The 640 MEG Shareware Studio 2/The 640 Meg Shareware Studio CD-ROM Volume II (Data Express)(1993).ISO/basic/gfactory.zip/GFDOC.TXT

Text File | 1992-09-21 | 34KB | 659 lines

The Graphics Factory
Copyright (C) 1992 James A. Sausville
All Rights Reserved

I. INTRODUCTION
---------------

The Graphics Factory is a utility that allows you to create sets
of graphics for use in your own basic programs. While intended for
use with Quick Basic V4.5 , the graphics created by this program
can be used by any version of basic that supports Microsoft
compatible BLOAD and PUT graphics commands. To start the Graphics
Factory, type GFACTORY at the DOS prompt.


HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS

The recommended minimum hardware configuration for the graphics
factory is an IBM compatible with a 286 microprocessor and 640k
of RAM. The program will run on XT compatibles, albeit rather
slowly. The amount of free RAM required is approximately 571,648
bytes. Please note that free RAM is the amount of memory available
to a program after DOS, device drivers and TSR programs are loaded.
You can check the amount of free RAM you have available by running
the DOS check disk program. Type "CHKDSK" at the DOS prompt when
you have your DOS disk in drive A:, or when you are logged into the
DOS directory on your hard disk, to run this DOS program.


SCREEN DESCRIPTION

The large rectangle in the upper left corner of the screen is the
editing window. All drawing and editing of the current image is
performed in this window. The image in the editing window is a 6X
magnification of the current image.

The small rectangle in the center of the screen is the active frame.
The current image is displayed normal size in the active frame. All
changes made in the editing window are immediatly shown in the
active frame.

There are 48 storage frames located at the bottom of the screen.
Graphic images you create can be stored in these frames. There are
six pages of storage frames, only one of which is displayed on
screen at a time.

The line of text at the top left of the screen is the mode and
message line. It displays the current drawing mode (dot,line,etc.)
or the current active funtion (circle,box,etc.), along with
instructions on what input may be required. Any text that appears
in a window at the center of the screen supercedes any text that
is on the mode line.

Immediately below the mode line is the main menu. There are two
columns of commands, each command preceded by a letter in brackets.
Pressing the letter key indicated in brackets will activate the
command (or function). Pressing the escape key [Esc] will cancel
(abort) a function in progress and return you to the main menu.
Mouse users may simply move the mouse cusor over the desired command
and press the left mouse button to activate it.

Below the menu is a status line that informs you of the current
frame size and which page of graphics is currently diplayed (Active
Page). Below the status line and above the active frame the current
X and Y locations of the drawing cursor are displayed. This display
allows more accurate placement of circles and other graphics.

Below the status line and to the right of the active frame is the
color palette. An arrow above the colors indicates the current
drawing color. Keyboard users should press the [<] and [>] keys
to change the drawing color. Mouse users should move the mouse cursor
over the desired color and press the left mouse button to select it.


II. SUMMARY OF COMMANDS
-----------------------

The commands are presented in the order they appear on the screen.
Where necessary, separate instructions are provided for keyboard and
Mouse users.

[A] Animate Frames - This function allows you to define a series
of frames as an animation sequence. The program displays the maximum
number of frames you may include in the sequence on the mode line
and prompts you to select the first frame. Keyboard users should
use the cusor keys to move the flashing frame border to indicate
the first frame, pressing [Enter] to select the frame. You may select
a frame on a different storage page by pressing the [Tab] key to
cycle through the storage pages.

Mouse users should move the mouse cursor over the desired frame and
press the left mouse button to select it. The storage pages may be
cycled through by moving the mouse cursor over the "[Tab] Next Page"
portion of the menu and pressing the left mouse button.

The frame selected should appear in the active frame. The program
will then prompt you for the next frame in the animation sequence.
The same frame may be used as many times as desired in the sequence.
Press [Esc] when you have finished selecting frames for the animation
sequence. Mouse users may move the mouse cusor outside of the storage
frames and press the left mouse button to end the selection.

The animation sequence will now be displayed in the active frame.
Press the [<] key to decrease the display rate and the [>] key to
increase the display rate. Mouse users should move the mouse cursor
over the "[<]" and "[>]" symbols above the color palette and press
the left mouse button to change the display rate. Pressing the left
mouse button when the cursor is anywhere else will end the display,
as will pressing the [Esc] key.

Next the program will ask if you want to save the animation sequence
as a frame set. This allows the use of simple (but memory inefficient)
animation, instead of the type shown in the example program
"JACKDEMO.BAS". If you choose to save the sequence you will be
prompted to enter the path (drive & directory) and file name you
desire.

[B] Frame Boundaries - Allows you to change the maximum width and
height of your graphics. Any graphic in the active frame will be
cropped (if necessary) to fit the new dimensions. A new right and
bottom margin are set up inside of the editing window. No drawing
or editing can take place outside these boundaries. You should
normally set the size of your frames before you start drawing. When
you load two sets of frames of different size the boundaries should
be set to accomodate the larger frames.

[C] Clear Active Page - Erases all of the graphics in the storage
page currently displayed at the bottom of the screen.

[D] Duplicate Frame - Will make an exact copy of one storage frame
appear in another storage frame. Very useful for "experimenting" on
a graphic without destroying the original. Simply select the frame
to duplicate, and then select the frame to copy it to. Mouse users
should select a frame by moving the mouse cursor over the desired
frame and pressing the left mouse button. Keyboard users should
use the cusor keys to move the flashing frame border to indicate
the desired frame, pressing [Enter] to select it.

[E] Erase Frame - Will erase the contents of the active frame.

[F] Fill Area - Works just like the Quick Basic PAINT command. You
are prompted to select a color to fill with. Mouse users should
move the mouse cursor over the desired color and press the left
mouse button. Keyboard users should press the [<] and [>] keys to
move the indicator arrow to the desired color and press [Enter].

Next you are asked to select the color the fill will terminate at.
If, for example, you wanted to fill a red circle, red should be
chosen as the color the fill should stop at. Choose this color in
the same manner as you did before.

Finally you will be asked to indicate where the fill will start.
Move the mouse cursor to the desired area of the editing window
and press the left mouse button, or use the cursor keys to move
the editing cursor to the desired area and press [Enter].

[G] Get Frame - Allows you to retrieve an image from the storage
frames at the bottom of the screen and place it in the active frame.
After pressing [G] to activate the command, keyboard users should
use the cursor keys to move the flashing frame border to the desired
frame, pressing [Enter] to select it.

Mouse users can retrieve a frame by moving the mouse cursor over
the storage frames and pressing the left mouse button, then by moving
the mouse cursor to the specific frame and pressing the left mouse
button again. (There is no need to press the [G] key or to "click"
on the main menu to get a frame with the mouse!)

[H] Horizontal Flip - Reverses the image from left to right.
Activating the command a second time will flip the image back.

[L] Load Frames - Opens the Load Frames sub-menu. When loading frames
you are asked if you wish to search for files on the current path
with the current file mask. The file path and file mask are used in
the same way as MS-DOS uses them. The file path consists of the
drive and directory you want to search for files. The file mask
allows you to search for files that have a certain extension (such
as *.BAS) or start with a certain letter (such as A*.*).

After the path and mask are selected, the program will display all
of the files it finds on the path that match the file mask. (Note:
only the first 200 files will fit on the screen!) Keyboard users
should type in the name of the file they wish to load and press
[Enter]. Mouse users should move the mouse cursor over the name of
the desired file and press the left mouse button.

  [1] Load a Single Frame - A single image stored in a file by itself
  may be loaded into the active frame. No palette or size information
  is saved or loaded with a single frame. The frame size is reset to
  48 x 32 when a single frame is loaded.

  [2] Load a Set Sequentially - A set of frames will be loaded into
  the storage pages in consecutive frames. The frames may load into
  multiple storage pages. You select the first frame on any page
  that the frames will begin loading into. Some caution must be
  exercised as the frames will overwrite images that are stored in
  the indicated frames.

  [3] Load a Set Randomly - A set of frames is loaded into memory
  and displayed, one at a time, in the active frame. You select
  which frame in the storage pages each loaded frame will occupy.

  [4] Make a .SET File - In order to load a set of frames the Graphics
  Factory a ".SET" file is required. When the Graphics Factory saves a
  set of frames a ".SET" file is automatically created. This file
  details the number of frames in the set, their dimensions, their size
  (or their offset within the file) and the palette that was used to
  create them.

  This option allows you to attempt to create a ".SET" file for
  graphics created by other software. If the graphics are saved in
  standard memory imaged format (BSAVE/BLOAD), and the graphics have a
  common offset within the file, it should be possible to create a
  ".SET" file to load them.

  If you choose to create a ".SET" file the program will prompt you
  to enter the number of frames in the set and their x and y
  dimensions. After the dimensions have been entered the program will
  calculate the correct array size, which is used by the Graphics
  Factory as the correct offset when it saves frames. Frames that
  have been created by other means may be saved with a larger than
  necessary offset. For example, I had a set of 30 x 13 frames that
  should have been saved with an offset of 106, but had been saved
  with and offset of 200. You have the option of using the current
  palette in your file or entering palette data yourself.

  [5] Turn Warnings On/Off - When you load a single frame or overlay
  frames you will receive a warning that the active frame will be
  erased. This can be usefull unless you are loading a large number
  of single frames or using overlay frequently, in which case it can
  be highly annoying. This option allows you to turn these warnings
  on and off.

[M] Move Image - Allows you to move the image in the active frame up,
down, left or right. Keyboard users should press the cursor keys to
move the image, pressing [Enter] to end. Mouse users should move the
mouse cursor to a point just inside the edge of the editing window in
the direction they want the image to move and press the left mouse
button. Pressing the left mouse button when the mouse cursor is ouside
of the editing window will end the function.

[Tab] Next Page - There are six storage pages, only one of which is
displayed on the screen at a time. Pressing the [Tab] key or pressing
the left mouse button when the mouse cursor is over the "[Tab] Next
Page " command will display the next storage page."

[N] New Palette - Used to change the 16 availble colors on the
palette. Keyboard users should use the [<] and [>] keys to move the
indicator arrow to point at the desired color and then press [Enter].
Use the [<] and [>] keys again to cycle through the 64 available
colors, pressing [Enter] when done.

Mouse users should select the color to change by moving the mouse
cursor over the desired color and pressing the left mouse button.
Then move the mouse cursor over the "[<]" and "[>]" symbols above
the color palette and press the left mouse button to cycle through
the available colors. Move the mouse cursor over the color you are
changing and press the left mouse button again to finalize the color
selection.

[O] Overlay Frames - This function will allow two graphics in the
storage frames to be merged, one on top of the other, to create a
new graphic in the active frame. The bottom graphic is selected
first, and then the graphic to be overlayed is chosen. If the warning
messages are turned on you will be advised that the active frame
will be erased. Any image in the active frame should be stored in
the storage frames before using the overlay function. This is a
non-destructive command as the original graphics are copied from
the storage pages and not removed.

[P] Put Frame - Moves the image in the active frame to a storage
frame. Keyboard users should move the flashing frame border to
indicate the desired storage frame and press [Enter].

Mouse users can store a frame by moving the mouse cursor over the
active frame and pressing the left mouse button. Then by moving the
mouse cursor over the desired storage frame and pressing the left
mouse button again. (There is no need to press the [P] key or to
click on the "[P] Put Frame" area of the menu to put a frame with
the mouse!)

[Q] Quit to DOS - Exits the program and returns you to DOS. What
else did you think it would do?

[R] Rotate Image - The image in the active frame will be rotated 90
degrees to the right. Rotate only works with images that are perfectly
square. If an image is taller than it is wide or wider than it is tall
the image will be cropped to make it square. For example, a 48 x 32
image will be cropped to 32 x 32 before it is rotated. Please use the
duplicate function to make a copy of your image before subjecting it
to the rotate function.

[S] Save Frames - Opens the Save Frames submenu. When you are saving
frames you have the option to save on the current path or to set a new
path. The save path is the same as an MS-DOS path (drive & directory).

When the Graphics Factory saves a set of frames a ".SET" file is
created. This is a file that details the number of frames in a set,
their x and y dimensions, their size in integer arry elements (or
their offset within the file - if different) and the palette used to
create them. The ".SET" file is REQUIRED by the Graphics Factory to
load a set of frames. The information in a .SET file can be loaded
into your program along with the graphics (see the example program
JACKDEMO.BAS and the section on using the graphics for details). A
".SET" file is created automatically each time you save a set of
frames. If you save a file named "GRAPHICS.XXX", the ".SET" file
will be named "GRAPHICS.SET". You should not give two graphics files
the same name with different extensions as this will cause the ".SET"
files to overwrite each other (the names GRAPHICS.X1 and GRAPHICS.X2
would cause this problem).

It should be noted that once a set of frames is saved it may be loaded
sequencially or randomly, regardless of how it was saved. The extensions
".SET" (set file), ".PAL" (palette), and ".PAT" (pattern) should not be
used for graphics filenames.

  [1] Save a Single Frame - The active frame is saved to disk in
  BSAVE/BLOAD format. No ".SET" file is created for a single frame and
  no palette information is saved.

  [2] Save a Sequential Frame Set - A set of frames is saved to disk
  in the order they appear in the storage pages. The program will
  inform you of the maximum number of frames that can be saved at the
  current frame size. You are asked to indicate the starting and
  ending frames (inclusive) in the sequence to be saved. The ending
  frame may be on a differ page from the starting frame.

  [3] Save a Random Frame Set - This option will save a set of frames
  in the order that you choose. You may select any frame from any page
  up to a maximum limit of 256 frames. The actual number of frames
  that you may save is dependent on the current frame size. When you
  choose this option a window will appear telling you the maximum
  number of frames that may be saved.

  [4] Show Save Calculations - Displays the maximum number of frames
  that may be saved at the current frame size, the size of an integer
  array needed to hold a single frame (at current frame size), and the
  amount of disk space a single frame will take (in bytes).

  [5] Turn Warnings ON/OFF - Performs the same function as it does on
  the load frames submenu (see above).

[V] Vertical Flip - Inverts the image in the active frame.

[W] Wipe All Pages - Erases all storage frames on all six storage
pages.

[X] Exchange Frames - Allows you to switch the location of two
frames on the SAME storage page. One of the frames may be a blank
(empty) frame. Exchanging the location of two blank frames is an
exercise in futility (Grin).

[Z] Shapes & Things - This is the primary submenu for the Graphics
Factory. The menu has a crowded appearance due to the fact that many
of these functions were not a part of the original program design.

Many of the functions on this menu require you to select reference
points within the editing window. These points amy be selected as
follows: Keyboard users should use the cursor keys to move the drawing
cursor to the desired point, pressing [Enter] to select it. Mouse
users should move the mouse cursor to the desired point and press the
left mouse button. Mouse users may reposition the drawing cursor
without making a selection by pressing the right mouse button instead.
This allows you to use the X and Y position indicators for more
accurate positioning of circles, etc. with the mouse.

[1] Draw a Circle - Will draw a circle of the desired radius in the
current drawing color. First select the center point of the circle.
Then select a radius point along the horizontal or vertical axis. A
circle will be drawn around the center point that will pass through
the radius point.

[2] Draw a Rectangle - Will draw a square or rectangle in the current
drawing color. First select the upper left corner of the rectangle,
then select its lower right corner.

[3] Draw an Elipse - Will draw a circular shape in the current drawing
color. First select the center point of the elipse, then select the
horizontal radius point (x radius). After that select the vertical
radius point (y radius). An elipse will be drawn around the center
point passing through both radius points.

[4] Dot Mode - This is the standard (default) drawing mode. When not
in a function, pressing [Enter] (or the left mouse button) will make
a dot of the current color appear under the drawing cursor (or under
the mouse cursor if using a mouse). Pressing [Enter] again with the
cursor in the same place (using the same drawing color) turns the dot
back to the background color (color 0).

[5] Line Mode - Allows you to draw lines in the editing window instead
of turning single points to the current drawing color. After selecting
this mode, all points selected in the editing window will be treated
as pairs. The first point selected is one end of the line and the
second point selected is other end. After the second point is selected
a line will be drawn in the current drawing color.

[6] Continuous Line Mode - All points selected are connected by a line
to the previous point selected. This continues until the drawing mode
is changed.

[7] Inverse Image - Performs a logical inverse of the image in the
active frame. Works just like the "preset" mode of the Quick Basic
PUT graphics command. Color 0 and color 15 are switched, color 1 and
color 14 are switched, etc. If you are unhappy with the result,
choose the command again and the image will change back.

[8] Inverse Program - The easy way to work on graphics with a light
colored basckground. Changes the background color (color 0) to white
and the text/border color (color 15) to black.

[9] Change Color 15 - Color 15 is the color of all frame bounderies
and text messages. It is usually set to white and cannot be changed
with the "[N] New Palette" command. Caution should be used when
changing this color as it can make the display unreadable.

[0] Load/Restore Palette - Opens the palette sub-menu that allows you
to save and load palettes as well as restore the default palette.

    [1] Restore Default Palette - Changes the palette to the standard
    MS-DOS/Quick Basic palette for screen mode 9 (EGA 640 x 350).

    [2] Graphics Factory Palette - The palette I use most often. (It's
    my program AND I'll include my own palette if I want to!)

    [3] Save Current Palette - The current palette will be saved to
    disk. You select a save path and a file name without an
    extension. A ".PAL" extension will be added to the file name.

    [4] Load Palette - Will load a saved palette. Lists all ".PAL"
    files on the selected path.

[A] Pattern Fill - Allows you to fill an area of the editing window
with a user defined pattern.

    [1] Create a Pattern - Works like the dot drawing mode. Select
    colors as you normally would and create an 8 x 8 pattern in the
    upper left corner of the editing window. The graphic in the active
    frame will not be affected. After you have completed the pattern
    you have the option to save it before proceeding with the fill.
    Enter the save path and a filename without an extension. A ".PAT"
    extension will be added to the filename.

    As with the regular fill function you need to select the color
    that the fill will terminate at, and a point to begin the fill.

    [2] Load a Fill Pattern - After selecting a path to search on, a
    list of ".PAT" (pattern) files will be displayed. Select one of
    the files and the fill will proceed as if you had created a new
    pattern (see above). The palette that was used to create the
    pattern is saved along with the pattern. If when the pattern is
    loaded the current palette and the saved palette do not match,
    you have the option of making the saved palette the current
    palette.

[B] Block Erase - Works the same as creating a rectangle, only the
area indicated is erased. Simply select the upper left corner of the
area to erase, followed by the lower left corner.

[C] Cut & Paste
[D] Copy & Stamp
Both of these functions are identical, with one important exception.
Cut & Paste will delete the area indicated, while Copy & Stamp will
not.

When you use these functions the color palette is temporarily replaced
by a copy/paste buffer window. You indicate a rectangular area to be
cut or copied by indicating its upper left and lower right corners.
The area indicated will appear in the copy/paste buffer. Four cursors
will appear indicating the size of your cut/copied area. Using the
cursor keys or the right mouse button, reposition the cursors to
indicate the new position of the cut/copied graphic (mouse users
should keep in mind that they are controlling the upper left cursor
with the mouse). When the cursors are positioned where the paste/stamp
will occur, press enter or the left mouse button (keeping the mouse
pointer on the upper left corner).

During these functions, the Get Frame, Put Frame, and Next Page
functions are still operational. Once you have an image in the
copy/paste buffer it may be pasted (or stamped) as many times as you
like, in as many graphics as you like.

[E] Add Text - Allows you to add numbers, letters and some punctuation
symbols to your graphics. First select a color for your text, then
type in a string, 6 characters maximum. Four cursors will appear
indicating the approximate size of the text. The size is only
approximate due to the fact that the different letters have different
heights  and widths. Position the cursors to stamp the text where you
desire (see preceeding command summary). The text string may be
stamped multiple times on a graphic.


III. USING GRAPHIC FACTORY GRAPHICS IN YOUR OWN PROGRAMS
--------------------------------------------------------

The demo program JACKDEMO.BAS has been provided to give a simple
example of how to use the graphics you create in your owm programs.
This demo does not set new standards in graphic excellance, but is
intended to show you the basics. This program was designed to be
used with Quick Basic version 4.5, but it should work with any basic
that supports Microsoft compatible BLOAD and PUT graphics statements.
Other programming languages may be able to load and display the
graphics. The graphics (and the .SET file) are saved in standard
memory imaged (BSAVE) format to allow their loading with the BLOAD
command.

Please refer to the program listing as you read the following. After
setting the screen mode (SCREEN 9 - EGA 640 x 350 16 color mode) the
demo program loads the ".SET" file. It is not necessary to load the
information in the ".SET" file as this information can be contained
in your program itself. The ".SET" file contains information on the
number of frames in the set, their X and Y dimentions, the number of
integer array elements needed to store one frame (also used as the
offset of the frames within the file), and the palette used to create
the frames (16 colors), in that order. The palette information is
stored in an integer array and the colors are set with the palette
using command (PALETTE USING arrayname%). The information on the
number of frames (NumFrames%) and their size (ELEMENTS%) are used to
dimension an array to store the graphics - DIM JACK%(NumFrames% *
ELEMENTS%). The graphics are then loaded using the BLOAD command.

The animation sequence is stored in the string ANIM$. The two digit
numbers in the string represent the frame to be displayed. The program
simply displays the frames in the order they appear in the string.
The animation in the Graphics Factory title screen was created in a
similar way. (Note - All of the title screen graphics were quickly
and easily created using the Graphics Factory itself!) The "PSET"
option at the end of the PUT statement causes each new frame to
completely overwrite the previous one, hence no erasing of the image
is required.


IV. ERRORS AND ERROR WINDOWS
----------------------------

Most of the errors that can occur in the Graphics Factory are the
result of failed disk operations. A window will appear informing you
that the operation has been halted and the error that occured. also
included in this section are several non-error caution/information
windows that may appear when sets of frames or patterns are loaded.
The following is a list of possible errors, their causes, and a few
solutions.

FILE NOT FOUND ERROR - The file name you typed in was not located on
the current disk or directory, or the file name was incorectly typed.
Mouse users should use the mouse to select the file from the on screen
directory and avoid this error entirely.

WRONG FILE TYPE ERROR - All files loaded by the graphics factory must
be memory imaged files (i.e. created by BSAVE). Attempting to load
any other type of file (a text file for example) will cause this
error.

WRONG FILE SIZE ERROR - Pattern files, palette files, and ".SET" files
all have specific sizes. Attempting to load a graphics file as a
pattern, for example, will cause this error.

Single frames created by Quick Basic programs can be loaded into the
Graphics Factory provided they take up 779 bytes of disk space or less.
Attempting to load a larger graphic will cause this error. The number
at the bottom left of the error window is the size, in bytes, of the
file you attempted to load.

The ".SET" file contains information on the size of the graphics that
is used to calculate how large the matching graphics file should be.
If the ".SET" file and the graphics file do not match this error will
occur.

BLOAD TRANSFER CORRUPT - For some unknown reason some computers
experience a data corruption with large BLOAD file transfers. I have
no idea what causes this error. If this error occurs simply attemp
to load the file a second (and possibly a third) time. If a file
never loads correctly, the file (or the disk) is probably defective.

One solution to the problem is to save and load graphics on floppy
disks only, as the error seems confined to hard disk loads. (This
will also prevent you from filling your hard disk with graphic files!)
I suspect the problem lies in a hardware-software incompatibility,
although I have no proof of this. The profile of one affected system
is as follows: 286 AT compatible runnig at 12.5 MHZ, a 40MB IDE hard
disk, using Disk Manager software as a hardware driver.

If anyone knows the cause of this mysterious data corruption, or
better yet has a solution, please drop me a line and let me know.

DRIVE SPECIFIED DOES NOT EXIST - The drive or directory you specified
for a load or save operation cannot be located by MS-DOS.

INSUFFICIENT SPACE ON DRIVE X - There was not enough bytes free on the
drive specified to save your file.

FRAME SIZE MISMATCH - The size of the frames that you are loading is
different than the current frame size. You have the option of setting
the current frame size to match the loaded frames. When frames of
different sizes are loaded at the same time frame size should be set
to accomodate the larger frames.

PATTERN PALETTE MISMATCH - The palette of a saved pattern is different
than the current palette. You have the option of setting the current
palette to match the pattern's palette.


V. WHY I AM NOT (YET) AN ASP MEMBER
-----------------------------------
The ASP (Association of Shareware Professionals) is a fine
organization attempting to make shareware the most viable method
of software distribution possible. They have set policies of
professional conduct and integrity that I stand behind 100%.
I realize that indirectly I will benefit from their actions even
though I am not a member.

This software meets all ASP requirements with one major exception.
During execution, this program will create a registration reminder
screen (RRS) every 15 minutes. This screen (a window actually) is
intended to remind you of your legal and moral obligation to register
this software if you use it on a regular basis. The ASP guidelines
state that such a RRS may appear only twice during the execution of
a program. Since there is no way to determine how long this software
will be used in a tryout session, the message may appear an infinite
number of times.

It should be noted that the RRS is abortable after 3 seconds (within
ASP guidlines) and will not interupt any important program fuction.
If you are in a sub-menu, drawing a circle, saving frames, etc. the
RRS will wait until you return to the drawing mode before exection.
If you use this software for less than 30 minutes you will only see
the RRS twice anyway.

the ASP's main concern is that the RRS will become another form of
product crippling, a practice they are very much against. In general
I agree with the ASP on this matter. I am also 100% certain that if
this software were submitted to the ASP that my application for
membership would be rejected.

Someday (when I'm not working full time 6 days a week AND runnig a
shareware business!) I will petition the ASP to review their policies.
I am hoping that a compromise can be reached reguarding time
dependent registration reminder screens.


VI. CONCLUSION
--------------
As of 9/21/92 the Graphics Factory has no known bugs or defects. If
you happen to discover any, please let me know. Registered users are
encouraged to write to me with suggestions for future updates of this
software. This software is not currently published under a company
name due to the fact that I have'nt much of a company - yet!

Any of you who saw my previous shareware attempt, Battlefield, and
thought it was a good idea with poor execution, well I agree. You
may be happy to know that a major revision is under way. A mouse
interface and a computer opponent are being added, and an auto
generation feature is being added to the map editor.

I hope other programmers who use Quick Basic will find this software
to be as useful as I do. This software (and future versions of it)
will be used to create the graphics for all my future strategy games.
It is my intention to support this software for many years to come.