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┌───────────────────────────┐
│ ■ FILE DOWNLOAD COUNTER ■ │
└───────────────────────────┘
Version 2.80
April 5, 1991
─────────────────
USER FEE REQUIRED
─────────────────
Written by:
Brandon M. Bachman
Distributed By:
The Salt City BBS
(801) 292-3308 (USR HST v.42bis)
PCRelay routable-> TERMINAL
FidoNet (1:311/7)
Copyright (C) 1990-91 by Brandon M. Bachman. All Rights Reserved.
┌───────────────────┐
│ TABLE OF CONTENTS │
└───────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
┌─────────┐
│ General │
└─────────┘
Overview ..................................... 1-1
Program Features ............................. 1-2
Registrered and Unregistered Versions ........ 1-3
Why Should I Register? ....................... 1-4
Disclaimer ................................... 1-5
License ...................................... 1-6
System Requirements .......................... 1-7
Files in the FDC Archive ..................... 1-8
┌──────┐
│ How? │
└──────┘
How FDC Operates ............................. 2-1
Installation ................................. 2-2
A Configuration File ......................... 2-3
Starting New with FDC ........................ 2-4
Removing FDC Entries ......................... 2-5
Log File ..................................... 2-6
Memory ....................................... 2-7
Word Wrapping ................................ 2-8
Formats For Recording Download Count ......... 2-9
┌───────────┐
│ Bulletins │
└───────────┘
Creating Bulletins ........................... 3-1
Custon Colors in Bulletins ................... 3-2
┌───────────────┐
│ Configuration │
└───────────────┘
The Configuration File ....................... 4-1
Sample Configuration File .................... 4-2
┌──────┐
│ Why? │
└──────┘
Operational Details .......................... 5-1
Examples of Command Line Arguments ........... 5-2
Common Questions and Answers ................. 5-3
┌───────┐
│ What? │
└───────┘
Technical Support ............................ 6-1
Other Programs by Brandon M. Bachman ......... 6-2
┌──────────┐
│ OVERVIEW │ 1-1
└──────────┴─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC will edit the descriptions in PCBoard's DIR files with a <#>, where #
is the number of times the file has been downloaded from your BBS.
FDC makes it easy for you and your users to see instantly which files are
the most popular, and give you an idea of what software you should keep
online and which programs are "dead wood" to be removed.
FDC will also create custom bulletins to help you determine the over all
most popular downloads on your BBS.
PROGRAM FEATURES 1-2
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
■ Automatically finds new downloads since the last date FDC was run.
■ Reads any size (extremely large) DOWNLOAD.TXT files.
■ Creates a 'customizable' bulletin of the most popular files.
■ Counts as many as <30,500> downloads of a single file!.
■ Auto word wraps the description lines to *any* column you would like
leaving the "Uploaded by:" line undisturbed with word wrapping.
■ Log file output (if desired) to monitor the program (PCBoard format).
■ Registered version will run smoothly in your nightly events.
■ Popular with users and SysOps as a guide to good programs.
■ Supports entries made from Bimodem in your DOWNLOAD.TXT file.
■ Creates a database of all un-processed files to re-try on future runs
therefore making the count 100% accurate.
■ Written in Turbo C++ for fast compact code.
■ And much more! Read On!
REGISTERED AND UNREGISTERED VERSIONS 1-3
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
"File Download Counter" is not Public Domain or Free ware. Unregistered
versions are 21 day evaluation copies only, after which they should either
be destroyed or a license agreement purchased. It's only $15 so please
register your copy today! See 'REGISTER.TXT' included with this archive
for more information.
WHY SHOULD I REGISTER? 1-4
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
■ The 'Press a Key' is removed, and FDC will run smoothly in your event.
■ You can use @Xhh codes to highlight your download count in the DIR
files.
■ FDC will keep a database of all un-processed files and re-try them on
future runs, letting FDC be network compatible, as well as 100% accurate.
■ Free technical support via the Salt City Bulletin Board.
■ Lifetime free updates of all future versions guaranteed.
DISCLAIMER 1-5
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
The authors make no warranties or representation of any kind, expressed or
implied, with respect to "File Download Counter", or its quality,
reliability, or performance, or its merchantability or fitness for any
purpose. The user assumes the entire risk as to the quality, performance
and reliability of the software and documentation.
LICENSE 1-6
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
The "File Download Counter" ("The Software") is COPYRIGHT 1990 by Sprint
Software, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
A license grants you a nonexclusive, nontransferable license to use
"File Download Counter" software on a single central processing unit at any
one time. Site licenses are available upon request for Networks exceeding
3 remote nodes.
You may NOT engage in, nor permit third parties to engage in, any of the
following :
A) Sell, rent, sub-license, lease, or grant other rights
of this software to others.
B) Attempt to disassemble, decompile, or reverse engineer
the software or the files it generates in any way.
C) Make alterations of any kind in the files of this
software, except as noted below.
D) Collect fees for distribution of the software.
The authors of the software grant you a license to use this software as
long as you meet the above conditions. Any violation of the above
conditions will result in the termination of your license to use this
software. Upon termination of this license for any reason, you must
stop using the software and destroy all copies of it in your possession
immediately.
The author(s) of this software are not liable for damages suffered as a
result of the improper use, proper use, or inability to use this
software. This type of disclaimer is prohibited by law in some states,
and is therefore void in those states.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS 1-7
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
To run "File Download Counter" you will need the following:
1. IBM PC/XT/AT, PS/2 or 100% compatible machine.
2. Color or Monochrome Graphics adapter.
3. MS-DOS 3.0 or higher.
FILES IN THIS ARCHIVE 1-8
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
"File Download Counter" is distributed as a archival file "FDC-XXX.ZIP"
You must have PkZip v1.10 or later to extract the files listed below.
PkZip v1.10 is Shareware and is available on many computer bulletin boards.
Files in the archive include:
FDC.EXE - The "File Download Counter" program.
FDC.CFG - Sample configuration file.
FDC-280.DOC - This documentation file.
HISTORY.DOC - List of improvements to FDC, and history.
REGISTER.DOC - Information on registering your copy.
README.DOC - Important information for new and old users.
USERS.DOC - List of registered users.
COMMENTS.DOC - List of comments from other users of FDC.
BLT1 - Sample ascii bulletin created by FDC.
BLT1G - Sample ansi bulletin created by FDC.
Sysops are free to distribute uregistered versions of FDC as a complete
unaltered archive only.
HOW FDC OPERATES 2-1
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC will read the DOWNLOAD.TXT file created by PCBoard, and count all
recently downloaded files since the last time File Download Counter was
executed successfully. It then searches the DIR files for a match. Then
FDC inserts the number of times <#> the file has been downloaded into the
file description in the DIR file. This will usually take up 4 or 5
characters of the description. If in doing so the description gets pushed
too far to the right it will auto word wrap and create a new line, or add to
the secondary line if it exists. Therefore none of the file descriptions
will be lost. If desired, you can have FDC enter a separate line of text
which indicates how many times the program has been downloaded.
Here is a sample of what FDC will do to the file descriptions in the DIR
file.
Example of Style #1 and #2
──────────────────────────
FILENAME.ARC 35252 06-27-90 <23> This is the description of the file.
FILE-TWO.ZIP 213445 06-23-88 <11> This is another description.
NEXTFILE.ZIP 243536 06-21-90 <14> This one has been downloaded 14 times,
| and the description is auto word-wrapped.
FILEFOUR.LZH 246246 05-12-90 <13> File Four v3.3, description. With
| this entry word wrapped, the "Uploaded by:"
| line is not disturbed.
| Uploaded by: Brandon Bachman
Example of Style #3
───────────────────
FILENAME.ARC 35252 06-27-90 This is the description of the file.
| <23> times downloaded.
FILE-TWO.ZIP 213445 06-23-88 This is another description.
| <11> times downloaded.
NEXTFILE.ZIP 243536 06-21-90 This one has been downloaded 14 times,
| and the description is auto word wrapped.
| <14> times downloaded.
FILEFOUR.LZH 246246 05-12-90 File Four v3.3, description. With
| this entry word wrapped, the "Uploaded by:"
| Uploaded by: Brandon M. Bachman
| <13> times downloaded.
Exale of Style #4 (with @Xhh highlighting)
──────────────────────────────────────────
FILENAME.ARC 35252 06-27-90 This is the description of the file.
| @Xhh<23> times downloaded.@Xhh
FILE-TWO.ZIP 213445 06-23-88 This is another description.
| @Xhh<11> times downloaded.@Xhh
NEXTFILE.ZIP 243536 06-21-90 This one has been downloaded 14 times,
| and the description is auto word wrapped.
| @Xhh<14> times downloaded.@Xhh
FILEFOUR.LZH 246246 05-12-90 File Four v3.3, description. With
| this entry word wrapped, the "Uploaded by:"
| Uploaded by: Brandon M. Bachman
| @Xhh<13> times downloaded.@Xhh
INSTALLATION 2-2
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
To install "File Download Counter" you must have the PKZip program
available, then create a sub-directory for "File Download Counter" on your
hard disk. Enter the sub-directory and un-Zip the files. Here is an
example of how you might do this:
E: (Go to E: drive)
CD\ (Go to the root directory)
MD FDC (Create E:\FDC sub-directory)
CD FDC (Go into the E:\FDC sub-directory)
COPY A:\FDC-280.ZIP (Copy the program from drive A:)
PKUNZIP FDC-280.ZIP (UnZip the program into the directory)
CONFIGURATION FILE 2-3
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
After you complete the installation you must then edit the SAMPLE.CFG file
included in this archive to your needs and rename it FDC.CFG. Read the
"Sample Configuration File" and "Operational Details" sections below for
instructions.
STARTING NEW 2-4
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
First time users must initialize FDC by using the command line argument
/START. This will start the counters of FDC from the beginning of your
DOWNLOAD.TXT file, thus counting all past downloads.
STRIPPING FDC ENTRIES 2-5
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
If you would like to remove all entries made by FDC you may use the /STRIP
command line argument to do so. You will then need to run FDC with the
/START command line argument to re-initialize FDC. This is useful also
if you decide to switch from one style of editing your DIR files to another,
(ie., STYLE=1 and you would like STYLE=3).
LOG FILE 2-6
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
If you would like record a log file of all FDC's activities use the
argument LOG=filename in the FDC.CFG, where filename is the complete path
and file name of the LOG file. The format of the LOG file conforms to
PCBoard's, so you can specify the LOG file as the CALLER log created by
PCBoard if you wish. Hopefully this will help cut down on many logs files.
MEMORY 2-7
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
The default memory parameter is set to read your DOWNLOAD.TXT file in
segments of 12,000 new downloaded files. It will edit those 12,000 and
then scan for another 12,000 new downloads, remembering the ones it has
previously updated until it has scanned the entire DOWNLOAD.TXT file.
It takes between 300K and 400K of memory to allocate memory for the 12,000
entries, which may cause a problem if you have shelled to DOS or have TSR's
loaded. If you receive memory errors when scanning large DOWNLOAD.TXT
files you may use the argument "MAX-FILES=XXXX" to change the number of
files read, where XXXX is the number of new downloads to read in each
segment. Valid values are from 5 yo 30,000. Lower this number to have
FDC use less memory. FDC defaults to 12,000 new downloads, usually a safe
value for normal operations with 400K of free memory.
WORD WRAPPING 2-8
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC handles word wrapping in two ways. If a file description requires
word wrapping, FDC first searches for the "|" character in the secondary
line of your file description, and when found will word wrap to the space
following the "|" character. However some sysops like to have all their
secondary lines of the descriptions lined up on columns other than the
default of the 32nd column by PCBoard. You can change the default by
using the argument CHAR=xx, where xx is the column or number of characters
to word wrap to.
FDC will not disturb the "Uploaded by:" line when word wrapping.
FOUR FORMATS FOR RECORDING DOWNLOAD COUNT! 2-9
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC now supports four different formats for recording the number of times
a file has been downloaded. The first is the default which will put
<##> in the first few characters of the first line of the files description
in the DIR file. The second will do the same as the first, however it will
not word wrap but truncate all descriptions which exceed 79 characters.
The third will insert a separate line at the end of the secondary lines of
the description but before the "Uploaded by:" This line will look like
this:
"| <45> times downloaded."
The fourth format with be in the format of #3, but will have highlighting
in the form of PCBoard's 14.5+ @Xhh color codes. This line will look like
this:
"| @Xhh<45> times downloaded.@Xhh"
By default FDC will insert this line starting at the 32nd column, however
if you would like it to be inserted at another column simply use the
CHAR=xx option specified section 2.9.
To implement one of the various format of recording the number of times
downloaded use the STYLE=x option, where x is the number of the style you
would like.
BULLETINS 3-1
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC will create a bulletin of the most recent downloads from your system
in the last XX days. Set the following parameters to create your
customized bulletins:
BLT= Full path and file name of a ascii bulletin you would like FDC to
create. FDC will list the files that have been download the most
in the last XX days. Comment out if you do not want FDC to create
a ascii bulletin.
BLTG= Same as above however this one will have ANSI color or PCBoard @Xhh
color codes added, depending on the ANSI= switch.
DAYS= The number of days back you want FDC to find downloads and list in
the bulletin. If set to 0, FDC will not create any bulletins.
LIST= The maximum number of files for FDC to list in the created
bulletins.
ANSI= Use ANSI escape codes for color when creating a graphic color
bulletin? If set to yes FDC will use standard ansi to colorize the
graphic bulletin. Set to yes if you are using PCBoard 14.2 or
earlier. If set to NO, FDC will use the new PCBoard 14.5 or later
@Xhh color codes, and @CLS@, @WAIT@ macros.
EXCLUDE= The name of a file you would _not_ like listed in the created
bulletin(s). You may enter as many filenames as you wish to the
list. Note: Wildcards "*" and "?" are not valid in this version.
CUSTOM COLORS IN GRAPHIC BULLETINS 3-2
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
You may customize the colors FDC uses when creating bulletins by setting
the parameters described below in your FDC.CFG file according the to the
color chart which is listed below.
LINE= The number of the color FDC will use for the lines. Default is
bright cyan (15) if commented out.
FILE= The number of the color FDC will use for the file name. Default is
bright green (11) if commented out.
DOTS= The number of the color FDC will use for the dots between the file
name and the count. Default is brown (4) if commented out.
COUNT= The number of the color FDC will use for the download count. The
default is bright yellow if commented out.
┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Color Chart │
└───────────────────────────────────────┘
1 - Black 9 - Bright Black
2 - Red 10 - Bright Red
3 - Green 11 - Bright Green
4 - Brown 12 - Bright Yellow
5 - Blue 13 - Bright Blue
6 - Purple 14 - Bright Purple
7 - Cyan 15 - Bright Cyan
8 - White 16 - Bright White
CONFIGURATION FILE 4-1
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
FDC daily operations are determined by the way you setup the FDC.CFG file.
The configuration file must be called 'FDC.CFG' and be in the directory
from which you run FDC.EXE. It is critical that you take care in setting
up this file, instructions for doing so are found in the "Sample
Configuration File" section below and the above sections.
SAMPLE CONFIGURATION FILE 4-2
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Please refer to the FDC.CFG file for a sample confgiuration file.
You may use any standard ASCII text editor to edit the FDC.CFG file found
in this archive, or to create your own.
Change the data in the FDC.CFG a to your needs.
OPERATIONAL DETAILS 5-1
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
After you have your FDC.CFG edited to your needs then type "FDC" and watch
the wiz-bangs fly! FDC will let you know if your FDC.CFG file may have
errors.
NOTE: The first time you run the program it will NOT find any new files,
because it will set the last run pointer to the last time you edited the
FDC.CFG file. If it is the first time you have run FDC use the /START
switch to initialize FDC.
To update your recent downloads every day, put FDC in your EVENT.SYS
file, it will run smoothly in an event. If there is an error, it will
sound a beep, pause 10 seconds and then exit. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE
UNREGISTERED VERSION WILL NOT EXIT WITHOUT A "PRESS A KEY TO EXIT."
EXAMPLES OF COMMAND LINE ARGUMENTS TO RUN FDC, AND THE RESULTS 5-2
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
1. FDC
This runs FDC at settings in the FDC.CFG file.
2. FDC /START
This will run FDC and initialize the count from the beginning of
of the download.txt file.
3. FDC /STRIP
This will run FDC and have it strip out all entries in your DIR
files that FDC made. This is useful if you need to start the
the count over for FDC.
COMMON QUESTIONS & ANSWERS 5-3
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Q. I am a new user with File Download Counter and I it is not counting
my downloads.
A. Make sure when you first run FDC to type "FDC /START" to initialize
the count in your DIR files.
Q. When I register FDC will I need to call your BBS to obtain future
registered updates, and will there be a fee for upgrading.
A. FDC is self registering for all future versions, you can simply
download a copy from your favorite BBS. There is and never will be
and additional fee for upgrading FDC even if prices do increase,
once you have are a registered user you may upgrade for free.
TECHNICAL SUPPORT 6-1
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
The latest version of "File Download Counter" software and technical
support are available from:
The Salt City Bulletin Board Join the FDC Support (2) Conference
(801) 292-3308 (USR HST v.42bis) to download the newest versions, ask
PCRelay routable -> TERMINAL questions, and offer suggestions.
FidoNet Node (1:311/7)
Or write to: Brandon M. Bachman
RE: File Downlaod Counter (tm)
1680 East 400 South Circle
Bountiful, Utah 84010
OTHER PROGRAMS BY BRANDON M. BACHMAN 6-3
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
What Happened Today v1.50
─────────────────────────
Displays what happened in history on a given date (either system or
manually set) date. Many display options! Also creates BBS bulletins
or news, and supports PCB 14.5+ @Xhh codes. Five history databases
available including: Sports, USA World, Science and Technology, Art,
Entertainment and Media. Many new dates added weekly.
Download as: WHT-150-ZIP (Includes Sports History Library)
Mail Time v2.00
───────────────
Sysops utility that creates/updates bulletins and news on when the last
echo mail run to the BBS occurred. Supports all mail networks, and
universal to all BBS software, although it will also support PCBoard
14.5+ @Xhh codes for color. Many date and time format options.
Includes PCBoard 14.5+ compatible log file output.
Download as: MT-200.ZIP