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"You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much RAM and Disk storage." Ancient American proverb, ca. 1980 (As quoted by the QEDIT manual.) /-------------------\ | TERSE Version 1.2 | \-------------------/ Tiny ``brief'' like editor by Joseph (Yossi) Gil. TERSE is a tiny (only 4096 bytes) but amazingly powerful full-screen editor for files of up to 64K in length. TERSE runs on all PC compatible machines. Its command keys are very similar to those of the famous BRIEF editor (by UnderWare Inc.). TERSE can edit both UNIX and MS-DOS style text files as well as binary files. No hacker's disk is complete without it. TERSE is free (but copyrighted) to private users. However, if you use TERSE for any commercial application, i.e., in your company at work etc., or make money from selling software or distributing shareware, you are *required* to register your copy of TERSE. Registration cost is only $15 and will buy you a personalized version, configuration utilities and grant your institution a site license. Highlights ========== o Very small: fits in 4096 bytes (4 clusters on 5.25" and 3.5" floppies). o Minimal free memory requirements: 137KB. o Use current screen size, including the common 80x25 configuration but also unusual sizes such as 40x16, 40x25, 40x40, 40x50, 132x25, 132x43, 96x33, 80x30, 80x33, etc. o Fully DESQview (version 2.0+) aware. o Edit binary files. Terse is ideal for a quick and dirty job of patching strings in small executables. o Supports editing of UNIX style files (lines terminated with '\n'). o Edit lines of unlimited length (limited only by file size). o Automatic unlimited horizontal scrolling. o Status line indicating: current column, current line, horizontal scrolling, total number of lines, file name, modified status and insert/overwrite status. o Brief like keyboard configuration. o Support for TABS, and configurable tab positions. o Prevents snow when run on a CGA screen. o CUT, COPY and PASTE o SEARCH, SEARCH again, and TRANSLATE commands. o Safe: ask before loosing work. o Edit files whose name contains spaces and other weird names. Requirements ============= o PC-DOS/MS-DOS version 2.0 or higher o 137KB free memory o 64KB free disk space New in Version 1.2 ================== Code size was shrunk by another 9 (!) bytes. The restriction on distribution by fee shareware distributers have been removed. After a successful print (Alt-P) the marked block is unmarked. Pre-Release versions of Slim, Lean, Wee and Terse for HP are available upon request. New in Version 1.1 ================== A bug in the snow prevention routine which caused TERSE to hang on some CGA systems was corrected. TERSE should run now with no problems on all adapters. Many thanks to Andrea OMODEO <ele9037@cdc835.cdc.polimi.it> for identifying the bug and for suggesting the correction. After considerable work the 27 bytes code fragment required for DESQview awareness was squeezed in. TERSE can now run in a DESQview window and it is fully DESQview aware. Compatibility ============= Terse uses only pure 8088 instructions, so it should run on your good old original 4MhZ IBM-PC as well as on 80486 50MhZ machine. More than once, during the development I was tempted to save 2-3 bytes by using a more advanced instruction, but I managed to resist this temptation. Other than that every dirty assembly trick I could think of was used. It is conceivable that some of the tricks will prevent TERSE from running on some DOS-like environments and simulators, although I don't know of any concrete example. UNIX style files ================ TERSE will edit UNIX style files directly. That is TERSE uses both '\n' (LF aka Line-Feed) and a '\r\n' (CRLF aka Carriage-return + Line-feed) combo for line ends. Hitting ENTER will enter '\r\n', but Ctrl-ENTER will enter '\n'. (Configuration utilities allow swapping these 2 keys) Thus you can transfer UNIX text files to your PC, edit them on the PC and then transfer them back without need for file conversion. Binary files editing ==================== TERSE can edit binary files as well. It is somewhat limited in the sense that it does not display the HeX value of each char, so you need to keep an ASCII table handy. In addition the following characters: space (ASCII 32), Null (ASCII 0), and Meta-Del (ASCII 255) all look the same. The configuration utilities give a simple solution to this problem on EGA/VGA compatible systems. I may add HeX value display feature in a future version. Configuration Utilities ======================= If you are a private user who uses Terse "for pleasure" you are not required to register. If you use TERSE as part of your work, or make money from its distribution, you are required to register. The small registration fee ($15) will buy you a site license. Yes, this is correct, the whole site such as a university with all its PCs, need only to register once. The configuration utilities will allow you to: swap the Enter and Ctrl-Enter keys, change the tab size to 2/4/8/16. (I personally prefer tabs set every 4 characters.) And, modify the key assignments (with some very minor restrictions). In addition, you could eliminate snow check done automatically on CGA screens, and will get better support (as describe above) for editing binary files on EGA/VGA screens. How to get ========== Archive name is: terse12.zip Available in: FTP site Path Comments ======== ==== ======== garbo.uwasa.fi /pc/editor Finland, Europe oak.oakland.edu /pub/msdos/editor Simtel20 mirror wsmr-simtel20.army.mil PD1:<MSDOS.EDITOR> Non-UNIX site. Some of these sites have mail-server services. If you cannot get TERSE from these sources, feel free to write to me and ask for a copy to be e-mailed to you. The compressed uudecoded file is only ~40K, and if you don't need the documentation, it could be trimmed down to ~5K. I answer all messages within few days, so if you do not receive a response within a reasonable time, try a different path. Disclaimer ========== This program in written in highly optimized assembly language. The code is probably the worst spaghetti you have ever seen! This means that the risk of TERSE having bugs is especially high. The author exterminated all the bugs he identified, and he did his very best to test the program thoroughly. However, there might be still other unidentified bugs lurking there. These bugs by nature are unpredictable. Usage of the program acknowledges the following disclaimer of warranty: "This program is supplied as is!" All warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the fitness of this program for any purpose, are declaimed. Future ====== The main constraint in adding features to TERSE are that its total size must be exactly 4096 bytes. Currently I have a slack of 4 bytes. That is, the actual editor size is 4092 bytes, and there are 4 dummy bytes. All additions are dependent on my ability to squeeze the current code further. This task is getting harder and harder all the time. My approximate work per each byte squeezed is two hours. I have several other possible directions for the development of TERSE. These directions are: ``the terse family'' and the ``terse library''. I am looking forward to hearing from _you_, the user, communicating your thoughts and comments. The TERSE library is nothing but an object code library which could be invoked from a C program. The members of the TERSE family will be: LEAN A 3K file viewer. This is basically TERSE without the editing code. Naturally, LEAN could not compete with the excellent LIST utility of Vernon D. Buerg, and many other fine tiny file listers. WEE A terse version requiring only 70KB free memory. This is intended for palmtops, and it will be restricted to 32KB files. Another way for reaching the 70KB free memory operation level it to disable the cut and paste feature. If both restrictions (cut and paste disabling, and 32KB file size limit) are placed, then Wee will need only 36KB free memory! Which of these sounds the best? SLIM An extended TERSE version (at the 5K level) with some extra features. Some features for which I have received requests are: o Read file into buffer. o Move to editing another file. o Goto line. o Word wrap, margin setting and word-wrap on/off. In addition, I would like to get MEAN work at the following levels of free memory for buffers. Add to the numbers below the 6.5KB or so which will be required for MEAN's code and stack. 32KB File size limit 32KB, no cut and paste. 64KB File size limit 64KB, no cut and paste, or File size limit 32KB, cut and paste. 128KB File size limit 64KB, cut and paste. Configuration will be selected at run time, dependent on available memory and input file size. In addition, MEAN will have a read-only (view) mode for read-only files. Files ===== The distribution of TERSE includes the following files: T.COM The actual TERSE editor program. No other files are necessary for proper operation of TERSE. TERSE.DOC This file. The documentation for the program. It may be printed by: PRINTDOC.BAT A batch file for printing the documentation of TERSE. This file will also print MID-EAST.MBX if you created it. _DESC.BTM A 4dos batch file for creating file name description for the above files. MID-EAST.R13* (rotate 13 encrypted file). This file (because of local management rules) is not available in Garbo and Simtel. ROT13.COM A ``rotate 13'' filter. MID-EAST.MBX Some facts and tips about the Middle East (uncrypted). This file is _not_ part of the distribution, but it can be created by UNROT13.BAT Batch file to (i) create MID-EAST.MBX from MID-EAST.R13 using, the ROT13 filter, and (ii) display MID-EAST.MBXP using T.COM. PRTIP.BAT Batch file to send MID-EAST.MBX to the printer License (copying policy) ======================== The following policy is intended to promote free private use and distribution, and to collect money from those who can. In particular, these institutions which make money from private users, are required to pass on part of their income to whoever is responsible for generating it. PRIVATE USERS. You are free to use, copy and distribute TERSE for noncommercial private use provided that: a) No fee is charged for use, copying or distribution. b) It is not modified in any way. c) It is distributed as a package. All files in this package must be included, none should be added, and none of the files are changed. Thus if you are a private user, you you can *use* TERSE freely, and you are are under no obligation to register. (The only restriction is on its further distribution.) If you find TERSE useful, easy, and nifty editor you may show your appreciation in one of two ways: A) Send the author the 15 US dollars registration fee. All registered users will receive the most recent version of TERSE, configuration utilities, and if you wish a personalized version. Please, do register if you can afford it, and would like to support financially the production of this high quality software. B) Decrypt, print and read the enclosed MID-EAST.R13 file, and learn some facts about the middle east and of MID-EAST's role in it, its problems etc. IMPORTANT: The file is given in ``ROT13 form''. This means that although it contains only pure printable ASCII characters, it has to be decrypted before you can read it. A ROT13 filter is supplied with TERSE so that you can decrypt it. The easiest way to decrypt, and print then print this file is to: 1) Run the enclosed UNROT13.BAT batch file. Doing so will produce MID-EAST.MBX, a clean version of MID-EAST.R13, and then display MID-EAST.MBX with TERSE. 2) To print MID-EAST.MBX run the enclosed PRTIP.BAT batch file. Also, if MID-EAST.MBX exists when you run the PRINTDOC.BAT batch file, it will be printed as well. This somewhat complicated form of distribution is partly so there that you will feel that you have applied some conscious effort to read it. MID-EAST.R13 is an integral part of the TERSE distribution, but it is not required for the normal operation of TERSE. It is supplied so that you could show your support for the quality to the concept of TERSE, and if you cannot afford to register by reading it. SIDE COMMENT: Being outside of home for some time, I learned that the many things about the Middle-East are reflected in a very distorted manner from the media. The file MID-EAST.MBX is a part of a large file which I am compiling which consists of verifiable facts gathered from various resources about Israel and the middle east (political views are filtered out). Naturally, there would always be people who will think that these facts are not "complete" and that they represent only the Israeli side. If you are among those who might feel so, my advise is simple: do not read the file. If not, MID-EAST.MBX is expected to give you, the reader, a more informed perspective of events in the Middle east and of the author's country. This version of MID-EAST.MBX has facts about terrorism in the Middle East. Occasionally, I change the contents of MID-EAST.R13, to keep it relevant and interesting. I hope that the quality of TERSE will encourage you to learn more about the country of its author. Naturally, you are under no obligation to do so. NON_PRIVATE USE. Institutions and companies MUST register this package after an evaluation period of 21 days. Registration of one copy per company site is sufficient. NON-PRIVATE DISTRIBUTION. Shareware distributor: You may distribute this package as long as no more than a nominal fee (up to $10) per disk is collected per disk. NON-FEE DISTRIBUTION: Simtel/ Garbo/ other FTP collections: Obviously, you may store this package and offer it package to your users free of any restrictions. Author's Address ================ E-mail internet addresses: yogi@cs.huji.ac.il (Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel), yogi@cs.ubc.ca (Vancouver, Canada), yogi@umiacs.umd.edu (might work if others fail). Permanent mailing address is: Joseph Gil, P.O. Box 3148, Jerusalem, Israel. North America mailing address (until October 1st 1992): 1418 Park Drive, Vancouver, B.C. V6P 2K7, Canada. Hebrew mailing address (you cannot read the following unless your screen adapter can display Hebrew character): îëé ëæàë 3148 .â.Ü ìëîÖàÿë Genealogy ========= Terse is an exercise of editor writing inspired by TED, the famous Tiny EDitor (written by Tom Kihlken and published November 1988 in PC Magazine, Copyright 1988 Ziff Communications Co.). Some features of TERSE are borrowed from fine descendants of TED called TEDPLUS (apparently also written by Tom Kihlken in November 1988) and TED2 (written by James E. Galbraith, 1201 Chase st., Novato CA, 94945, USA). There is not a single piece of code in TERSE which is the same as in TED, TEDPLUS or TED2. TERSE represents almost three years of work on space optimization of the code, and on added functionality. Some of the newly added features include help screen, unlimited line length, status line, smooth horizontal scrolling, previous and next word, UN*X files editing, search and replace, safety features and support for insertion of all 256 characters of the IBM-PC extended ASCII set (including <Nul>, <BS>, <CR>, and <LF>). Some old features include scrolling, cut, copy, paste, and printing operations. Some of the documentation for TERSE is based on the documentation provided with TED2. See the article "The tiniest editor you'll ever need" by Tom Kihlken, in the November 15, 1988 issue of PC Magazine for further details about TED. Also, TED, TEDPLUS and TED2 are available from SIMTEL20: TED PD1:<MSDOS.PCMAG>VOL7N19.ARC TEDPLUS PD1:<MSDOS.EDITOR>TEDPLUS.ARC TED2 PD1:<MSDOS.EDITOR>TED2.ZIP DESCRIPTION =========== Synopsis t [filename] To invoke TERSE just type "T" from DOS command line, possibly followed by a filename. File ---- TERSE will open and read a file whose name (and path, if required) is initially supplied on the command line. If no files name is provided, TERSE will open a new file. A name may be supplied later during the editing session using the ``Output'' command invoked by <Alt-O>. TERSE expects a legal DOS filename, which many include a path name. TERSE can also edit files whose names contain spaces. Those names are legal, although most DOS commands cannot manipulate them. Upon save, the original of the modified file is saved with the extension .BAK. TERSE will prompt before exit without save. If the file has the Read- only attribute set, TERSE will open the file to allow browsing, but will not allow any edit changes. There is no "load" or "save" file function from within TERSE. Basic Editing ------------- In TERSE, the cursor movement keys (Left, Right, Up, Down, PgUp, PgDn, ...) allow you to move around in the text. Text is entered in insert mode by default. Text can be deleted using the <Del> and <BackSpace> keys. Help screen is available upon pressing <F1> or <Alt-H>. When the help screen is displayed pressing any key will return you to the text. Pressing the <Alt-I> key will toggle between Insert and Overstrike mode. The Insert/Overwrite state is displayed by an 'Ins' or 'Ovr' in the statusline. The <Alt-U> key restores up to 255 characters deleted by the <Del> key or overwritten while in the Overwrite mode. The <Alt-U> key will only restore the last character deleted with the <Backspace> key. TERSE text buffer is limited to 65535 characters. An attempt to extend the buffer beyond that will result in a short beep. Lines ----- Lines may be of any length. TERSE recognizes both the UNIX and DOS convention for line termination, i.e., both <CR><LF> pair and a single <CR> denote end of line. Off screen characters may be viewed by moving the cursor toward them. Lines may be broken by pressing <Enter> (insert <CR><LF> pair) or <Ctrl Enter> (insert <CR> character) at any point, in either Insert or Overstrike mode. Lines may be joined by pressing <Del> at the line end or <Backspace> at beginning. Pressing <Alt-D> deletes the entire line and closes the gap. Pressing <Alt-K> deletes from the cursor position to the end of the present line. Pressing <YANK-LINE> restores the most recent line deletion. The line delete buffer remains intact until another line is deleted. The line delete buffer has room for 255 characters. Block ----- A Block is some portion of the text file which has been specifically delineated for later manipulation. One end of a "block" of text is defined by hitting <Alt-A> key (anchor drop/raise). The other end of the block is where the cursor is located. Move the cursor with the cursor control keys to the block end. As you move the cursor not that the blocked area is shown in reverse video. The <Alt-A> is a toggle key, hitting it again will raise the anchor dropped at the block end, and thus cancel the blocking operation.. Pressing the <Grey-> key (keypad grey minus key) removes it to a paste buffer; this operation is known as ``Cut''. The <Grey+> copies the block to the paste buffer without removing it from the text; this operation is known as ``Copy''. The ``Paste'' operation copies the text stored at any point where the cursor is located; it is invoked by hitting the <Ins> key. he paste buffer remains intact until another section is marked and cut or copied. The paste buffer has room for 64K bytes. When a block is marked, pressing <Alt-P> prints the marked text (directly from the file buffer). After the print, the block will remain marked. Search and Replace ------------------ ...... 55 Lines section was omitted in the Garbo and Simtel archives ...... Character Set and Binary file editing -------------------------------------- Any of the characters in the IBM extended ASCII set can be entered and manipulated by TERSE. To enter control characters (ASCII 00-31 and 127), use <Ctrl-@>, <Ctrl-A>, ... , <Ctrl-Z>, <Ctrl-[>, <Ctrl-\>, <Ctrl-]>, <Ctrl-^>, <Ctrl-_> and <Ctrl-Backspace>. A more general method is press the Alt key and without releasing it, typing a character ASCII decimal value on the numeric keypad, and then releasing the Alt key. The PC-BIOS does not support entry of the <Nul> character (00h) in this fashion. Instead, you may enter the <Nul> character by hitting with <Ctrl @> key. The ASCII Backspace (BS) code can be entered as <Ctrl-H>, and the <Backspace> key deletes the character to the left of the cursor. Similarly, ASCII Carriage-Return (CR) and Line-Feed (LF) character codes can be entered directly as <Ctrl-M> and <Ctrl-J>. TERSE interprets the <CR> character as an end-of-line. An <LF> is considered an ordinary text character except when it is immediately preceded by a <CR>, in which case it is considered part of the end-of-line marker. If <CR><LF> are entered together, or ever become adjacent, they cannot be separated. The <Enter> key inserts an end-of-line marker (CR)(LF). TERSE does not use the CP/M style End-of-file marker, <Ctrl-Z>, to indicate the last character in a text file. If a <Ctrl-Z> character appears in the file, it is shown as is. The Screen ----------- TERSE configures itself to the display adapter in use, and supports text modes other than the standard 80 columns by 25 rows e.g., EGA 43 lines and CGA 40 columns mode. <PgUp> and <PgDn> scroll the file by the number of rows displayed. TERSE would not work properly if the screen is initially in a graphic mode. TERSE does not alter screen attributes or colors. Inverse video is used in the status line and to indicate a MARKed block. TERSE uses blinking inverse video to indicate that the search string has been found. It automatically handles "de-snow" on a CGA display. Because TERSE makes BIOS calls and writes directly to the screen buffer, it would probably not work properly on MS-DOS computers that are not sufficiently IBM-PC compatible. The Status Line --------------- At the bottom of the editing screen is the Status Line. The Status Line constantly displays information regarding the file you are currently editing. The Status Line is shown below with a description of the information displayed. ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │F1 Help | Line 137 Col 25 =282 +0 @893 #10324 Ins letter.doc* │ └───┬──────────┬─────────┬───────┬─────┬─────┬───────┬─────┬─────┬──────┬──────┘ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ File modified │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ since last │ │ The current │ │ │ │ │ │ written │ │ cursor column │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ number │ │ │ │ │ The name of file │ │ │ │ │ │ │ you are editing │ The current │ │ │ │ │ │ cursor line │ │ │ │ └Insert mode is ON │ number │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ └File length in characters A reminder that │ │ │ Help screen is │ │ └Current offset in file available upon │ │ pressing the │ └The number of columns scrolled off to <F1> key │ to the left of the screen │ └The total number of lines in the file KEYBOARD SUMMARY ================= The following is a description of all TERSE commands and their key binding. To get a help screen with keyboard usage summary, hit <F1> or <Alt H>. Cursor movements ----------------- <Left Arrow> Moves cursor left one column <Right Arrow> Moves cursor right one column <Ctrl Left Arrow> Moves cursor to the beginning of the next word. <Ctrl Right Arrow> Moves cursor to the beginning of previous word. <Home> Moves cursor to start of line <End> Moves cursor to end of line <Up Arrow> Moves cursor up one row <Down Arrow> Moves cursor down one row <PgUp> Moves text window up one page <PgDn> Moves text window down one page <Ctrl PgUp> Moves cursor to top of file <Ctrl PgDn> Moves cursor to bottom of file Basic editing operations ------------------------ Any keyboard char Insert/Overwrite character into file <Tab> Insert tab character <Enter> Start new line, adds <CR><LF> pair to file. <Backspace> Deletes character to left of cursor <Del> Deletes character under cursor (to right) <Alt U> Undo recent <Del> operation/Overwritten characters. <Alt I> Toggle between Insert/Overwrite mode (Ins/Ovr) <Alt K> Delete to end of line <Alt D> Delete current line <Alt Y> Restore deleted line (up to 255 characters) Block Operations ---------------- <Alt A> drop/raise Anchor. Block is between anchor and cursor. <Keypad-Plus> Copy block to clipboard buffer <Keypad-Minus> Delete block to clipboard buffer <Ins> Paste from clipboard buffer <Alt P> Print block. Search ------ <Alt S> Search for string <Alt N> Find next occurrence of string <Alt T> Search and Translate File Operations --------------- <Alt Q> Quit edit: no-save exit (will ask for confirmation) <Alt X> eXit and save: same as Quit if file name is unknown <Alt O> Change output file name. Supply name if not given. <Alt W> Write the current buffer into its file (if filename known) Scrolling --------- <Alt -> Scroll window horizontally to the left <Alt +> Scroll window horizontally to the right <Ctrl Home> Scroll window up <Ctrl End> Scroll window down Entering Special Characters --------------------------- <Ctrl @> Enter the [NUL] character <Ctrl A> Enter the [SOH] character ... All ctrl characters can be inserted this way ... Special control characters are described below <Ctrl C> Enter the [ETX] character (DOS abort is disabled) ... ... <Ctrl H> Enter the [BS] character <Ctrl I> Enter the [TAB] character <Ctrl J> Enter the [LF] character ... ... <Ctrl M> Enter the [CR] character ... ... <Ctrl Z> Enter the [SUB] character (No CP/M style EOF) <Ctrl [> Enter the [ESC] character <Esc> Enter the [ESC] character <Ctrl \> Enter the [FS] character <Ctrl ]> Enter the [GS] character <Ctrl ^> Enter the [RS] character <Ctrl _> Enter the [US] character <Ctrl Backspace> Enter the [DEL] character KNOWN BUGS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS ================================= o Horizontal scrolling will not move the cursor position, so by pressing <Alt +> and <Alt -> you can scroll to the right or to the left but only to the extent which will leave the current cursor position visible. For example when the cursor is in the left most column, no horizontal scrolling is possible. There are no plans for modifying this behavior as the author feels that it is very reasonable. Strong users pressure may change this. o <Alt-U> will only restore the last character erased by <Backspace>. Future plan is to push deleted characters (by <DEL>, <Backspace> and overwritten characters) to a stack. The stack will have limited depth, and as characters are pushed in, old characters stored deeply in the stack disappear. The <Alt U> will pop characters from the stack and insert/append them. o Editing can get extremely slow if lines are excessively long. Lines longer than 20,000 characters will cause a noticeable delay after every editing operation on this line. o There is a small misalignment of the help screen when and ANSI console driver is installed.