Monster Media 1994 #1/monster.zip/monster/UTILS1/EXC32.ZIP/EXC.HST

Text File | 1994-01-18 | 19KB | 403 lines

REVISIONS FOR VERSION 1.1 OF EXC.EXE

Many thanks to the few users who have reported problems and/or suggested
enhancements.  If you don't report them and I don't find them, they don't
get fixed.


1. I apologize for the EXC.DOC file.  In my rush to get it documented and
   uploaded, I neglected to spell check or proofread it.  It was terrible.
   I hope it is much more readable now.

2. Leading and trailing TAB characters (hex 09) were not being removed from
   script lines, causing invalid command messages.

3. There appears to be a need in the user community to repeat commands,
   groups of commands and keys a known number of times to allow them to
   write smaller scripts.

   Added "ON n label".  This is a powerfull loop control command similar
   to the logic used in FOR statements common in many programming languages.

   Added a repeat number that can be added to the end of a KEY command.  The
   key that is specified will be repeated as many times as specified.  For
   instance, "KEY <TAB> 5" stuffs five tabs into the keyboard buffer.

4. Fixed a problem where certain invalid key mnemonics were not generating
   error messages.

5. If you loop through SEARCH commands looking for multiple possible messages
   that could occur, each time the timer interrupt is invoked (18.2/sec) the
   entire screen is read, reformatted to remove attributes and searched for
   each SEARCH in the loop.  WAITFOR and WAITSCR have built-in one second
   delays between screen reads to minimize this overhead.

   One solution is to stick a DELAY in the loop, but if you do this between
   each SEARCH, execution of the script will slow down dramatically.

   I added a READ command that will read the screen and do nothing else.

   I then added a LOOK command that searches the screen buffer that was last
   read by a READ, SEARCH, WAITFOR or WAITSCR command.  It's just like the
   SEARCH command without reading the screen prior to the search.

   EXAMPLE 1:                   EXAMPLE 2:          EXAMPLE 3:

   :Loop                        :Loop               :Loop
     SEARCH "Continue?"           READ                SEARCH "Continue?"
     IFY Continue                 LOOK "Continue?"    IFY Continue
     LOOK "ERROR:"                IFY Continue        LOOK "ERROR:"
     IFY Error                    LOOK "ERROR:"       IFY Error
     GOTO Loop                    IFY Error           DELAY 1
   :Continue                      DELAY 1             GOTO Loop
     .                            GOTO Loop         :Continue
     .                          :Continue             .
   :Error                         .                   .
     .                            .                 :Error
     .                          :Error                .
                                  .                   .
                                  .

   In the above examples, Example 1 shows how you would have intuitavely
   coded the script in version 1.0.  Adding a DELAY 1 at the end of the
   loop would have helped performance, but two screen reads would be per-
   formed each second.  Example two demonstrates how READ and LOOK could
   be used to make a very efficient loop.  Example 3 shows that, since
   a READ followed by a LOOK is equal to a SEARCH, so the third example
   is the best because it takes two iterations of the interrupt to process
   each command in the script.  The first iteration reads and formats the
   command and the second executes it.

6. Installed COMMAND.COM as the default program name on the command line.

7. Modified QUIT and end0of-script logic to issue EXIT if COMMAND.COM was
   invoked.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 1.2 OF EXC.EXE

Many thanks to the few users who have reported problems and/or suggested
enhancements.  If you don't report them and I don't find them, they don't
get fixed.

1.  Timeout processing was malfunctioning for WAITSCR.  Fixed.

2.  READ and LOOK were mistakenly included in v1.1 documentation, but are
    not actually implemented until v1.2.

3.  In 1.1 and older, the maximum screen size was 80x50.  EXC returned an
    error if you were in a larger screen mode.  Also I had to obtain a 8,000
    byte buffer (character + attribute) to read the 80x50 screen regardless
    of the text mode you were using.

    I must preallocte the screen buffer because the spawned program may
    consume all remaining memory.  I can't just use the current video
    settings since the spawned program may change the text mode.

    I have added a command "SCRMAX cols rows" that allows preallocation of
    buffers for large screen sizes.  The default, if SCRMAX is not in the
    script, will be the rows and columns of the text mode in use when EXC is
    invoked.  Please read the documentation under SCRMAX for full usage
    instructions and the implications and penalties involved in reserving
    large screen buffers.

    This prevents wasting memory in screen sizes smaller than 80x50 and
    allows EXC to fully function on screens larger than 80x50.

    Supported screen widths are from 40-200 columns.  Supported screen
    heights are from 20-100 rows.

1.  I no longer read the video attribute when I read the screen, thus
    cutting screen buffer requirements in half.

2.  To minimize problems with spawned programs which may also be using
    timer interrupts, I have broken down the execution of many commands into
    parts executed in multiple timer interrupts.

3.  For the same reason as for the previous changes, I have cut the time
    down for error beeps and for the delay the beeps.  Errors, which emitted
    4 beeps now only beep twice.

4.  Timeouts, which emitted 3 beeps now emit no beep.  If you need
    to know when a timeout occurred, place a beep in your script where
    needed.  This is primarily because intentional timeouts could be quite
    common and don't require user attention.

5.  Modified DELAY and TIMEOUT processing to compare against the system
    clock instead of using countdown timers via INT 1C.  This gives more
    accurate timing since 1C may or may not be called 18.2 times per
    second, depending on how long the interrupt handler had it tied up.

6.  I have added key combinations that will terminate (LEFT and RIGHT SHIFT
    keys)and pause/resume (SCROLL LOCK) the execution of scripts.  Unlike
    pressing the PAUSE key, SCROLL LOCK pauses only script execution and not
    the spawned program.  The PAUSE key will suspend both.

7.  I have insterted code that detects pause state and suspends all delays
    until pause state is exited.  For example, if you press the PAUSE key
    5 seconds into a 10 second delay, when you press a key to resume
    processing, you will still have 5 seconds of delay before the next command
    is executed.  No new commands will be initiated during pause state.

8.  Fixed a problem that limited total memory allocations to 64k and sometimes
    caused system halt if more was requested for scripts, screen or spawned
    program.

9.  Enhanced functionality and script debugging by adding the following 14
    new commands:

    TICK           CLEAR           PAUSE            TIME
    WINMAX         WINCOLS         WINROWS          CURSOR
    SHOWAT         SHOW            SHOWWIN          LOCATE
    HIDEWIN        TYPFILE

10. Rearranged the documentation so that commands are listed alphabetically.
    Added more examples.  Added more in-depth explanations of operational
    considerations that might effect EXC's performance or lack thereof.

11. Included the script that I use for testing EXC in the distribution
    files.  This provides at least one example of every command EXC
    recognizes.

12. Allow entry of quotes within a string by substituting \q for ".


Version 2.0a

   The programs in version 2.0a are identical to those in version 2.0, except
for the registration remider screen.  The reminder screen and documentation
have been updated to include instructions on how to register EXC online via
CompuServe's SWREG section.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.1 OF EXC.EXE


1.  Recompiled EXC in 8086/8088 code so that it could be used on XT class
    machines.  Performance impact on 286 and above processors is negligible.

2.  Added a parameter to the QUIT instruction.  Normally on exit, EXC returns
    the return code of the executed program.  If a number (0-255) is
    specified with the QUIT command, that value is returned as the DOS
    ERRORLEVEL return code instead of what was passed from the spawned
    program.

    An example of why you would want to set a return code:

       I use EXC to control PROCOMM PLUS to execute a script that synchro-
       nizes my clock with the Naval Observatory.  I need to know if it
       fails.

       I can detect the error with my EXC script, but when I exit PCPLUS,
       PCPLUS always returns a return code of 255.  Using the QUIT nn format,
       I can set a return code of 1 on error and 0 when there is no error.

3. After a PRTSC key mnemonic was executed, the script processor failed
   to continue to the next line and terminated at that point.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.2 OF EXC.EXE

1.  Added support for using environment variables in any command string
parameter.

2.  When you tried to pass a parameter to the spawned program that
contained spaces and was enclosed in quotes, the parameter arrived to
the spawned program broken down into multiple one-word parameters.  While
EXC was passing it as a single parameter, DOS was breaking it down.  I had
to make sure each parameter passed to the spawned program was enveloped
in quotes in order to assure proper operation.

3.  EXC could have been copying one or more input parameters to uninitialized
string pointers.  This means that the parameters could have been copied
anywhere in memory.  These storage violations could cause random errors
varying in degree of nastiness and symptioms.  These pointers now point to
a fixed array of allocated memory.

    If you experienced random, strange occurances after using EXC, this could
be the cause.  It could also cause QEMM exception 13 errors.  I examine my
code very closely for these nastiest of bugs, but with the flexibilty of
data types, pointers and arrays used in C++, it is nearly impossible to find
them until a repeatable error can be found.

    If you experience unusual problems after using EXC v2.2, try your best to
repeat them.  If you can in any way recreate the problem or narrow down the
activity that causes the problem, let me know.  EXC is becoming a very stable
product now, thanks to your help.  In this type of program it is impossible
to test every combination that users will use.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.3 OF EXC.EXE

Version 2.2 attempted to properly pass quoted parameters by enclosing all
parameters in quotes.  While this worked fine on Borland C and C++ programs,
if the spawned program was PASCAL or assembler, it received the parameter with
the quotes.  Since most programmers were not expecting quoted parameters,
they had no code to handle them.  Borland C always remoed the quotes before
a program could access the parameters.  This means that EXC VERSION 2.2 DID
NOT WORK WHEN MOST PASCAL AND ASSEMBLER PROGRAMS WERE INVOKED.

I now check each parameter for a space, |, < or >.  If it contains one of
these, I assume the input string was quoted and pass it on with surrounding
quotes.  All other parameters are passed as-is.

\" can no longer be used to imbed quotes in a parameter to be passed to a
spawned program.  \q must be used instead.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.4 OF EXC.EXE

1.  Although EXC processed correctly, sometimes an erroneous warning message
    would appear at the end of the job stating that the script had failed to
    complete and claiming to have stopped at the last command in the script.
    The last command had, in fact, been executed.

2.  Instead of assuming COMMAND.COM for the default when no spawned program
    is specified, I now use the program specified in the COMSPEC environment
    variable.  If COMPSEC is not found in the environment, I then use
    COMMAND.COM.



REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.5 OF EXC.EXE

1. It appears that a few applications and at least one well known appli-
   cation development package actually write binary zeros to certain parts of
   screen memory.  These appear as spaces on the screen but are actually read
   as binary zeros when EXC reads screen memory.  When EXC is searching the
   video memory for a string, it uses a string search algorithm that is
   terminated at the first binary zero.  This is because C++ uses binary
   zeros to terminate strings.

   The result is that certain string text would be displayed on the screen
   but would not be located by EXC because the search was terminated
   prematurely.

   EXC now replaces any binary zeros in the screen buffer text with spaces.
   This allows the search to perform as expected.

2. The ON function did not work properly when the counter was more than 9.
   This has been corrected.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.6 OF EXC.EXE

 The DELAY and TICK commands did not always work properly if the wait
 state was in effect at midnight when the system timer clock rolls over
 to zero.  EXC has been modified to compensate for this possibility.

Version 2.6a:

 We are moving.  Updated registration screen and documentation to show
 new address.  No functional changes.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.7 OF EXC.EXE

1.  Prior versions of EXC did not work on a few common programs that had
    their own keyboard interrupt handler.  EXC has been modified so that
    it works on more of these programs than it used to.  Since custom
    interrupt handlers can do anything they want, I cannot guarantee oper-
    ation on all of these programs.  Fortunately, there are not many of
    them.  Microsoft's EDIT and QBASIC editor now work properly under EXC.

2.  Changed the TESTEXC.SCR script and TESTEXC.BAT batch file to operate
    with the DOS EDIT command found in DOS 5 and up.

3.  Fixed a problem where, under the right conditions, some letters could
    be lost or scrambled when long strings were stuffed in the buffer.
    This would especially be prevalent in slower CPUs.

4.  When EXC tried to branch to an invalid label, the correct error message
    was generated, but the STOPPED AT: message displayed garbage.  It now
    points to the offending command.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.8 OF EXC.EXE

1.  Release 2.7 fixed a problem that did not allow it to run on a few
    programs with keyboard interrupt handlers.  In correcting the problem,
    performance suffered when long TYPE or TYPFILE commands were issued.
    Release 2.8 restores the lost performance.

2.  Added the SLOW, FAST, INT9 and NOINT9 commands for performance tuning and
    reliability.  See EXC.DOC for an explanation of these commands.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 2.9 OF EXC.EXE

1.  Some text editors do not automatically place a carriage return at the
    end of the last line of a text file.  If a script was created which
    did not end the last line with a carriage return, the last line would
    be ignored by EXC.  Fixed.

2.  Abbreviated the registration reminder screen and reduced the delay from
    five seconds to three to comply with the requirements of the Association
    of Shareware Professionals (ASP).

3.  Revised the documentation to meet submission requirements of the ASP.

4.  Modified to use pre-compiled subfunctions from a library, rather than
    included source.  This has no bearing on EXC's functionality.

5.  Added information in the documentation for problems in using EXC with
    some remote control communications programs.  Included suggestions for
    resolving the problems.


REVISIONS FOR VERSION 3.0 OF EXC.EXE

1.  A big reason for this release to be 3.0 is that I was running out of
    release numbers under 2.x.  However, there is one major feature addition
    that, while not often used, is a major step forward is making EXC
    usable in almost any DOS application.  This might justify the major
    version number jump.

    You can now enter three-key and four-key combinations using SHIFT, ALT
    and CTRL.  This was no easy task since these keys do have keyboard
    scan codes and cannot be stuffed in the keyboard buffer.  Please read the
    EXC.DOC file before using three- or four-key combinations.


2.  Added a parameter to the SLOW command to let you vary the speed at
    which strings and files will be typed.

3.  Some text editors do not automatically place a carriage return at the
    end of the last line of a text file.  If a script was created which
    did not end the last line with a carriage return, the last line would
    be ignored by EXC.  Fixed.

4.  Abbreviated the registration reminder screen and reduced the delay from
    five seconds to three to comply with the requirements of the Association
    of Shareware Professionals (ASP).

5.  Revised the documentation to meet submission requirements of the ASP.

6.  Modified to use pre-compiled subfunctions from a library, rather than
    included source.  This has no bearing on EXC's functionality.

7.  Added information in the documentation for problems in using EXC with
    some remote control communications programs.  Included suggestions for
    resolving the problems.

VERSION 3.0a

    EXC v3.0a is functionally equivalent to v3.0.  The documentation has
    been modified to include the new address and phone number of Parity
    Solutions.


Version 3.1 modifications:

1.  Prior versions had an undocumented quirk which prevented a second ON
    command from being processed while another was active.  The quirk has
    been documented in EXC.DOC and the ONRESET command added to allow
    forced termination of a previous ON command.

2.  A problem with environment variable substitution could sometimes cause
    unpredictable results.  Corrected.

3.  Added capability to set and change up to 16 user variables.  As a side
    effect, subroutine execution is now possible.