The 640 MEG Shareware Studio 2

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ The 640 MEG Shareware Studio 2 / The 640 Meg Shareware Studio CD-ROM Volume II (Data Express)(1993).ISO / pcb / pcbfv33.zip / FEATURES.NEW next >

Wrap

Text File | 1993-01-29 | 38KB | 680 lines

PCBFV (C) Copyright 1990-1993 Yandell Computer Services This file describes the new features in recent PCBFV releases. Please refer to PCBFV.DOC for a basic description of PCBFV. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 3.3 New Features 1/29/93 ] -------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * PKZIP 2.04e support has been added. Please also read the following section titled "PCBFV 3.2 New Features". - ZIP -AV stamps have changed from PKZIP 2.04c to 2.04e. The PCBFV (Z)ip-extra function now displays the -AV status from PKZIP versions 1.10, 2.04c and 2.04e. The PCBFiler-mode (D)elete command also detects and warns of possible -AV presence from these versions of PKZIP. - The FVZIP and FVUNZIP environment variables first used in PCBFV 3.2 should now only be used to disable certain PKZIP\PKUNZIP options when needed only with PCBFV. PKZIP 2.04e fixes problems with its config file and now allows you to turn off these options permanently. Please see page 14 of PCBFV.DOC for additional information. * A "packed file corrupt" message was appearing when using FVSETUP.EXE and FVMM.EXE in OS/2 DOS sessions and in some circumstances with regular DOS loaded high. This was caused by a utility used in the link process of these programs. This has been corrected. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 3.2 New Features 1/09/93 ] -------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * PKZIP 2.04c support has been added. Please read the following thoroughly before attempting to use PCBFV 3.2 (now 3.3) with PKZIP\PKUNZIP 2.0. - The compression methods are correctly displayed while (L)isting the ZIP file contents. - If a ZIP file contains a PKZIP 2.0 -AV, this is displayed using the (Z)ip-Extra command. PCBFV will continue to display this information for PKZIP 1.10 -AV stamps, at least for the time being. - The standard memory requirements for PKZIP *HAVE* changed. The memory requirement for PKZIP.EXE 2.0 is now 80K higher when used with PCBFV's (F)lag command. See the next paragraph on how to continue using PKZIP.EXE from version 1.10. If you intend to use PKZIP.EXE from version 2.0 and have been able to use PCBFV without swapping PCBoard to EMS or disk during shells (/SWAP), or swapping PCBFV to EMS or disk during (R)eads or (F)lags (FVSETUP), you must now do one or the other. See the PCBoard manual for information on how to swap PCBoard out of memory, and the PCBFV documentation for information on swapping PCBFV from memory. See the paragraph below labeled "MEMORY CONSIDERATIONS". NOTE: Swapping PCBFV from memory "may" provide enough memory for the (F)lag function, swapping PCBoard will definitely provide enough. - The standard memory requirements for PKUNZIP.EXE have NOT changed. See the paragraph below labeled "MEMORY CONSIDERATIONS". - A special PKZIP.EXE 1.10 command line switch has been added. Using the the older version will reduce the memory requirements for (F)lagging files to the same requirements prior to PCBFV 3.2 and PKZIP 2.0, and will insure compatibility with the caller's version of the extraction program. To continue using PKZIP.EXE version 1.10 for caller created (F)lagged files, follow these steps: (1) Copy PKZIP.EXE (version 1.10) to PKOLD.EXE. (2) Copy PKOLD.EXE to the "Location of Compression Utils" as set in the PCBFV configuration files with FVSETUP.EXE. (3) Add /OLDZIP to the END of the PCBFV command line in PCBVIEW.BAT. If this switch is used in PCBFV's Sysop /L local mode, the Delete command will not be available using PKZIP.EXE version 1.10. - Memory Considerations: It is realized that with PKZIP 2.0 the memory requirements mentioned above could actually be reduced rather than raised if PKZIP and PKUNZIP are used on systems where there is memory above the standard 640K. Future versions of PCBFV may be made to use those memory requirements if appropriate. For now, "the lowest common denominator" (640K only) had to be used in deciding the amounts of memory that must be available before PCBFV uses PKZIP or PKUNZIP. See the paragraph above on how to use PKZIP.EXE version 1.10. - PKZIP 2.0 performs several auto-sensing functions. These include the detection and use of EMS, XMS, 386, Novell, DPMI, and more. If it necessary for you to disable use of these auto-sensed modes while using these utilities with PCBFV, it may be done using ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES. These variables are added to the command line PCBFV creates when using the utilities for (R)ead or (F)lag functions. >> See PAGE 14 of PCBFV.DOC for details on setting these variables. * A (P)rogram Information command has been added. This displays the PCBFV version number and registration information. * The FVMNU and FVHLP files contained in PCBFV33.ZIP contain the (P)rogram Information command (above). ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 3.1 New Features 11/27/92 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * The (L)ist contents and (B)rief list (contents) commands may now be passed filename specifications. If a filename specification is passed, PCBFV will then list only those files in a compressed file which match. This is very helpful in situations where there are many files in a compressed file and the caller only wants to review listing information on certain files while viewing the compressed file on-line. - To pass the (L)ist and (B)rief commands a filename, simply enter a [SPACE] or semi-colon (;) after the command (L or B), followed be the filename specification. - The filename may be any complete filename, or may contain wildcards. - For example, to list all filenames with an extension of .DOC, the caller would enter the "L *.DOC" (without the quotes) at the PCBFV main prompt. - Entering L or B alone will cause all files to be listed, just as PCBFV has always worked. * PCBoard /M multi-port software is now supported by PCBFV. PCBFV will read PCBOARD.DAT on the node where it is running and automatically determine if PCBoard /M multi-port software is in use on that node. If it is, PCBFV will automatically use the FOSSIL interface in the PCBoard /M multi-port communications driver. No special configuration is necessary when using PCBFV version 3.1 with PCBoard /M multi-port software. * The (PAB) (Printer, Alarm, Bell) indicators on the status line will also include M for multi-port if PCBFV is being used with PCBoard /M software. FVMM (File View Maintenance Manager) Enhancements (in PCBFV 3.1): ----------------------------------------------------------------- * Sysops that allow Co-Sysops to use PCBFiler and FVMM through DOORWAY to do maintenance have been requesting a way to prevent them from using FVMM's "shell to DOS" menu selection. A password feature has been added to this function and requires a new entry in FVMM.CNF if used. Instructions for using a password here are located in FVMM.DOC. * FVMM will follow the environment BOX=NO setting. This setting prevents the outer borders from being drawn in PCBoard utilities (PCBSM, PCBSetup, and PCBFIler) and is helpful when they are used on-line with utilities such as DOORWAY. When SET BOX=NO is used FVMM will not draw its borders either. * When using FVMM as the viewer in utilities other than PCBFiler, a problem could arise if the utility did not strip spaces from the filename as it is passed to FVMM. FVMM will now strip any spaces as the information comes in, making it more flexible for use with programs other than PCBFiler. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [ PCBFV 3.0 New Features 7/31/92 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ * The ability to PageUp while reading text files has been added. This new command is "P" for PageUp and is available at the "More?" prompt while reading text. When the Sysop is using PCBFV in any local mode, the actual PgUp on the keyboard cursor pad may be used. Callers may also use their PgUp key, but only if their communications program is in "Doorway" mode. * The ability to scroll the screen left and right for text longer than 79 characters has been added. These commands are "<" and ">" and are available at the "More?" prompt while reading text. When the Sysop is using PCBFV in any local mode, the left and right arrow keys on their cursor pad may be used. Callers may also use their left and right arrow keys, but only if their communications program is using "Doorway" mode. NOTE: This enhancement removes the need for the (T)runcate command from earlier versions of PCBFV. All text is now truncated at column 79. If text exists past column 79 the caller may scroll the screen to see it. * When the Sysop is reading text with PCBFV in any local mode, the Home key on the cursor pad may be used for the (T)op of file command. Also in this mode the Sysop may use the PgDn key on their cursor pad to advance one page (the same as pressing [Enter] at the More? prompt). Callers may also use their Home and PgUp keys, but only if they have enabled the "Doorway" mode of their communications program. NOTE: It is up to the individual Sysop to educate their callers on the advanced use of the cursor pad direction keys and "Doorway" mode described in the above three paragraphs. Cursor pad direction keys are NOT required for reading text files. They are only duplications of other commands and have been added mainly for local Sysop use. * The (Z)ip-AV command has been CHANGED. It is an all new command called (Z)ip-extra, which will display extra technical information about a ZIP file. This extra information includes whether or not member files contain -AV authenticity stamps, the version of PKZip used to compress the member file, whether each member file is text or binary, and the host operating system the ZIP was created in (MS-DOS, Amiga, Unix, etc.). NOTE: Other file types (non-ZIP) do not contain as readily available (or consistent) enough) information to use in an "extra" report. As this changes, they will be added to PCBFV's "Z" function or equivalent command. * New command: (B)rief contents list. Entering (B) will display the file- name, the uncompressed length, and the "Other Information" columns. This is the same brief listing now used at the (R)ead and (F)lag input prompts when "L" is entered for a list of file names to Read or Flag (see below). * When requesting a Listing of files at the (R)ead or (F)lag input prompts, the list of files displayed has been changed from a "5-up" to a "1-up" format. Previous versions of PCBFV displayed 5 file names across each row of the screen, in order to display as many file names to the caller as quickly as possible. This however sacrificed information the caller could use during file selection. This display is now the same as the one used for the new (B)rief list command (described above). * The (FLAG) command may now be entered at the "More?" prompt while reading text files. This allows a caller to immediately FLAG a file for download if they determine the file meets their needs. If a caller is viewing a text file directly (not compressed i.e. F V FILENAME.TXT) they may FLAG it for download at the "More?" prompt while reading it (FILENAME.TXT will be flagged for download upon return to PCBoard). If FLAG is entered at the "More?" prompt while reading a text file from a COMPRESSED file, the entire compressed file will be flagged for download (this is the same as entering FLAG at the PCBFV main command prompt). This will only work with text files long enough to require a "More?" prompt to appear. The (FLAG) command should not be confused with the "(F)lag individual file" command, which is available only at the PCBFV main command prompt. * Security specific PCBFV menu and help files are now permitted. To make this feature possible, the names of these files had to be changed. You may use the default files distributed in PCBFV30.ZIP. These contain the new commands and features found in PCBFV 3.0. If you use your own menu and help files, be sure to ADD THE NEW COMMANDS, and RENAME these files: If using PCBFV 2.4 thru 2.5: - Rename FVMENU to FVMNU - Rename FVHELP to FVHLP If using versions earlier than 2.4: - Rename MENU to FVMNU - Rename PCBFV.HLP to FVHLP SUMMARY OF COMMAND CHANGES (if modifying existing text files): "(T)runcate" is no longer a valid PCBFV command. "(Z)ip-AV stamp display" is now "(Z)ip extra technical data". "(B)rief contents listing" should be added. * A Zero byte message may now be displayed if a caller tries to view a zero byte file. Many Sysops use zero byte files to designate off-line files on their systems, or to block certain file names from being uploaded. If a zero byte file is found by PCBFV, a file called FVZRO is displayed. Security designations (FVZRO25) and/or language extensions may be used. * When a caller is in color and performs a text search in a text file, all "finds" are now colorized on the initial screen displayed after the text is found. * Limited PKZIP 1.93a BETA support has been temporarily added. If a ZIP file is encountered which has been created by this utility, the method of compression will be displayed. The new (Z)ip-extra command will report that it was created by PKZip 2.0. The PKUNZIP utility from this package may be used with PCBFV, however there are no guarantees of compatibility. If a caller attempts to read a file created with this version of ZIP and PCBFV is using PKUNZIP ver. 1.1, the message "Error extracting file (2)" will appear on the screen. The PKZIP from this utility should NOT be used for compressing member files for the PCBFV (F)lag command. * Added support for extended IRQ use (above IRQ 7). Previous versions of PCBFV provided non-standard COM support with IRQ 1 through 7. The IRQ value may now be 1 through 15. PCBFV reads this information from the appropriate PCBoard system files. Use of PCBFV with non-standard COM ports requires no additional installation by the Sysop. * Some "byte-count", "bank", "file-ratio", etc. type doors require PCBoard to be installed in different manners regarding how many bytes a caller receives per day (usually zero). PCBFV makes some attempt to verify that the caller has sufficient bytes to download a compressed file's member before allowing it to be (F)lagged for separate download. Installation requirements required by some of these utilities make it impossible for other third party programs such as PCBFV to accurately determine this information. If you are using one of the aforementioned utilities and PCBFV seems to erroneously state the caller has insufficient daily bytes to download the (F)lagged member file, add /NOBYTE to the end of the PCBFV command line in PCBVIEW.BAT. This will allow callers to (F)lag the individual files, then it will be up to PCBoard and the other process to determine if they have sufficient bytes to download it. * Added support for the PCBoard PCBDAT environment variable. This is only used if PCBOARD.DAT is not found in the node's home directory where PCBOARD.SYS is located. * PCBFV will place "Activity not allowed" in the "Other Information" column for any compressed file member which has a file name that is also a reserved device name. The (R)ead and (F)lag functions will skip any requests made on files with these names. * PCBFV will now view (list only) ARC-7 files. When a file of this type is encountered, the (R)ead and (F)lag commands will be unavailable. * A question mark (?) is now valid at the "More?" prompt while reading text files. This is the same as entering (H) for (H)elp at that prompt. * In order to accommodate feature and performance enhancements, PCBFV will no longer view GIF resolutions for GIF files STORED in ZIP files. PCBFV will still display GIF resolutions for GIF files viewed directly, for example F V FILENAME.GIF. * While earlier versions of PCBFV were DESQview aware and behaved, some performance degradation was discovered when using "virtualized" screens with DESQview-386. PCBFV's performance is now improved in these cases. * In PCBFV version 2.5, the ability to detect (while reading) if a text file turned into a binary file was greatly enhanced. Unfortunately, this inadvertently removed PCBFV's ability to read non-DOS text files such as Unix, Amiga, and Mac (which contain line-feeds only, instead of carriage- returns AND line-feeds like DOS text files). This has been corrected. * The method used to echo events to a printer (if printer logging has been turned on in PCBoard) has been made more "generic" in PCBFV. * Three command line parameters have been added. These are not likely to be needed by most Sysops, but if you need them, you REALLY need them. Adding them to FVSETUP is not planned since they should rarely be used. /NOLPT - PCBFV follows the printer toggle in PCBoard. If you wish only for PCBoard to echo caller log activity to the printer, add this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below. /NOBEEP - PCBFV follows the F7 local alarm in PCBoard. If you wish only for PCBoard to beep locally at caller input errors, etc. add this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below. /NOCALLER - PCBFV writes appropriate entries to the current node's caller log file (see PCBFV.DOC for a complete list of entries). If you wish only for PCBoard to place entries in caller log files, add this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below. To add any of these toggles, edit your PCBVIEW.BAT batch file as follows: d:\pcbfv\pcbfv.exe pcbfv.cnf %1 /NOLPT /NOBEEP /NOCALLER All three are shown in the example above for illustration purposes only. You may enter one, two, or all three of them in any order desired. Again, it is recommended to use these toggles only if they are REALLY needed. FVMM (File View Maintenance Manager) Enhancements (in PCBFV 3.0): ----------------------------------------------------------------- * In the FVMM selection screen, ESC is used to quit the session. The last option on the menu was "Shell to DOS". Since this was the last option on the menu, this was often mistaken for a way to quit the FVMM session. To help prevent this from occurring, another option was added to the end of the selection list, which is indeed "Quit". ESC is also still valid for terminating the FVMM session. The "Shell to DOS" selection has also been more clearly labeled as "Temporarily exit to DOS command prompt". ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.5 New Features 12/20/91 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * New FVMM (File View Maintenance Manager) utility. Designed for use as PCBoard's PCBFiler ALT-V utility. Uses PCBFV for viewing, reading, etc. Allows installation of a GIF (etc.) picture viewer. Allows installation of a test facility (such as those used in PCBTEST). View, add, or delete ZIP file comments. Quickly scans DOWNLOAD.TXT (or equivalent) and reports the uploader's name, upload date, number of downloads, and the date of last download. Swaps to EMS or disk for minimal memory consumption during shell functions. Free when PCBFV is registered! * New (Z)ip-AV display command. PCBFV will display "-AV found" in the "other information" column when viewing a ZIP with files which contain an -AV (Authenticity Verification) stamp. NOTE: PCBFV does not check the validity of the -AV stamps, it simply displays the files which contain them when a (Z) command is entered. *See PKZIP NOTE below. * New FLAG (or FL) command will cause the entire file being viewed to be flagged for download upon return to PCBoard. (FLAG) is fully compatible between files while selecting other compressed files to view with PCBFV's "(S)elect new file" feature. If a file is viewed from PCBoard's F V, and four additional compressed files are (S)elected while using PCBFV and FLAG is entered while viewing each of these five files, each will be flagged for download upon return to PCBoard! If individual (F)lagging is performed on some files, and other files are (FLAG)'ed completely, the FLAG files plus the file containing individual files (FLAGGED.ZIP) are all flagged for download upon return to PCBoard! * Added a new Sysop local (only) maintenance command which may be used by the Sysop in PCBFV's /L local maintenance mode. It is the (D)elete file in a ZIP (only) file command. The (D) command can only be entered when PCBFV is in a LOCAL /L mode (such as in PCBFiler, FVMM, or local utility). This command is completely disabled when PCBFV is being used remotely. The (D) cannot be entered at the PCBFV prompt while PCBFV is running with PCBoard. When a filename is entered for (D)elete, PCBFV will prompt the Sysop to make sure that everything is correct. If the Sysop enters a (D) command while viewing a ZIP file which contains ANY files with an -AV stamp, PCBFV will warn the Sysop that the ZIP file MIGHT be an -AV file and prompt the Sysop if to continue or not. *See the PKZIP NOTE below. * Local Sysop text reading capability has been enhanced so that the top line of text does not scroll of the screen while being used locally (this did not happen to on-line callers). PCBFV will now compensate for the "two- line" status line at the bottom of the screen so that the top line of text will not scroll off of the screen while the Sysop is reading text files in any of PCBFV's local modes (Sysop on locally, PCBFiler, etc.). * PCBFV will now accept uncompressed text file names with no extensions when a period has been added to the file name at the PCBoard F V prompt. PCBFV will also allow the caller to (S)elect an uncompressed text file without an extension by adding a period to the filename in PCBFV's (S)elect prompt (as in PCBoard's F V prompt). ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.45 New Features 8/24/91 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Added a Sysop configuration toggle to always display FVMENU, or follow the caller's menu (expert) mode as last set in the USERS file. In PCBFV 2.3, PCBFV was changed so that it followed the caller's men on/off (expert) toggle from PCBoard. Many Sysops then said they wanted the menu to display all of the time. So, in 2.4 it was changed it back. Now it seems a few Sysops want it to follow the caller's mode. PCBFV 2.45 allows the Sysop to choose between the two types of behavior. * Callers will now be warned when viewing compressed files which contain paths in them. These files will now have "Contains a path!" displayed in the "Other Information" column to alert caller's to this situation. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.4 New Features 7/24/91 ] -------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * ARJ support added. Both .ARJ and ARJ self extracting (SFX) .EXE files are supported. * The Sysop may configure a default answer for the (R)ead command if needed. This is configurable in FVSETUP. For instance, *.DOC File within PCBFV.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? (*.DOC ) If a default answer is used, hitting any key other than backspace will completely erase the default answer so a new answer may be instantly entered (such as entering L for List at this prompt). * Multi-language FVHELP and FVMENU files are now supported. If a caller is using an alternate language, PCBFV will look for the appropriate FVHELP.??? and FVMENU.??? files and use them if they exist. * PCBFV now supports /X# versions of PCBoard (node numbers over 99). * Files created with the PAK compression method with an extension of .SDN (Shareware Distribution Network) are now supported. * PCBFV's SWAP capability can now be turned off in FVSETUP. This "might" clear up some incompatibilities experienced with PCBFV 2.3 in unsupported environments (multi-taskers other than DESQview, etc.). * PCBFV will always display FVMENU (if it exists) as it did prior to PCBFV version 2.3. In 2.3, the caller's eXpert mode was followed. Many Sysops stated they would prefer that FVMENU was always displayed by default. * PCBFV will no longer label a TEXT file as BINARY if it contains null characters. It seems some (older) text editors use that character as a space. * PCBFV.HLP will need to be renamed to FVHELP, or use the FVHELP contained in PCBFV24.ZIP. * If using PCBFV as a door, PCBFV no longer uses the SET PCBFV=DOOR setting in the door file. Simply add /DOOR to the end of the PCBFV command line in the door (batch) file to use PCBFV as a door. * PCBFV no longer uses the SET NODE= environment setting for local use. If you are using PCBFV in PCBFiler or as a local utility, and PCBFV.CNF contains @NODE@ in certain parameters for multi-node use, you will need to create a new .CNF file (FILER.CNF for instance) for these uses. The parameters which contained the @NODE@ macros will now need to be fully specified in the special FILER.CNF file, and PCBFV.CNF will need to be replaced by FILER.CNF in PCBFiler and any local utility batch files. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.3 New Features 4/26/91 ] -------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * PCBFV now features a (F)ind Text command while reading text files! This is a full featured search mechanism. The whole page surrounding the text is displayed with the found text highlighted in the center of the screen. * The (F)ind command is complimented by a (R)epeat Find, which repeats the last Find command that was performed in the current text file. * The text reading and searching process is further enhanced by a (T)op of file command which allows the caller to quickly return to the beginning of the file for additional Find commands, etc. * All three of the new commands above appear in the "More" prompt at the end of a full page of text. The (R)epeat command only appears after a (F)ind has been executed. Both (F)ind and (R)epeat obey any limitations the Sysop has set with regard to how far into a text file a caller may read. * PCBFV will now SWAP itself to EMS or disk (disk if EMS is not available) if there is insufficient memory for external compression utilities to function. This drastically reduces PCBFV's overall memory requirements. * A new "Embedded" (L)ist command is located in the following prompts: File within PCBFV23.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? ( ) - AND - ^ File within PCBFV23.ZIP to flag, (L)ist? ( ) ^ Entering JUST an L at these two locations will cause a quick, compact list of file names inside the compressed file to be displayed. For example: PCBFV23.ZIP contains these files: QUICK.DOC PCBFV.CNF PCBFV.EXE PCBFV.DOC PCBFV.HLP ORDER.FRM PCBVIEW.BAT FVSETUP.EXE FEATURES.NEW File within PCBFV23.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? ( ) This should be very helpful if a filename is forgotten, and the original list has scrolled off the screen. The caller will not have to return to the main PCBFV prompt, do a long List again, then for an R or F again.... * PCBFV 2.3 no longer uses the original method of manually sending the Auto- Flag request through the host's hardware (AS PCBFV 2.1 & 2.2 did with PCBoard 14.5). Instead, PCBFV now uses PCboard 14.5a's internal mechanism (PCBSTUFF.KBD). This means Auto-Flag will no longer function if running PCBFV 2.3 with PCBoard 14.5(no "a"). However, Auto-Flag will now function on systems running under DESQview and where the screen display is toggled off, neither of which was possible with PCBFV's ORIGINAL "Auto-Flag". * PCBFV will now follow the screen color and intensity as set in PCBoard. This further adds to PCBFV's "seamless, looks like PCBoard" claims. * If using the MENU, it will need to be renamed to FVMENU. * Use of a small FVMENU is now recommended, but is still optional. PCBFV will follow the caller's menu mode as last set in USERS with regard to displaying FVMENU (if used). * An (X)pert toggle has been added to turn the menu on or off. * PCBFV will now read non-DOS text files in text mode. Non-DOS text files are files which contain only line-feeds, as opposed to carriage-return\ line-feeds (Unix text files, for example). * There are now exemptions to the "Number of lines to display per text file" and "maximum size to extract" settings. These exemptions are: A) If the remote caller is Record #1 in the USERS file (Sysop). B) If PCBFV is being accessed in any form of local mode, whether it is through the board, PCBFiler mode, or local utility mode. This allows Sysops full access of all files on their systems. * If you have LZH files on-line, PCBFV now looks for LHA.EXE instead of LHARC.EXE. * FVSETUP has been greatly enhanced with the addition of F1-Help at each of the FVSETUP parameters. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.2 New Features 2/22/91 ] -------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Callers may now view GIF files to determine the GIF's resolution. This applies applies to straight GIF files AND GIF files which are STORED in ZIP files. * New (C)-CRC command allows callers to view the CRC value of all member files contained in a compressed file. * The "(S)elect another file" feature will handle PCBoard's file indexing introduced in PCBoard 14.5a. * New HEX display mode for viewing Non-Text files within compressed files. Sysop configurable. Sysop may allow any Non-Text files in a compressed file to be viewed, or exclude executable and compressed files inside of compressed files, or disable the HEX display of Non-Text files completely. * New (T)runcate command allows callers to truncate long lines in text files at 79 columns while reading. Some text files with long lines are easier to view, even though text past 79 columns is truncated in this mode. * PCBFV now follows the caller's screen length from PCBoard, rather than defaulting to the 23 line standard. * The two macros used in PCBFV.HLP and the optional MENU (@flagfile@ and @filename@), are now complemented by @flagfilepd@ and @filenamepd@ which pad to 12 spaces. Use in PCBFV.HLP and MENU if using borders or boxes. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.1 New Features 11/21/90 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * AutoFlag! If enabled, PCBFV will make PCBoard think the caller has typed instructions to "FLAG" the caller created "FLAG.ZIP" as part of PCBoard's own "FLAG Batch List". PCBoard will include the file in the caller's batch download list, remind the caller if it hasn't been downloaded and they say (G)oodbye, etc. This feature is explained in detail in PCBFV.DOC. * PCBFV is now fully functional with non-standard COM ports, IRQ settings, and addresses. * An optional command menu may be used. This optional menu is not really needed if the main PCBFV prompt has been modified to contain command examples, however the ability to add a menu is available for Sysops who desire it. * For multi-node systems already running PCBFV, the SET NODE= environment setting is no longer needed. * The PCBFiler/Local mode has been greatly enhanced. PCBFV now features a true local mode which does not need any PCBoard system files to operate. * PCBFV now follows the F3 printer toggle and if 'on' PCBFV will send any output which normally goes to the caller log to the printer also. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- [ PCBFV 2.0 New Features 10/19/90 ] ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Now supports all activities on .LZH files, LHarc SFX .EXE and .COM files, and PKSFX .EXE files, as well as the previously supported .ZIP .ARC and .PAK formats. * New (S)elect command allows callers to select other compressed files for viewing without having to pop back and forth between PCBoard and the F V shell (completely CONFERENCE DLPATH.LST and FSEC aware!). * PCBFV is now completely Desqview aware and "behaved". PCBFV detects the presence of Desqview, writes only to the appropriate video buffer for the appropriate window, and gives it's time slice to other applications while idling at an input prompt. * A couple of prompts in PCBFV can be customized by the Sysop, allowing PCBFV to continue to live up to it's "looks like PCBoard" claims. (i.e. looks like *YOUR* PCBoard if you change many of PCBTEXT defaults). * Ability to limit types of files for (F)lagging based on file names. * Now allows "flagging across files". If the Sysop wishes, the caller may view from one file to another while adding individually selected files to one "caller created file", without having to download the caller created file between each File View. * The Sysop may specify the number of individual files which can be added at one time to a caller created file (helps prevent abuse). * New (I)nventory command allows callers to review the contents and size of their caller created file (especially helpful if "flagging across files" is enabled). * An "information" file is automatically included in each caller created file, stating the name of the individual files and the compressed file(s) they came from. * Writes pertinent information to the caller log. This gives the Sysop the ability to monitor the files callers are flagging for individual download. * Can now be installed as a door, for those systems where memory limitations prohibit shelling. * (F)lag and (R)ead commands can each have their own security attached to them. For example, a Sysop may want to limit non-subscribing callers from the "higher end" features, using "text reading" and "flagging" as a perk for subscribing.