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FSPRINT
Freescape data file printer
Incentive Software Ltd
11 February 1991
1. OVERVIEW
-----------
FSPRINT is designed to allow you to print out your data files
saved from the 3D Construction kit.
It allows you to print out selected ranges of areas and objects,
along with various other useful information, from several files
at once if necessary.
2. NOTES FOR NON-PC MACHINES
----------------------------
All the examples in this file are for the IBM PC, which uses the
MS-DOS operating system. The command line interpreter prints a
C>
prompt whilst expecting input from you, the user. Do not type
this in! Other command line interpreters (CLIs) may give a
different prompt.
The Amiga has a CLI built in, so the usage is exactly the same.
The Atari ST has various public domain CLIs available, or you
can run FSPRINT from the desktop as follows: Double-click on
FSPRINT.TTP. You will see a dialogue box appear. Type in the
command line without the initial FSPRINT. So, for an example
reading:
C> FSPRINT -pz -h- test.all
you would start FSPRINT by double-clicking and then type
-pz -h- test.all
into the dialogue box. After all input, don't forget to press the
ENTER or RETURN key !
3. USAGE
--------
To use FSPRINT you will need a printer. Any printer which can
be connected to your computer will work, although the small print
and bold modes will only work with EPSON compatible printers.
Since most printers are indeed EPSON compatible, this should not
pose too much of a problem.
In its simplest form, you can print out a data file by starting
the program from the command line, with just the name of the file
you wish to print:
C> FSPRINT TEST.ALL
This will print the file TEST.ALL to the printer. Make sure the
printer is on line otherwise you will get an error message (see
below).
You can print out several files at the same time by specifying
each of their names in turn:
C> FSPRINT FIRST.ALL SECOND.ALL THIRD.ALL
If you find that the printer output comes out double spaced, the
`r' option will fix that for you. To introduce an option, start
it with either `-' or `/', so that it can be distinguished from a
filename. Upper and lower case letters are taken to be the same:
C> FSPRINT -r TEST.ALL
or
C> FSPRINT /R TEST.ALL
The `r' option stops extra line feed characters being sent to the
printer. The `r' option may be followed by either `0', `1' or
`2'. The option `r0' sends both a carriage return and a line feed
to the printer when a new line is needed. This is the default at
the start. Option `r1' ( same as `r' on its own ) sends only a
carriage return. `r2' sends only a linefeed. One of these will
certainly work with your printer:
C> FSPRINT -r0 TEST.ALL ( same as no `r' option at all )
C> FSPRINT -r1 TEST.ALL ( same as `r' on its own )
C> FSPRINT -r2 TEST.ALL
For most purposes, these will be enough. For the adventurous -
read on !
In a large file, you may wish only to print out a specified range
of areas. The `a' option accomplishes this:
C> FSPRINT -a1 TEST.ALL Print area 1 from TEST.ALL
You can specify entire ranges of areas:
C> FSPRINT /A1-5 TEST.ALL Print areas 1 to 5 from TEST.ALL
C> FSPRINT -a-5 TEST.ALL Print all areas up to area 5
C> FSPRINT -a5- TEST.ALL Print all areas from area 5 on
As you can see, a range consists of either a single number, or of
a start and an end number separated by a dash. If you omit the
start, the first item is assumed, and if you omit the end, the
last item is assumed. If you specify no range, no areas are
specified: an `a' on its own means "print none of the areas". If
you don't even include the option itself, everything will be
printed.
You can specify different ranges for different files on the same
command line by preceding each file by the range you require:
C> FSPRINT -a1 FIRST.ALL -a3-7 SECOND.ALL
would print area 1 from FIRST.ALL and areas 3 to 7 from
SECOND.ALL.
You can print only specified objects, too, with the -o option:
C> FSPRINT -a1 -o10-50 TEST.ALL
This would print only object numbers 10 to 50 from area 1 of
TEST.ALL. You can join options together, so that the previous
example could also be written as:
C> FSPRINT -a1o10-50 TEST.ALL
Entrances and animators can be specified by the `e' and `m'
options:
C> FSPRINT -a1e1-9o10-50m5-7 TEST.ALL
Going through this one thing at a time, we have area 1 only,
entrances 1 to 9, objects 10-50 and animators 5 to 7, all from
the file TEST.ALL. You can similarly limit the local conditions
that are printed using the `l' option.
On each printout, the data file header is printed with
information about the world as a whole, the key and icon
information, the instruments, the colours and the global
conditions. The header, key, instrument and colour information
can be turned on or off using the `h', `k', `i' and `c' options.
On their own, or followed by a `+' sign, they turn each part of
the printing on, and if followed by a `-', they turn it off. The
global conditions are specified as a range following the `g'
option.
C> FSPRINT -h-i-k-c-g4-6a1-9 TEST.ALL
This prints no header, no istruments, no keys and no colours, but
does print global conditions 4 to 6 and areas 1 to 9 from file
TEST.ALL.
Don't worry if you can't remeber all this. Just typing
C> FSPRINT
will give a quick reminder of all the options.
It is quite useful to be able to print out several ranges of
things, from the same data file. Obviously, you will not want the
header, etc, on subsequent ranges, so you could do it like this:
C> FSPRINT -a1-5 TEST.ALL -h-k-i-c-a10-15 TEST.ALL
Which would print the header , etc, plus areas 1 to 5, then areas
1 to 10. There is a much easier way of doing this. Just separate
the options with a semicolon:
C> FSPRINT -a1-5;a10-15 TEST.ALL
This has exactly the same effect. The first range is printed
using the options you have given plus the default header, etc.
The second range is printed using only those options you supply.
Nothing defaults. If you explicitly want the header, you can turn
it on using `h+':
C> FSPRINT -a1-5;h+a10-15 TEST.ALL
The headers, keys, instruments and colours default on at the
start of each file:
C> FSPRINT -a1-5;a10-15 FIRST.ALL SECOND.ALL
Would print the header, etc, and areas 1 to 5 and 10 to 15 of
file FIRST.ALL and all of file SECOND.ALL. The options revert to
normal when a new file is printed. If you wanted to print only
areas 1 to 9 of SECOND.ALL, you would use:
C> FSPRINT -a1-5;a10-15 FIRST.ALL -a1-9 SECOND.ALL
If you have an EPSON compatible printer, you can print all the
titles, object names, etc, in bold type. This will make them
easier to pick out from the listing. To do this, use the `b'
option:
C> FSPRINT -b TEST.ALL
Right, now for the clever bits. You can use each of the following
options only once - they do not switch off and they cannot be
cancelled. Firstly, the `s' option. For EPSON compatible
printers, you can print in very small type, which squeezes almost
twice as much listing on a page of paper. To do this, specify the
-s option before the first filename:
C> FSPRINT -s TEST.ALL
Also, you can redirect the printer output to a file, or the
console (screen) using the `p' option. This is followed
immediately (no spaces) by the name of the file that will act as
your printer:
C> FSPRINT -pPRINT.OUT TEST.ALL
This will create a file called PRINT.OUT which will contain
exactly what would have been sent to the printer.
You cannot specify multiple print files, and the -p option must
be on its own and the first option on the command line. The
following examples are wrong: Why?
C> FSPRINT -s -pPRINT.OUT TEST.ALL `s' before `p'
C> FSPRINT -spPRINT.OUT TEST.ALL `p' not alone
C> FSPRINT -pL.1ST FIRST.ALL -pL.2ND SECOND.ALL Two `p's
C> FSPRINT -pPRINT.OUTs TEST.ALL `s' part of name
In the last case, the computer will try to create a file called
`PRINT.OUTS', and will probably fail. This example is OK:
C> FSPRINT -pPRINT.OUT -s TEST.ALL
To direct the output to the screen, specify `CON:' as the
filename:
C> FSPRINT -pCON: TEST.ALL
4. ERRORS
---------
In addition to the usual operating system errors, such as
write protected disks, there are several situations that FSPRINT
will recognise as errors. You will then get one of the following
messages:
ERROR: Cannot open file <filename>
The file <filename>, which is to be printed out, cannot
be opened. Check that it exists.
ERROR: `<letter>' is an invalid option
The letter displayed is not one of the allowed option
letters (abceghiklmopr or ;).
ERROR: Invalid range
The range following the option letter shown is wrong -
the start is larger than the end.
ERROR: Cannot open <filename> for output
The alternative printer output cannot be opened for some
reason. Check that it is a valid filename.
ERROR: Only one alternative printer output allowed
The printer output has already been redirected to an
alternative file. It cannot be redirected again.
ERROR: Cannot allocate enough workspace
There is not enough memory for FSPRINT to use as
workspace.
5. CREDITS
----------
FSPRINT was originally written using Turbo C on the IBM PC by
Sean Ellis, then ported to Lattice C for the Amiga and Atari ST
by Paul Gregory.
FSPRINT is Copyright Incentive Software Ltd 1991.
Incentive Software Ltd ("The Company") hereby disclaims all
warranties relating to this software, whether express or implied,
including without limitation any implied warranties of
merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. The Company
will not be liable for any special, incidental, consequential,
indirect or similar damages due to loss of data or any other
reason, even if The Company or an agent of The Company has been
advised of the possibility of such damages. In no event shall
The Company's liability for any damages ever exceed the price paid
for the license to use software, regardless of the form of the
claim. The person using the software bears all risk as to the
quality and performance of the software.
6. CONTACT ADDRESS
------------------
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