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DiMAT MicroComputer Systems, Inc. Small Business Accounting Software 1. Introduction The MAT Editor is a simple, easy to use, text editor which allows you to create and modify files. Over the years it has gained popularity among secretaries, students & business personnel because of these features: - Easy to install, one file "me.exe" which can be copied to floppy or hard disks. - Requires little memory (minimum of 64k). - Loads quickly, runs quickly. - What you see is what you get ! Your file is placed on the screen and whatever you type goes into the file. - The border around the screen tells you at a glance that you are in the MAT Editor. - Little or no documentation is required, it does what you would expect. - It is excellent for programming as well as word processing. Originally the MAT Editor was written by Gary Matuschek as a personal 'C' programming editor. Over the years features have been added to the editor to streamline the process of editing 'C' programs. These features include: - Short Tab Stops. Tabs are set by default to every 4th column to reduce the amount of indentation required for a complex 'C' routine. - Auto Indent. When the "Enter" key is pressed the cursor will move to the same indentation on the next line as the previous line. - Block Comment. A comment on a line can be blocked to make it stand out from the code by simply pressing Ctrl V. - Few Keystokes. Must functions commonly used during the edit of a 'C' program can be executed without the fingers leaving the "home" keys by using single Ctrl or Alt key. - Support for Longer Routine Names. Although DOS only only allows 8 character file names with extensions, the MAT Editor gets around the problem by searching the second line of 'C' files for a string match for longer routine names. For example, if a file begins with the following comment: /*---------------------------------*/ /* CHGREC -Change record number */ /*---------------------------------*/ The user could edit this file by typing: me change_record_number.c Or simply: me change_record - Compile Command. By pressing Alt F10 the editor will save the file to disk, then call up the 'C' compiler to compile the file and report any errors. If errors exist it will take you to the line of the file where the first error occurred. (Feature assumes Aztec C Compiler). 2. Installation The MAT Editor will run under DOS 2.x thru 5.0 and consists of just one file, "me.exe". This file can be copied to floppy or hard disk using the DOS "copy" program. 3. Getting Started Since the MAT Editor was written to be easy to use, there are only two things you need to know to start using it: * Start it up by typing the word "me", then pressing the RETURN key. * Use the "Esc" key to abort a command or to quit the edit session. When started for the first time, the editor will prompt you for a file name. Enter the name of an existing file or make up a new file name. When the editor can't find the file you specify, it will ask you if you want to create it. 4. Command Syntax and Options me [filename] [+t] [-t] [-n1,n2,n3...] [+pn] [+l=n] (brackets denote optional parameters) filename This is the name of the file that is to be edited. It may be a full path name of up to 40 characters in length, including disk letter. EXAMPLES: me memo1 me c:\notes\phone.num me \autoexec.bat If the specified file name does not exist the editor will ask the user if it is to be created. The user may respond with a Y, for YES, or anything else for NO. When no file name is specified on the command line, the editor will search for a file called "me.nam". This is a special file created by the editor whenever a file is written to disk. It contains information about the last edit session to take place in the current directory including file name, window position, and cursor position. If such a file is found, the editor will resume the edit of the file; otherwise, it will ask for a file name. +t This option tells the editor to put tab characters in a file when saving it to disk. Normally the editor only deals with spaces, since tab settings can be different for different programs. Use this option only if you need to conserve a little disk space for text files or if you absolutely must have tab characters stored in a file which must be read by some other program. -t (default) This option disables the writing of tab characters to files (see above paragraph). -n1,n2,n3... Individual tab settings can be specified on the command line using this option. Simply enter a hyphen "-" immediately followed by the column numbers that the tab stops should be set to. EXAMPLES: me memo -5,25 Edit file "memo" with tab stops set at columns 5 and 25. me report -10 Edit file "report" with tab stops at every 10th column. +l=n This option will bring up the editor with the cursor positioned at line number n. 5. Display Information When the MAT Editor is started a window is drawn around the border of the screen indicating that the editor is active. The line at the top contains your name, the file name, and the current position of the cursor. The bottom border line contains a summary of the 10 Function key commands. The line below the border is reserved for data entry and special status information. The following status notes may appear on the bottom right of the screen: IND - Auto-indent, when the RETURN key is pressed, the cursor will advance to a position on the next line which matches the previous lines indentation. INS - Insert mode, as characters are typed they are inserted in front of the characters that are already to the right of the cursor. REP - Replace mode, as characters are typed they are replacing characters that may already be there. WRAP - Word wrap, when a space is typed after column 70 a RETURN will be generated automatically. << BUSY >> - Indication that the editor is involved with an operation that may take a few seconds. The left and right border lines may contain the special "<" (less than) and ">" (greater than) symbols at times. These are used to indicate that there are more columns of data in the file than what will fit on the display. The editor supports up to 132 columns per line but the display screen can only show 78 at a time. By moving the cursor to the beginning or end of a line the editor will automatically adjust the file within the display screen to show the entire line. The left border may also show a special arrow symbol which indicates where the last line of the current page will be. 6. Keyboard Commands The 10 Function keys on the left side of the keyboard take on special meaning while the editor is active: F1 - Move to the beginning of the file. The screen will display the first 22 lines of the file and the cursor will be positioned at the upper left corner. F2 - Move to the end of the file. The display will change so that the screen will show the end of the file, and the cursor will be on the line below the last line. F3 - Move to the beginning of the current line. The cursor will move to column 1 of the current line and the file will shift to the right, if necessary, so that it can be displayed. F4 - Move to the end of the current line. The cursor will move to one character past the end of the current line. If necessary the file will be adjusted so that the end of the line fits on the screen. F5 - Insert a blank line before the current line. The file size will be increased to make room for the inserted line. F6 - Delete the current line and save it. The line that the cursor is on will be removed and the remaining lines will be moved up. A copy of the deleted line will be saved in the line stack and can be recalled by pressing the PUT key, F8. So, if you accidentally delete a line don't panic, just press F8 to un-delete it ! Ctrl F6 - Delete current word. Remove the word that begins with the current cursor position. F7 - Pick a copy of the current line and save for later. A copy of the current line is placed in the line stack and can be recalled by pressing the PUT key, F8. The cursor will advance to the next line automatically. To pick up several lines at a time, just press the F7 key several times. The line stack normally holds up to 100 lines. F8 - Put a saved line before the current line. The last line to be placed in the line stack by a delete or pick, will be inserted before the current line and removed from the line stack. To insert several lines from the line stack just press F8 repeatedly. F9 - Quit editing. The editor will check to see if any changes were made to the file. If changes were made it will ask if you want to save the new file. A "Y" response will cause the old file to be replaced with the new one. A "N" response will terminate the editor and all changes to the file will be lost. F10 - Display control and alternate key command summary. The screen will clear and a summary of the special control and alternate key commands will be displayed. Pressing any key will clear the list and return to the edit. Other special keys on the keyboard have the following meanings: Del - Delete the current character. Any data to the right of the cursor will be shifted left to take up the space of the deleted character. End - Move the cursor to the lower left hand corner of the screen. Ctrl End - Move the cursor to the end of the file. Esc - Escape. Used to cancel a command or to end the edit session. Home - Move the cursor to the upper left hand corner of the screen. Ctrl Home - Move the cursor to the beginning of the file. Ins - Toggle the INSERT/REPLACE mode. When in INSERT mode typed characters are inserted before existing characters in the file. When in REPLACE mode, typed characters overwrite existing characters. PgDn - Move the file forward by one page (22 lines). Ctrl PgDn - Move the file forward by 1/2 page (12 lines). PgUp - Move the file backward by one page (22 lines). Ctrl PgUp - Move the file backward by 1/2 page (12 lines). Ctrl -> - Move cursor right to begining of next word. Ctrl <- - Move cursor left to the begining of previous word. As indicated by the "help" page (F10), there are many special commands that may be entered by holding down the control or alternate key while typing a letter key. These commands include the following: Ctrl A - Define block lines. When Ctrl A is entered, the current line that the cursor is on will be highlighted. This defines the start of the blocked line area that may be acted upon by using the following keys: F5 - Insert a block of lines in front of the indicated lines. F6 - Delete the block of lines that are outlined. Save a copy of them in the line stack for inserting with the F8 key. F7 - Pick up a copy of the outlined lines. The copy is saved in the line stack and can be inserted elsewhere in the file by pressing the F8 key. Esc - Abort the block command. Alt A - Define block area. When Alt A is entered, the current character that the cursor is at will be highlighted. This defines a corner of a rectangular block of characters that can be acted upon. Move the cursor to define the opposite corner then enter one of the following: F5 - Insert a block of spaces in front of the indicated lines. F6 - Delete the block of characters that are outlined. Save a copy of them in the line stack for inserting with the F8 key. F7 - Pick up a copy of the outlined characters. The copy is saved in the line stack and can be inserted elsewhere in the file by pressing the F8 key. Esc - Abort the block command. Ctrl B - Break the current line in two by moving the data to the right of the cursor to the next line. Alt B - Un-break. Join the current line with the next line. Ctrl C - Insert a control character into the file. The editor will prompt with: Control ? Enter a character and press return. The control character will be displayed in inverse video. This is useful for inserting characters such as control "[" which is a ESCAPE character that is recognized by many printers for special printing commands. Also the FORM FEED character, control "L" is used by most printers to instruct it to move to the top of a new page. Alt C - Center current line. The line will be centered based on the current left and right margin settings. Ctrl D - Delete the current line. This is identical to the F6 function key. It is prefered by many typists that do not like to have their fingers leave the home keys while editing. Alt D - Delete multiple lines. The editor will prompt for the number of lines to be deleted. The specified number of lines will be deleted starting with the current line. They will not be copied to the line stack so they cannot be restored if deleted by accident ! If you want to delete till the end of file, enter a large number such as 30000. Ctrl E - Move the cursor to the end of the current line. This command is identical to the F4 function key. Alt E - Delete from the current cursor position to the end of the line. All characters to the right, including the current character, will be deleted. Ctrl F - Find a string. The editor will prompt for a character sequence that it is to search for. If it finds an exact occurrence of the string, it will display the page that shows the string and the cursor will be positioned at the beginning of the string. Otherwise, an error message will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. Alt F - Find string again. The editor will search forward thru the file searching for the next occurrence of the previously specified search string (See Ctrl F). Ctrl G - Go to a line. The editor will prompt for a line number. When a specific line number is entered, the editor will position the file so that the specified line is on the screen and the cursor is at the beginning of the line. Alt G - Go to a previously marked position. The file will be positioned to a previously defined page and cursor position as specified by the Alt M command. Ctrl J - Justify text. The editor will prompt for information that is required for re-arranging paragraphs of text based on specific margins. A paragraph is defined as a group of lines separated by a blank line. The prompts for information will indicate the current or default values for each parameter and allow you to enter new values. The cursor should be on the first line of the paragraph when using this command. After entering the last parameter, the editor will process the paragraph(s) and the the justified text will appear. Use the Alt J command to justify other paragraphs without asking for the parameter values. Alt J - Justify text without asking. The text will be justified based on previously specified or default parameters (see Ctrl J). Ctrl K - Define a keystroke macro. This command is simple yet powerful. When entered, the letters "DEF" flash on the bottom right of the screen. While in this mode all keys strokes that are entered are remembered and the exact sequence can be recalled later by entering the Ctrl X command. To end the definition of a key stroke sequence press Ctrl K again. Ctrl L - Insert a line. This command is identical to the function key F5. A blank line will be inserted in front of the current line. Alt M - Mark the current location. The current page and cursor position are saved. To return to the exact spot enter the Alt G command. Ctrl N - Move to next file. The editor will check to see if any changes were made to the current file and ask if they should be saved to disk. Then it will prompt for a new file name. The line stack buffer will stay in tact and portions of the old file can be copied to the new file. The old file name and position are saved so that you can return to it by entering Alt N. Alt N - Switch to the alternate file. The editor will check to see if any changes were made to the current file and ask if they should be saved to disk. Then it will call up the file that you had switched from via the Ctrl N command and return to the exact position that you were in when you left. You can "bounce" between two files by repeated entries of the Alt N command. Ctrl O - Toggle the auto-indent mode. This command will change the current indentation mode from automatic to manual and back. Auto-indent mode is indicated by the letters "IND" displayed on the bottom right of the screen. When in auto-indent mode, the editor matches the indentation of the previous line. Ctrl P - Print the current page. The current page (22 lines) will be sent to the default line printer. Lines in excess of 78 columns will be printed even though they may not appear on the screen. Use the Alt P command to force the printer to the top of the page when needed. Alt P - Send a FORM-FEED character to the printer. Ctrl R - Replace a sequence of characters with a new sequence or "string". The editor will prompt for the exact sequence of characters that it is to search for and replace. Then it will prompt for a new string. It will search forward from the current cursor position for the next occurrence of the specified string. When found it will display the page that the string was found on and highlight the sequence by flashing it and ask if the occurrence should be changed. It then moves on to the next occurrence. This command can be aborted at any time by pressing the Esc key. Alt R - Replace without asking. This is similar to the Ctrl R command but it will not ask each time an occurrence is found, it will simply change it and go on. This command can be interrupted by pressing any key while it is working. Ctrl S - Save the current file to disk. This command will force the editor to write the edit buffer to disk, replacing the old disk file if it exists. Alt S - Save the current edit buffer to a different file. This command will prompt for a new file name then write the edit buffer to the new file. Ctrl T - Move current line to top of screen. The file data is not affected but the file is displayed so that the current line is at the top of the screen. Ctrl U - Execute a DOS command. The editor will prompt for a DOS command. Any command may be entered while in the editor as long as there is memory available. The edit session will be suspended until the command has been completed. The edit will continue were it left off. Ctrl V - Display version information. The version and release date will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. If the file being edited has a ".c" extension this command takes on new meaning. It will take a 'C' comment and draw a comment box around it. Ctrl W - Toggle the word wrap mode. When in word wrap mode the letters "WRAP" will appear at the bottom right of the screen. Word wrap forces a RETURN whenever a space is entered after column 70. Ctrl X - Execute a keystroke macro. This will cause the editor to repeat a sequence of key strokes which were previously saved using Ctrl K key. Alt Z - Refresh the screen. This will cause the editor to clear the screen and re-write the display according to what the editor believes it should be. This is useful to correct display errors caused by other programs writing to the screen while you are editing, such as error messages from DOS about the printer being off-line. 7. Configuration Parameters There are several parameters associated with the editor which may be pre-set by the user. These parameters include the following: Parameter Options Normal Default Typing Mode Replace/Insert Replace Create Backup Files On/Off Off Auto-Offset Indent On/Off Off Word Wrap Mode On/Off Off Line Expansion On/Off Off Write Tabs to Disk On/Off Off Tab Settings Specific Every 4th Column Left Justify Margin Value 5 Right Justify Margin Value 70 Lines Per Page Value 55 Default parameter settings can be established by the use of a single DOS Environment Variable; ME (environment variables are discussed in the DOS Manual under the Advanced Commands section for the command SET). Each parameter has a key letter associated with it and the presence of the letter in the environment variable string implies that the option be turned on or set to a specified value. The syntax of setting the ME environment variable is as follows: set ME=options_letters/values These options include the following: I - Set default type mode to Insert instead of Replace. B - Enable the creation of file Backup copies. Whenever a file is saved to disk the original file will be re-named with a ".bak" extension. O - Enable auto-indent offset option. When a RETURN is pressed the cursor will align with the same indentation as the previous line. W - Enable Word Wrap feature. When a space is encountered beyond the right margin, a RETURN will automatically be generated. X - Enable line expansion during justification. This will cause extra spaces to be inserted between words to make lines even on their right margins. A - Write tabs to disk. When a file is written to disk tab characters will be written when possible to replace multiple spaces at the beginning of each line. Tn1,n2,... - Set default tab stops to n1, n2, n3, etc.... Rn - Set right margin to value n. Ln - Set left margin to value n. Pn - Set number of lines per page to value n.