Hall of Fame Game Cube 6: Simulation/aztechhalloffamegamecubedisc6-/vkeno/bsidial.doc

Text File | 1995-05-15 | 9KB | 219 lines

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
//////////////////// begin regular documentation ////////////////////
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Getting started with this program:

  Although this communications program (BSIDIAL) automatically
  installs itself, you may want to press Alt-E and see if you
  need to make any modifications to the dialing command.

  The default is to dial our BBS using the phone number we
  programmed in but you can make some changes in order for
  this to work with call waiting or your phone system.

  If your modem's speaker is turned on, you should hear dial tone,
  dialing, ringing, a whistling sound, a kind of harsh static and
  then silence. Within ten to thirty seconds your modem should
  report "CONNECT".

  At this time you follow the instructions provided by our BBS.

  Pressing any key before you get the "CONNECT" message will stop
  the call and you will get a "NO CARRIER" message.

Using BSIDIAL:

  When BSIDIAL is started, you immediately see "the main terminal
  screen". The bottom line tells you some information about the
  current program settings and will try to direct you to keys that
  will help you do things.  The rest of the screen is the space that
  our BBS uses to dazzle and communicate with you!

  As with many programs, your escape key helps you to "back up" or
  "get out" of things.  The only time that escape will not give you
  this effect is at the main terminal screen.  The reason is that
  the escape key is sometimes used by our BBS. Instead, you must
  use Alt-X to exit BSIDIAL.

Dialing (Alt-D):

  When you are ready to dial in to our BBS, press Alt-D.

  Note that it will take a few seconds for your modem to dial up and
  connect with our BBS. Pressing extra keys does not speed things up,
  it hangs up the phone!

ZMODEM file transfers:

  Receiving (downloading): Once you have told our BBS the file(s)
  that you want to receive via the ZMODEM protocol, our BBS will
  will send some special characters to this program.

  Next, a box displays on your screen to show you the progress of
  the file transfer. When an exact copy of the file have been
  created on your computer, the box will disappear and you will
  be able to continue using our BBS.

  When your session with our BBS is over, you can exit from
  this program and return back to our Order System for Windows.

Hang Up (Alt-H):

  When you are done using our BBS, follow the Log Off instructions
  in order to terminate the call. If you seem to be stuck or cannot
  find a way to have our BBS terminate the call, type Alt-H to hang
  up the phone on your end.

DOS Shell (Alt-S)

  Sometimes when you are communicating with our BBS, you may need to
  pop out to DOS and do something. Press Alt-S and you will see the
  DOS prompt.

  Do your DOS thing and when you're done, type EXIT and press enter.

  It will look like you never left! This program will maintain its
  communications with our BBS while you perform the DOS work.

Rate (or speed) (Alt-R):

  As a rule of thumb, you set this to be the speed of your modem. If
  your modem has "data compression" you set it for the next higher
  speed.

Toggle Text Capture (Alt-T):

  Tap Alt-T once.  Now all of the new text that appears on the screen
  will be appended to the file CAPTURE.TXT.  Tap Alt-T again and text
  capture will stop.

  This is especially useful if you want to print something from
  our BBS. Capture what you want to print and load CAPTURE.TXT into
  your favorite word processor.  Now you can edit and print the
  captured text just as you would any other document!

Upload Text (Alt-U) as a Message:

  When you have prepared our BBS to receive a message, type Alt-U and
  provide the name of your text file.  This program will pass the
  message very quickly. Our BBS will have no idea that there is a
  text file upload in progress - it will think you are a very fast
  typist!

Back scroll terminal screen (Alt-B):

  Sometimes when using our BBS, you may find that information you
  need has scrolled past the top of the screen!  To look at that
  information again, press Alt-B. Use your cursor keys to view any
  of the text that has scrolled on by in the last few minutes.

Edit Dialing Command (Alt-E):

  Use this option if your modem or phone system require special
  commands to properly dial out. Use this to change our BBS phone
  number from a long distance call to a local call (if you are
  calling from within the Phoenix area).

  You can also use this command to disable call waiting for your call
  to our BBS. The call waiting flash signal will cause a computer
  modem to hang up and lose its communication with the other end.

Troubleshooting:

  The most common problem is COM port devices improperly configured
  at the hardware level. Usually, an internal modem will be set to
  use COM2 and an external serial port will also be set to use COM2.

  The symptoms to indicate this problem are varied. If you think this
  could be your problem, ask your local computer hardware expert to
  verify that you do not have "serial port conflicts".

  Some modems are picky about which plug is for the phone line that
  goes to the wall and which one goes to the telephone.  If you
  suspect this could be the problem, swap the plugs!

  External Modems:

    Check to make sure the serial cable is tightly connected to the
    modem and your computer.  You MUST use a cable that has at least
    9 wires in it (pins 1 through 8 and pin 20). Note that if you are
    using a 9 pin to 25 pin converter, some converters out there do
    the conversion wrong!

    If you are trying to go faster than 9600bps and the serial port
    that your modem uses does not have a 16550NA chip, you stand a
    good chance of having problems.  Set your speed to 9600 and see
    if things improve.

  Laptops:

    Many laptops save power by shutting the modem off when not in
    use. See your laptop manual to find out how you turn your
    modem on.

  Older modems:

    Newer modems have become predictable and standardized. Some older
    modems will work with modern modem services, just differently. If
    you suspect that you may be having difficulty with your modem
    because of its age, call us - we have experience with a
    variety of older modems and may be able to get you rolling.

  Garbage (unwanted characters) on the screen could be caused by:

    a) a low quality modem.

    b) somebody picking up the phone while you are using the modem.

    c) line noise from the phone company or long distance carrier.

    d) line noise from your house wiring, caused by:  too much "flat
       wire" - the wire the runs from the phone jack to your phone is
       usually flat and acts as a sort of antennae - the more you
       have, the more noise you get;  phone wire that is close to a
       fluorescent light fixture;  phone wire that has a bad/loose
       connection;

    e) there is another phone/device connected to this line
       contributing noise.  Unplug all unneeded devices at the wall.

    f) call waiting solutions:

       1) Call your phone company & permanently cancel call waiting.

       2) Temporarily cancel call waiting by changing your dialing
          prefix to "ATDT*70," (most phone companies support this).

    g) Some phone companies have been cutting the quality of their
       phone line service - voice calls will still sound okay, but
       modems and fax machines cannot tolerate this.

Technical information:

  BSIDIAL uses:  ANSI/VT100 terminal emulation; no echo, full
  duplex, no CR/LF conversion (except in text uploads); destructive
  backspace and direct screen writes.

  If BSIDIAL can detect a 16550NA, it will turn the buffer on.

  If BSIDIAL cannot establish RTS/CTS flow control, it will issue a
  warning and continue on with no flow control.

  Doorway mode can be toggled with the Alt-= key.

Legal Stuff:

  THIS PROGRAM IS PROVIDED "AS-IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.

  THE AUTHOR DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR
  IMPLIED, ORAL OR WRITTEN, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
  MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL,
  CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF USE OF
  THE PROGRAM OR YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE AUTHOR, INCLUDING WITHOUT
  LIMITATION ANY OR ALL DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, BUSINESS
  INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF INFORMATION OR ANY PECUNIARY LOSS, EVEN IF THE
  AUTHOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.