS detection, sorting and binary searches,
   control over the Break key, graphics mouse cursors, printer
   checking and formatted dollar input.

   Additions:
      AllExtMem, AndSt, BinSeekD, BinSeekI, BinSeekL, BinSeekS,
      BinSeekSt, BreakCheck, BreakOff, BreakOffDone, CRC1,
      DInput, FloppyType, Get4DOSv, GetPrtAddr, InitPtr,
      MouseCursor, OrSt, PrinterReady, PSortD, PSortI, PSortL,
      PSortS, PSortSt, ReverseD, ReverseI, ReverseL, ReverseS,
      ReverseSt, RolSt, RorSt, SetPrtAddr, ShlSt, ShrSt, SortD,
      SortI, SortL, SortS, SortSt, WinCheck, XorSt, XQPrintOver



PBClone 1.6, 10/09/91:

   There was an error in the PBCLONE.INF entries for GetXMSm
   and GetXMSv. This has been corrected.  The CheckDate routine
   would bomb out if it was given an illegal month.  This has
   likewise been fixed.

   The reference manual was getting too large for my favorite
   editor, so I split it in half.  PBCLONE1.MAN covers A-F and
   PBCLONE2.MAN covers G-Z.



PBClone 1.5, 09/25/91:

   Support for far strings has been added to PBClone.  This
   means you can use PBClone in the QBX environment and with
   the BC7 "PDS" /Fs option.  Only the registered version
   provides this feature, since you must recompile the BASIC
   sources with whichever PDS version you have.

   A bug in the DEMO.BAS file having to do with expanded memory
   has been fixed.  This derived from my not reading the
   documentation-- take heed! EVERYBODY needs to read the
   documentation!

   Bugs of varying levels of significance have been collected,
   labeled, and sent to the Smithsonian.  Fixed routines:
   FindFirstA series, FindPatch, MMButton, MMButton3, ObjScan.

   In PBClone 1.4, a PBCOBJ.ZIP file was included which
   contained all of the object files for PBClone.  This has
   been replaced with PBCLONE.LIB.  Use the utilities included
   with LIBWIZ (separate) to extract all of the .OBJ files from
   the library to allow you to create your own custom libraries.

   Complaints of bugs in BarMenu have prompted me to add
   MENUDEMO.BAS and MENUDEMO.EXE.  BarMenu works flawlessly,
   but evidently was insufficiently documented.  The addition
   of this example code should help.  I've added VARCDEMO.BAS
   and VARCDEMO.EXE as well to demonstrate the archive-viewing
   routines.

   Assembly language source code has been converted from OPTASM
   to MASM 6.0. While MASM is still not up to OPTASM in many
   respects, it's close enough, especially given that SLR has
   not updated OPTASM in the past few years and it doesn't even
   support 80386 codes yet.  Oh well.  MASM may be yucky, but
   it's still (somehow) the standard, and as of v6.0 it's at
   least tolerable.

   Additions:
      FileCRC, GetXMSm, GetXMSv



PBClone 1.4, 03/28/91:

   This library is now too large for BASIC to cope with as a
   unit.  Look for LIBWIZxx.ZIP (separate), a library manager
   which will allow you to create custom libraries containing
   just the routines you need.

   The Processor and Processor2 routines can now differentiate
   NEC V20 chips.

   Additions:
      AltKey, BarMenu, BarMenuM, CalcDate, CDROM2, CheckDate,
      CheckDsk, ClearArea, CtrlKey, CWindowManager, DateA2R,
      DateR2A, DCal, DCalendar, DGQPrint, DGXQPrint,
      DGXQPrint1, EnhKbd, EuropeDate, EWindowManagerC,
      EXQPrintC, FileCopy, FindFirstFx, FindNextFx, FindPatch,
      ForceMatch, FormatDate, GetAttrFx, GetCommAddr,
      GetDateFx, GetDView, GetHGA, GetLine, GetMoveBack,
      GetNameFx, GetRows2, GetSizeFx, GetTimeFx, GetTView,
      GetTVScreen, GXQPrint, GXQPrint1, KbdType, KbdType2,
      KVal, LScroll, LVal, MemSwap, ObjScan, PatchDone, PrtSc,
      Rand, RScroll, SetCommAddr, SetPatch, TypePrint,
      UpdTVScreen, WeekDay1



PBClone 1.3, 02/21/91:

   The GetLabel and GetLabel2 routines were fixed to overcome a
   DOS 2.x bug. They should now work properly with DOS 2.0 on.

   A crude TSR file viewer, FV.EXE, has been added to make
   syntax and usage questions less of a bother.  It would be
   wise to try it out on something nonessential first-- it
   seems to work fine with QuickBASIC, but it locks up my
   favorite editor.  See PBCLONE.DOC for details.

   Additions:
      CheckShare2, CloseA, CPrintScreen1, CPrintScreen2,
      CursorInfo, EMSBuffer, EMSClose, EMSGet, EMSOpen, EMSPut,
      EMSRest, EMSSave, FindFirstA, FindNextA, GetCRCA,
      GetCRCAL, GetDateA, GetMouseLoc, GetNameA, GetSerial,
      GetSizeAL, GetStoreA, GetTimeA, GQPrint, HandleInfo,
      HCls, HInit, HLine, HMode, HPage, HPrint, HSetPixel,
      HTestPixel, MaxD, MaxS, MinD, MinS, NumFormat, NumProc,
      NumProc2, ParseFSpec, PrintFile, Processor, Processor2,
      ReadBitF, RedirectIn, RedirectOut, SetBit, SetLabel,
      SetMouseLoc, SInput, SInputSet, SInputSet1, SInputSet2,
      WriteBitF



PBClone 1.2, 01/28/91:

   A bug in the Floppies and Floppies2 routines has been
   fixed.  Thanks to Dennis Allen for bringing it to my
   attention and suggesting a solution.

   A bug in the StrIns routine has been fixed.  Thanks to Birk
   Binnard for bringing it to my attention.

   Additions:
      DRecDel, DRecIns, DReColor, DReColorArea, DWindowManager,
      DWindowMan2, DWindowMan3, DWindowMan4, DXQPrint,
      EGARest7, EGARest8, EGARest9, EGASave7, EGASave8,
      EGASave9, GetKbd2, GrafPrint, GrafRest, GrafSave, LClose,
      LGet, Locase1, LOpen, LPut, StrSqu2, StrSquLen2,
      StrUnsqu2, StrUnsquLen2, TInstr, UnSplit, Upcase1



PBClone 1.1, 12/28/90:

   The QLB version of the library is no longer included, to
   help reduce the size of this burgeoning package.  You can
   create it from the LIB like so:

      LINK PBCLONE.LIB/Q/SE:512,,NUL,BQLB45

   See the LIBRARY.TXT and QUESTION.TXT files if this doesn't
   work for you.

   The manual has been split into two parts to allow easier use.

   Several of the memory and string routines are now faster.

   The mouse-handling part of CheckKey, CheckKey3, GetKey, and
   GetKey3 has been enabled.

   Additions:
      AscI, BIOSInkey, CalcAttr2, DelayV, DGetRec, DOSErrM,
      DOSInt, DPutRec, DScrRest, DScrSave, ElapsedTime, Exist2,
      ExtendFSpec, Extract, FGetLoc2, FSize2, GetCRT2,
      GetDrive, GetEGA2, GetSub2, GetSwitch2, GetVGA2,
      IntVector, IStr, IVal, MaxL, MinL, MMButton, MMButton3,
      MMCheck, MMClick, MMClick3, MMCursorOff, MMCursorOn,
      MMGetLoc, MMSetLoc, MMSetRange, MousePen, MouseRest,
      MouseBuffer, MouseSave, NameCase2, ReColor, ReColorArea,
      ReplaceString, Sec2Time, Split, SubExist2, Time2Sec,
      WindowManager, WindowMan2, WindowMan3, WindowMan4



PBClone 1.0, 12/03/90:

   This is the initial release of the PBClone library,
   featuring 222 routines.