Monster Media 1994 #1/monster.zip/monster/BBS_UTIL/DIZDIR15.ZIP/DIZEDIT.DOC

Text File | 1994-02-24 | 11KB | 234 lines

DIZEDIT Version 4.9b
Copyright (c) 1993 GDSOFT

February 24, 1994


WHAT IS IT :
------------

DIZEDIT  is a  simple utility  that  allows  editing of  those nice  little
description files  commonly found in archive  files (ZIP,ARJ,LZH). Many BBS
systems use this  file as the ACTUAL description  whenever the archive file
is uploaded to them. Commonly, the file is named FILE_ID.DIZ, however other
variations are FILE.DES  or FILE.SDI. In this document,  I'll refer to this
file regardless of the flavor as the FILE_ID.

DIZEDIT  easily allows  you to  create the  existing FILE_ID  if it already
exists in the archive, and if not,  it allows you to create it.

Additionally, with Version 4.0, several useful abilities have been added :

     ....  Convert archives to a DEFAULT format.
     ....  REPACK archives to minimize size
     ....  Recognizes most ARJ,ZIP and LZH SFX files
     ....  Strip or add Archive comments (ARJ and ZIP ONLY)
     ....  Automatic VIRUS SCAN using popular SCAN programs.
     ....  Update ARCHIVE date with TODAY,NEWEST,OLDEST file date.
     ....  Add BBS files to the archive such as ADS etc.
     ....  Included  an  .INI  file  which  can  be edited
           interactively to save setup information.

BASIC STARTUP :
---------------

Unpack the  distribution archive to some  directory on your disk,  and type
the command  : DIZEDIT <ENTER>.  If it is  the first time  you have used to
program,  DIZEDIT will  create a  DIZEDIT.INI file  on the  same path  that
DIZEDIT.EXE exists.  This is a  plain vanilla ASCII  file and contains  the
following information :

MARGIN=40 (anything from 30 to 78 chars)
COLOR=BLUE (Choices are : BLUE,RED,GREEN,CYAN,MAGENTA)
ARJ=D:\UTILITY\ARJ.EXE A (The address of ARJ.EXE PLUS extra switches)
PKZIP=D:\UTILITY\PKZIP.EXE -EX (ditto, using EXTRA compression)
PKUNZIP=D:\UTILITY\PKUNZIP.EXE (ditto again)
LZH=D:\UTILITY\LHA.EXE (ditto again and again)
SCAN=D:\TOOLS\SCAN.EXE /NOMEM /BELL  (use any switches you like)
DATE=NEWEST,EXT (sets archive date to newest PLUS extension, OR
                 oldest PLUS extension OR
                 TODAY (today's date) OR
                 just blank for NOTHING (current archive date)).
COMMENT=D:\TURBO\ARCS\ZIPLOGO.TXT (the address and name of a comment file)
BBSAD=D:\BBS\ABBS.TXT (name and address of file to add to archive).
SWAPDRIVE=D (The drive DIZEDIT should create SWAP on.  Use FASTEST drive.)
DEFAULT=ZIP (ARJ,ZIP, or LZH.  Archives WILL be converted to this)
REPACK=NO (Repack archives for MAXIMUM compression .. either YES or NO)

The easiest  way to create this  file is to execute  DIZEDIT. A DIZEDIT.INI
file will  AUTOMATICALLY be created. Press  the F1 key BEFORE  selecting an
archive  file,  and  DIZEDIT  will  allow  you  to  edit these values. When
finished,  press F10  to save  your changes.  The changes  WILL TAKE EFFECT
IMMEDIATELY, so you don't have to exit DIZEDIT and re-run it. Of course you
can use any ASCII word processor  to change your DIZEDIT settings. Also, if
you want DIZEDIT  to return to whatever the default  value was, just DELETE
the line involved. For example, to  STRIP all comments for archives as they
are process, just DELETE the COMMENT= line from DIZEDIT.INI.

Additional NEW  features of DIZEDIT are :

The file copy function. Press F4 on a valid file, and you will be permitted
to copy the  file to any path on  your system. This is nice  if you want to
create  an upload  directory to  send a  group of  files somewhere. You can
change the  current drive using  F8. This  let's  you pick any  path on any
drive on your system. Also, on the file selection screen, you can press the
DELETE key, and you'll be able to DELETE or MOVE the archive if you desire.

AH... NOW FOR THE GOOD PART
---------------------------

You will be  presented with a directory list of  the current directory. You
can select the '..' entry to get  to the ROOT directory. From there, select
a directory where there  are files that have ZIP, ARJ  or LZH files. Select
anyone of  them, and DIZEDIT will  open the archive and  extract all of the
files to a "blind" directory that it creates.

The DEFAULT  file that DIZEDIT looks  for is FILE_ID.DIZ. If  that does NOT
exist, then it looks  for a file with the extension of  "DES". If that does
NOT exist  then it looks  for a file  with the extension  of "SDI". If your
archive contains NONE of these then DIZEDIT will present you with a list of
the files in this archive. You may choose one of them to be READIN, and the
DIZEDIT  permits editing.  This is  useful  if  you DO  NOT already  have a
FILE_ID, and  you want to  use the DOC   file or a  TXT file as  a basis to
create from. The file that will be created in this case is FILE_ID.DIZ.

If one  of these files  already exist, then  DIZEDIT permits editing.

You can  enter up to  2048 characters.  BE  WARNED !!! Many  BBS sites ONLY
permit 15 lines by 40 characters to be displayed in their descriptions. You
can have as many  lines as you have memory for, and each  line can be up to
78 characters.

Again,  DIZEDIT recognizes  the extensions  ZIP,ARJ, and  LZH. In order for
DIZEDIT to work for each of these respective archives, you MUST have a copy
of  the following  files SOMEWHERE  on your  path. DIZEDIT  will search for
them, and if NOT  found, will tell you. You must then  make sure that these
files are in the same directory as  DIZEDIT.EXE or in a directory listed in
your PATH statement.

                ZIP - PKZIP.EXE and PKUNZIP.EXE
                ARJ - ARJ.EXE
                LZH - LHA.EXE or LHARC.EXE

From there,  if a file  in the files  display window ends  in one of  these
extensions, simply press  <ENTER>, and the FILE_ID for  that archive can be
edited. At anytime, you can press the 'F1' key, and READIN any file on your
disk  as a  basis for  the FILE_ID.  To save  the FILE_ID  and re-pack  the
archive, press the 'F10' key. Pressing ESCAPE exits WITHOUT saving.

A WORD ABOUT THE DIZEDIT SWAP AREA
----------------------------------

DIZEDIT  creates a  temporary directory  that it  uses to  unpack files for
viewing or printing.  Normally, this directory is created  on the same disk
that the program is on. PKZIP also uses a temporary file to do its work.

DIZEDIT will use  the same temporary disk that you  assign for PKZIP unless
you have SWAPFILE=somedisk in the DIZEDIT INI File.

You  may have  this temporary  file  created  in a  different directory  by
setting the  environment variable PKTMP.  Set this equal  to the drive  you
wish  to  use  as  your  temporary  file  location  and  ARCTOOL  temporary
directory.

For optimal  performance on your  local harddrive, the  PKTMP could be  set
equal to  a RAM drive  if a large  enough one is  available. This will make
EVERYTHING run VERY FAST !!!! The  temporary file location must have enough
free space to hold ALL the files in their UNCOMPRESSED state.

A one or two MEG RAM drive would be sufficient for most compressed files.

COMMAND LINE  USAGE
-------------------

DIZEDIT  if "batch  file" capable,  and can  be executed  directly from the
command line such as :

                        DIZEDIT \PATH\SOMEZIP.ZIP

In this  case, DIZEDIT does NOT  show you the normal  selection screen, but
instead goes DIRECTLY to the archive specified if it exists. You MUST enter
the FULL name and COMPLETE path of  the archive file. You will then be able
to edit the FILE_ID.DIZ for the named file.



BASIC COMMANDS AND CURSOR MOVEMENT :
------------------------------------

DIZEDIT uses the normal cursor keys to go LEFT, RIGHT, UP, DOWN, HOME, END,
PGUP, PGDN.

The editor is "WORDSTAR" compatible.

Here is a list of the function and CTRL keys and what each does :

Command                  Description
--------------------     ------------------------------------------------

PROGRAM KEYS (BEFORE Archive is selected)

[F1]                  -  Edit the DIZEDIT.INI File
[F4]                  -  Copy the selected file to another path.
[F8]                  -  Select another path or drive to work from.
[DEL]                 -  Permits archive to be DELETED or MOVED.
[ESC]                 -  Quit DIZEDIT

EDITOR KEYS   (AFTER Archive is selected)

[F1]                  -  Presents a list of files to be READIN.
[F10]                 -  Save the current FILE_ID and repack the archive.
[ESC]                 -  Quit back to the file selection screen.

INSERT                -  Toggle INSERT/OVERWRITE Mode
DELETE                -  Delete Character
[CTRL]-[Y]            -  Delete current line
[CTRL]-[B]            -  Reformat paragraph
[CTRL]-[O][J]         -  Reformat & Justify paragraph
[CTRL]-[S]            -  Character Left
[CTRL]-[D]            -  Character Right
[CTRL]-[A]            -  Word Left
[CTRL]-[F]            -  Word Right
[CTRL]-[E]            -  Line Up
[CTRL]-[X]            -  Line Down
[CTRL]-[W]            -  Scroll Up
[CTRL]-[Z]            -  Scroll Down
[CTRL]-[Q]            -  Delete To End Of Line
[CTRL]-[T]            -  Delete Word


MANY Thanks to Felix Mueller and James Duckworth, Guy Hunter and others for
recommending MANY IMPORTANT improvements to DIZEDIT !!

Well, that's  pretty much it.  I think that  you will find  DIZEDIT easy to
use, FAST, and  once you get used to using  it, indispensable !! Especially
if you maintain a BBS.

If you like DIZEDIT, then please register it. For those who do, I will send
my super dooper BONUS archive as well. Believe me there are many goodies on
this  BONUS  disk.  including  ARCTOOL,  ARCPLUS  and  FILEMANAGER PLUS, an
exciting NEW program which does ALL that you could EVER want a file manager
program to do and MUCH MORE, including DIZEDIT built in !!!


To register, send a FORMATTED, BLANK diskette to

        GDSOFT
        G.D. DAVIS
        57280 Osage Drive
        Goshen, Indiana 46526

        Please Include a $15.00 registration fee.

        Make sure that you include your return address.


If you have any comments or questions,  I would REALLY love to receive your
comments  or  suggestions.  I  can  be  reached  by  leaving  mail on GENIE
(G.D.DAVIS) or CompuServe (72067,2726), or write to me at the above address
or better yet,  call GDSOFT BBS [phone],  HST 14400,8,N,1 v.32/v.42.
This is a FREE BBS, and you'll  find MANY GDSOFT programs and files as well
as lots of other goodies.

Thank you for using DIZEDIT.