Software of the Month Club 1995 December/SOFM_Dec1995.bin/pc/dos/dtp/pcwrite/edbegin.hlp

Text File | 1995-10-31 | 24KB | 553 lines

Using help          Exiting a file      Moving around       Spell checking
Copy/move text      Finding/replacing   Page layout         Switching files
Creating a file     Installing          Printing            Text layout
Deleting text       Justifying text     Reminders/menus     Saving a file
Enhancing text      Loading a file      Reformatting text   Support services
Entering text       Margins             Repaging a file     Shareware

USING THE HELP SCREENS

To use the Help screens:
1. Press F1 twice. The Help Menu contains a list of Help topics.
2. Press the Arrow keys or the Tab key and watch the highlighting move to
   different topics. Some topics have multiple Help screens. Scroll through
   these screens by pressing PgDn and PgUp or Shf PgDn and Shf PgUp.
3. Press Esc to return to the editing screen from the Help screens.

The instructions in these Help screens are for any computer. Most prompts on
these screens use the generic "filename" in place of an actual file name.
Place a disk drive specification, like "A:", or pathname, like "\pcw\" in
front of a file name if necessary. For instance if a file is on the disk in
the B drive, type "B:filename"; if a file is in the subdirectory \pcw\doc on
your hard disk, type "C:\pcw\doc\filename".

EXITING A FILE

To exit a file:
1. Press F1.
2. Press F2, the Exit option. If you have changed the text since the last time
   you saved, the file is automatically saved.

You don't have to save a file before you exit the edit program. You may make a
mistake and not want to save it to disk.

To exit a file without saving it:
1. Press F1.
2. Press F9. This clears the automatic save.
3. Press F2. This takes you back to the DOS prompt and leaves the file exactly
   the same as when you started or last saved it.

MOVING AROUND THE SCREEN

Up and Down Arrow keys     Move up and down one line at a time
Left and Right Arrow keys  Move left and right one space at a time
Shf Up and Down Arrows     Move to the top and bottom of the screen
Shf Left and Right Arrows  Move to the left and right edges of the screen
Ctl Left and Right Arrows  Move to the start of previous or next word
Home                       Move to the left margin
End                        Move to the end of the line after last character
Shf Home                   Move to the first non-blank character on a line
Shf End                    Move to the right margin
PgUp and PgDn              Scroll the text down or up by one line
Shf PgUp and PgDn          Scroll by one screen of text (24 lines)
Ctl PgUp and PgDn          Scroll by paragraph
Shf Ctl PgUp and PgDn      Scroll by page
Shf Grey+ and Grey-        Jump to top and bottom of file

SPELL CHECKING

The master word list is called WORDS.MAS. You can create your own word list.
Call it WORDS.USE. This list must be alphabetical. Use the DOS SORT command to
sort it. Both of these files are read automatically when you press Alt F2 to
bring up the Spelling Menu.

To check the spelling of the last word typed:
* Press Alt F2 then F2.

To check spelling as you type:
* Press Alt F2 then F7.

To scan for a misspelled word:
* Press Alt F2 then Grey+ or Grey- to scan for the next or prior word.

To guess at a correction:
* At a misspelled word, press Alt F2 then F3.

To add a word to your user list:
* With the cursor on the word, press Alt F2 then F4.

To save new words to your user list:
* Press Alt F2 then F6.

COPYING AND MOVING TEXT

To copy a block of text from one spot in a file to another:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the block and press F3.
2. Move to the end of the block. The text is highlighted as you move the
   cursor. This is called Marking text.
3. Press F3. The text becomes brighter. It is now called Marked. When you move
   the cursor, no more highlighting occurs.
4. Move the cursor to the new location.
5. Press F3 a third time. You have copied the paragraph.
6. Press F5 to clear the marking.

To move a block of text from one place to another:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the block and press F6.
2. Move the cursor to the end of the block and press F6 again.
3. Move the cursor to the new location.
4. Press F6 a third time. Watch the paragraph move.
5. Press F5.

FINDING AND REPLACING TEXT

To find text:
1. Move to the top of the file.
2. Press F9. The Top Line says:
     Esc F9:Find "."  F10:Replace "."
3. Type the text you want to search for.
4. Press Grey+ or Ctl L to search forward, Grey- or Ctl O to search backward.

To find and replace text:
1. Move to the top of the file.
2. Press F9. The Top Line says:
     Esc F9:Find "."  F10:Replace "."
3. Type the Find text.
4. Press F10. The cursor goes to the Replace area.
5. Type the Replace text.
6. Press F10 to search for the Find text and replace it with Replace text, or
   Grey+ to find the next occurrence, then F10 to replace it.

To find and replace every occurrence:
1. Move to the top of the file.
2. Press Alt F10. The Top Line says:
     Esc:Cancel  F9:Repeat-replace  F10:Un-replace.
3. Press F9.

PAGE LAYOUT

Page layout is done with Dot lines. Place each Dot line on a separate line and
begin it with an Alt-G font character. This font character is invisible, but
highlights the line. Dot lines can be placed anywhere, but are usually at the
top of the file. You can type the Dot lines or use the Page Layout Menu
(Alt F6 then F8) to enter them.

Page Length
Do not change the page length unless your page is not standard length (11").
Default:  66 lines (11"). For laser printers, this is 59.99 lines
Dot line: .L:length
Example:  .L:84 for legal paper

Top and Bottom Margins
Use top and bottom margins to change the number of lines printed on a page.
Default:   Top margin is 0 lines and bottom margin is 6 lines (1")
Dot lines: .XT:length for top margin
           .XB:length for bottom margin
Examples:  .XT:3 for 1/2" top margin and .XB:0 for no bottom margin

Extra Left Margin
Use extra left margins to adjust the printed left margin. This lets you enter
text starting in column 1 of the screen.
Dot lines: .X:number for extra left margin
Example:   .X:10 pushes the text right 1" when you print

Line Spacing
You can set multiple line spacing, or adjust the number of lines per inch.
Default:   Single spacing and 6 lines per inch
Dot lines: .M:number for multiple line spacing
           .S:length for lines per inch spacing
Examples:  .M:2 sets double spacing and .S:4 sets printing at 4 lines per inch

Headers and Footers
Up to 8 headers and 8 footers are allowed.
Default:   Header and footer text is printed flush left. Use 3 periods (...)
           in front of text to print flush right or 3 periods before and 3
           periods after text to center.
Dot lines: .H:text for a header
           .F:text for a footer
Examples:  .H:Chapter 1
           .F:...About This Manual

Page Numbering
Use a header or footer for sequential page numbers. Use 3 dollar signs ($$$)
to indicate where the page number should be printed.
Default:  Page numbering is sequential, starting with page 1.
Dot line: .N:number changes the number on the next page. Sequential numbering
          starts again with this number.
Example:  .F:...$$$... centers a sequential page number

Sample Report
┌──────────────────┐
│.M:2              │ double spaces
│.X:15             │ moves text right 15 spaces
│.XT:3             │ top margin, 1/2"
│.R:P              │ changes to Pica font (see ENHANCING TEXT)
│.F:               │ a blank footer to separate the text from the footer
│.F:...$$$...      │ prints centered page number
│...               │
│text              │
│...               │
│.H:text           │ header, starting on page 2
└──────────────────┘

SWITCHING FILES

To switch from one file to another:
1. Press F1 then F6.
2. Type the name of the file you want to switch to. Press Enter. Include the
   drive and/or directory, if necessary.
3. The file you are editing is saved. The new file is loaded. You are prompted
   for a backup. Press Esc for no backup, or F9 if you want a backup copy.

You can do a quick switch to another file in a series. This is a group of files
with the same name plus an one- or two-digit number or character, such as
PART1.DOC, PART2.DOC, PART3.DOC, etc.

To switch to the previous or next file in a series:
1. Press F1 then F6. The Top Line says:
     File to load or create (Esc:cancel F8:dir): "filename"
2. Press F5 or F7. If there is a previous or next file in the series, you are
   switched there. Press Esc, Enter, Grey+, or Grey- to edit the file, F5 to
   go to the previous file, or F7 to go to the next file.

You may import text from one file to another by marking text, switching files,
and then inserting the text with F3, F6, or Ctl F4.

CREATING A FILE

To create a file:
1. At the DOS prompt, type "ED". Press Enter. The Opening Menu appears.
2. Press F6. The Top Line says:
     File to load or create (Esc:cancel F8:dir): "work.doc"
3. Type a new file name and press Enter. The Top Line says:
     File not found; Esc to retype, or F9 to create "filename"
4. Press F9. The editing screen appears. Begin entering text.


To create a file bypassing the Opening Menu:
1. At the DOS prompt, type ED filename. Press Enter. The Top Line says:
     File to load or create (Esc:cancel F8:dir): "filename"
2. Press Enter. The initial screen appears. The Top Line says:
     File not found; Esc to retype, or F9 to create "filename"
3. Press F9.

INSTALLING PC-WRITE

To create a work disk for a floppy disk computer:
1. Place the PC-Write Program diskette in drive A. Prepare two blank formatted
   disks (one for 3.5 inch disks), plus blank formatted disks for backups if
   you want them.
2. At the DOS prompt, type "WORKDISK B:" and press Enter.
3. WORKDISK copies files to the work disk and asks you questions about
   your computer. Press "Y" for Yes or "N" for No. WORKDISK prompts
   you to change disks when necessary.
4. When WORKDISK is complete, the DOS prompt appears. When you are using
   PC-Write, keep the work disk in the A drive.

To create a work directory on a hard disk computer:
1. Change to the root directory by typing "C:", then Enter.
   Then type "CHDIR \", then Enter.
3. Create a PC-Write work directory by typing "MKDIR \PCW". Press Enter.
   This creates a PC-Write work directory called PCW.
4. Change to the A drive by typing "A:". Press Enter.
5. Place the PC-Write Program diskette in drive A. At the DOS prompt, type
   "WORKDISK C:\PCW\". Press Enter.
6. WORKDISK copies some files to the work directory and asks you some
   questions about your computer. Press "Y" for Yes or "N" for No.
   WORKDISK will prompt you to change diskettes when necessary.
7. When WORKDISK is complete, the DOS prompt reappears. When you want to use
   PC-Write, change to the PC-Write directory of your hard disk by typing
   "C:". Press Enter. Then type "CHDIR \PCW" and press Enter.

PRINTING

To print while editing a file:
1. Press F1 then F7. The Top Line says:
     File to print (Esc:cancel F8:dir): "filename"
2. Press Enter to print the file you are editing. The Top Line says:
     Esc:Exit  F9:Print to disk file  F10:Printer is ready
3. Press F10. The Print Menu appears.
4. Press F10 to print the whole file or F9 to print one page.

To print from the DOS prompt:
1. At the DOS prompt, type:
     ED filename /p  <Enter>
2. The Print Menu appears. Press F10 to print the whole file or F9 to print
   one page.

If you get the message:
   Print control file name (Esc:exit, Enter:none): ""
Press Enter. It will print without this file for now. You should create PR.DEF.
See INSTALLING to learn how to do this.

TEXT LAYOUT

To center text:
1. Place the cursor on a line or mark a block.
2. Press Shf F8.

To right flush text:
1. Place the cursor on a line or mark a block.
2. Press Ctl F8.

To slide text left or right:
1. Mark the text to slide with F3 or F6, or mark the file with Ctl F5.
   See COPYING AND MOVING TEXT.
2. To slide text right, press Shf Ins.
   To slide text left, press Shf Del.
3. At the prompt, type the number of spaces to slide.
4. Press Enter.

DELETING TEXT

Bksp       Deletes a character to the left of the cursor.
Del        Deletes a character at the cursor, but doesn't move the cursor.
Ctl Enter  Deletes text from the cursor to the end of the line.
Ctl Esc    Deletes a word at the cursor.
Ctl Bksp   Deletes a word to the left of the cursor.

To delete a block of text:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the block to be deleted.
2. Press F4.
3. Move the cursor to the end of the block.
4. Press F4 again.

To undelete a block of text:
1. Press Ctl F4. This only works with the most recent deletion. It undeletes
   text deleted with F4, Ctl Enter, Ctl Esc, or Ctl Bksp.
2. Press F5.

JUSTIFYING TEXT

To right justify text:
1. Place the cursor above the text to be justified.
2. Press F2 then F4 to embed the Ruler line.
3. Press F2 to edit this ruler.
4. Move the cursor to the "R" (or a new right margin location) and type "J".
5. New text is justified as you type it (with automatic reformatting on).
   Reformat existing text. See REFORMATTING TEXT. Proportional text may
   not appear justified on the screen.

If the text does not print justified, check the Ruler line. Make sure the "L"
is in the same column as the text. In other words, if the "L" is in column 1,
make sure the text actually begins in column 1. If not, change the Ruler line
to match the text. See MARGINS.

REMINDER LINES AND MENUS

When you installed PC-Write with the WORKDISK program, you were asked if you
wanted the Reminder lines on the top of the screen. If you said yes, these
three lines are there to remind you of the options available to you.
If you said no, you can bring them onto the screen.

To display the Reminder lines:
 1. Press Shf F1. 2. Press Shf F1 again to take them off the screen.

To use PC-Write's menus:
 1. Press Esc to bring up the Main Menu.
 2. Press the Ctl key to see the Ctl Main Menu.
 3. Press Shf to see the Shf Main Menu.
 4. Press Alt to see the Alt Main Menu.
 5. Press Esc to return to the editing screen.

SAVING A FILE

Until you save a file, all your work is kept only in your computer's memory.
None has been copied to the disk. If you shut off your computer, your text will
be gone for good. To use your text another time, you must save it on the disk.

To save text to a disk:
1. Press F1.
2. Press F3, for saving. After a save, the Top Line says "Read" instead of
   "Edit", since the text in memory is the same as that on the disk. When you
   change the text, the Top Line says "Edit" again.

You can also save a file when you exit it. See EXITING A FILE.

ENHANCING TEXT

To turn on a font for a word or line:
1. Place the cursor before the word or line.
2. Press Alt with one of the letters below. This inserts a font character.
3. Place the cursor after the word or line and press the same keys again.

To use the Formatting Menu to enter font characters:
1. Place the cursor before the word or line (or mark the word).
2. Press Alt F6 then F6, select the font you want, press Enter.
3. Place the cursor after the word or line and do the same thing.

To see the text on the screen without font characters:
*  Press Alt space-bar. This is Hide mode.
   Press Alt space-bar again to see font characters. This is Show mode.

To start a font or enhancement for a longer block or the whole file:
1. Use a .R:letter Dot line on a line above a block, or at the top of the file.
   Use one of the letters below. This command starts with an Alt-G character.
2. Use a .Q:letter Dot line with the same letter to stop a font or enhancement.

WIDTH FONTS                   │ SPECIAL FONTS         │ ENHANCEMENTS
Alt C  Compressed           │ Alt B  Boldface     │ Alt H  Superscript
Alt D  Double wide          │ Alt I  Italics      │ Alt L  Subscript
Alt E  Elite 12 cpi, fast   │ Alt M  Marine blue  │ Alt O  Overstrike
Alt F  Fast, pica (default) │ Alt R  Red          │ Alt S  
Second strike

Alt P  Pica 10 cpi, quality │ Alt Y  Yellow       │ Alt U  Underline
Alt Q  Quality mode, elite  │ Alt V  Variable     │ Alt W  Double under

LOADING AN EXISTING FILE

To load an existing file:
1. At the DOS prompt, type "ED". Press Enter. The Opening Menu appears.
2. Press F6. The Top Line says:
     File to load or create (Esc:cancel F8:dir): "work.doc".
3. Type the name of an existing file and press Enter. The initial screen
   comes up and the Top Line says:
     Press Esc for no backup, F9 to write backup file "filename"
4. You can make a backup copy of the file. This protects you if you
   inadvertently delete your file or if it gets written to a worn spot on the
   disk. Press Esc not to make a backup copy or F9 to make one.

To load a file bypassing the Opening Menu:
1. At the DOS prompt, type ED filename. Press Enter. The Top Line says:
      Press Esc for no backup, F9 to write backup file "filename"
2. Press F9.

REFORMATTING TEXT

When you change margins, with automatic reformatting on, the new margins take
effect for existing text as you edit. With automatic reformatting off, you
must reformat existing text to the new margins.

To reformat a paragraph:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the paragraph.
2. Press F7.

To reformat an entire file:
1. Press Ctl F5 to highlight the whole file.
2. Press F7.

If the text does not reformat correctly, check the Ruler line. Make sure the
"L" is in the same column as the text. In other words, if the "L" is in
column 1, make sure the text actually begins in column 1. If not, change the
Ruler line to match the text. See MARGINS.

SUPPORT SERVICE

If you need help, Quicksoft has the following support services:

Unregistered users: Our technical support group will help you with the
tutorial. If you need more help, you must register your copy of PC-Write.

Registered users with current support: You can call for help with technical
questions. Have your PC-Write manual and printer manual (if you are having
printer problems) handy. Please have the following information available:
1. Your registration number.
2. Your PC-Write version number 3.04 and your DOS version number.
3. The type of hardware and peripherals you have.
4. The name of any RAM-resident programs.
5. The contents of your AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files, if any.

For help, call [phone], 7am to 5pm Pacific time, except 1-3 Wed and Thur.

ENTERING TEXT

You enter text just as you do on a typewriter.
To enter letters and numbers, press the letter and number keys.

To end a line of text:
1. You can end a line  by pressing Enter. This is just like pressing the
   Return key on a typewriter.
2. Or, you can let the text wrap to the next line as you type. This is called
   wordwrap. When you edit existing text with wordwrap, you must reformat it
   with F7. See REFORMATTING TEXT.
3. Or, you can use automatic reformatting. This also wraps the text around as
   you type. When you edit existing text with automatic reformatting, it is
   constantly reformatted as you edit.

To toggle between wordwrap and automatic reformatting:
*  Press Shf F7. The Top Line says:
   Wrap+ when wordwrap is on (the default).
   Para+ when automatic reformatting is on.
   Wrap- when wordwrap and automatic reformatting are off.

There are two text-entering "modes". With Pushright mode, as you type new
text, existing text is pushed to the right. This is the default. With
Overwrite mode, as you type new text you write over what is already there.

To toggle between Pushright and Overwrite modes:
*  Press the Scroll Lock key (or Ctl V).

MARGINS

You change left and right margins by editing a special line called
the Ruler line.

To change the right margin:
1. Press F2. The Ruler line appears:
 L---+--T-1----+T---2---T+----3-T--+----T----+--T-5----+T---6---T+----7-T--+--R
   The "L" is the left margin; the "R" the right margin.
2. Move to a new column for the right margin and type "R". The original "R"
   changes to a lower case "r".
3. Press F2 again. The Ruler line is gone, but the new margin is still in
   effect. Reformat existing text. See REFORMATTING TEXT. When you enter new
   text, it appears at the new right margin.

To change the left margin:
1. Press F2.
2. Place an "M" where the "L" is currently.
3. Move the cursor to a new column and type "L".
4. Press F2 again.
5. Reformat existing text. See REFORMATTING TEXT. When you enter new text, it
   appears at the new left margin.

The changes to the Ruler line stay only until you exit PC-Write.
You can make Ruler line changes permanent by embedding a Ruler line.

To embed a Ruler line:
1. Press F2.
2. Press F4 to embed the Ruler line. It stays with the file.

To delete an embedded Ruler line:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the Ruler line.
2. Press Ctl Enter.

To change an embedded Ruler line:
1. Place the cursor on the embedded Ruler line.
2. Press F2.
3. Make changes, then press F2 again.
4. You can also edit the Ruler line directly, like normal text.

REPAGING A FILE

Repaging inserts Soft-Breaks in a file so you can see where page breaks occur.
You can also force a page break by pressing Alt-T to enter a Hard-Break. The
Page Breaks Menu helps you locate, move, and convert page breaks.

To repage an entire file:
1. Place the cursor at the start of the file.
2. Press Alt F7 then F5 then F5. This leaves the cursor at the top of the file.

To repage a single page:
*  Press Alt F7 then F7. This moves the cursor to the next page break.

After a repage, you can adjust the page breaks in the following ways:
1. Move existing breaks with Alt F7 then Ctl PgUp or Ctl PgDn.
2. Enter Hard-Breaks with  Alt-T or Alt F6 then F10 then F9.
3. Enter Soft-Breaks with Shf Alt-T (but repage will move them).
4. Add or delete blank lines, and repage again.

SHAREWARE

Quicksoft encourages you to freely distribute unmodified copies of PC-Write in
the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. We ask you to support Quicksoft
and shareware by registering for support and by buying our products.

To register:
1. Call 1-800-888-8088.
2. Or, print an order form and fill it out. Place PC-Write Reference diskette
   in drive A. At the A> prompt type COPY QUICK-OR.DER PRN. Press Enter.

When you get your Registration Number:
1. With the Program disk in the default drive or directory, to change the
   front screen Registration # to your own, from DOS type ED =. Press Enter.
2. To change front screen message "Compliments of..." to your own, type ED +.