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NEWSPAPER v1.1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A System News File Display Utility for PCBoard
by George Silberstern
U S E R S M A N U A L
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Page i Newspaper v1.1
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Distribution Archive
The following files should have been included in the archive containing
this program:
NEWSPPER PPE - The Newspaper Utility for PCBoard
NEWSPPER INI - A sample Configuration file
NEWSPPER DOC - This file: The User's Manual
REVISION INF - List of changes made to Newspaper
FILE_ID DIZ - Description file Bulletin Boards
If any of these files are missing, then you may not have an original
copy of the archive.
Distribution
Newspaper is being released as Shareware. You may distribute the
program freely, as long as you do not alter the program in any way
(that includes disassembly, and reverse engineering). It would also be
greatly appreciated if you distributed the archive unchanged. That is,
containing all of the files listed at the start of this document.
License and Registration
You are authorized to use Newspaper for a thirty (30) day period for
the purpose of evaluation. If you like the program and choose to use
it after this period, you are required to register your copy.
Registered owners of Newspaper will receive a Key Code that will enable
additional features that have been, and will be added in the future.
In addition, registered users are entitled to receive a discount when
registering any other software I author(ed). Finally, you'll also have
the satisfaction of knowing that you're helping to support the
availability of inexpensive software. At $10 (US), that isn't asking
for too much.
Of course, if you believe Newspaper to be worth more than $10, I won't
stop you from sending in a higher amount! <grin>
Please make your check payable to GEORGE SILBERSTERN, and mail it to
the following address:
George Silberstern
1 Makefield Road #E-184
Morrisville, Pa 19067
Don't forget to also include the Order Form that appears at the end of
this manual!
Newspaper v1.1 Page ii
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Finding the Author
If you need to get in touch with me directly, you may call my system,
NETRef BBS at 215/736-1889. You can connect at 300-14400 Bps (USR DS).
Once your account has been validated (done online), you will be able to
leave me a message. If you have access to Fidonet, you can send a
Netmail message to me at 1:273/214. If you have a problem running
Newspaper, please be specific about it in your message and leave a
means to contact you. I will get in touch just as soon as I'm able to.
If you call my BBS and wish to find the latest release of this, or any
other software I have written for public release, they can be found in
the File Area #1, "SOFTWARE AUTHORED BY THE SYSOP", off the Main Board.
If you have access to a FidoNet site, you can always File Request the
program from 1:273/214. A complete list of files available online is
always available using the Magic Name, FILES.
Page iii Newspaper v1.1
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Warranty and Copyright Information
The author of this program shall not be held responsible
or accountable, under any circumstance, for the behavior
or performance of the program. Furthermore, neither the
author, or any party given permission to distribute this
program, shall be held liable or responsible for damages
incurred, including the incidental or consequential loss
of data, equipment or income, that may result from usage
or inability to use this program. This also implies any
data rendered inaccurate, and/or loss sustained by third
parties. These terms apply in all cases and situations,
even if the author has been advised of the possibilities
of such damages, or for any claims by any other parties.
All the programs, products, and features thereof, that are mentioned in
this documentation, are copyrighted and/or trademarked by their
respective owners and authors. Please refer to the documentation of
each product to determine the actual copyright and/or trademark
owner(s). Errors, or omissions are unintentional.
Beta Testing Information
Interested in being a Beta Tester? The author is looking for up to
five (5) SysOps who would like to offer their systems as Beta Test
sites for his utilities. The basic requirements are that you must run
PCBoard v15, and that you keep a record of any problems or anomalies
you experience. For more information, leave a comment on the author's
BBS, or if you're a Fido site, send Netmail to the author (see the
section "FINDING THE AUTHOR" elsewhere in this manual for contact
information).
Notes of Appreciation
A special "Thank You" goes to the following SysOps for registering
Newspaper:
Bob French EARNET BBS 407/380-9626
John Cheever Mr. C's BBS 619/446-4452
James Morris The BreadBoard II 206/881-5927
Newspaper v1.1 Page iv
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
About the Author
George Silberstern was born and raised in Quito, Ecuador (South
America). He took a passing interest in Computer Science while in High
School. Computers became his hobby (ie. vice) while in College, where
he majored in Communications and Foreign Languages, and during his
Freshman year, in 1984, discovered Telecomputing and started his first
BBS. George has also taught himself several Computer programming
languages. In 1987, George began consulting on a freelance basis,
primarily developing custom database applications using Clipper.
In 1990, he started NETRef BBS, in order to provide product support for
his clients, and as a place where users can obtain help with hardware
and software problems. In 1991, NETRef BBS became a member of FidoNet,
and shortly thereafter became the first United States support site
for FidoPCB, a Fido to PCBoard Message format converter originating in
Europe.
Page v Newspaper v1.1
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Other Programs
The following programs written by the author, have been released as
Shareware, and can be found on Bulletin Boards around the world. They
can also be found on the author's own BBS:
AutoClip - Automates editing, compiling and debugging of
applications written with Clipper's Summer '87 release
NetSend - A Mail Transfer script for use in message exchanges via
Mark Findlay's NETMAIL Echo Net manager for PCBoard v14.5
or earlier. Allows Nodes to do unattended Mail transfers
using Procomm Plus.
Cntax - A Syntax Checker for C/C++ Source Code. Checks for
matching Grouping Symbols and Quote Mark pairs. Works
with any flavor of C and C++. Current release: v3.0
Enviro - The DOS Environment Inspector. Displays allocation and
usage information on the DOS environment buffer, as well
as its content. Ideal for assisting in the tracking down
what is lost due to the DOS "Out of Environment Space"
Error message, and/or for identifying unnecessary data in
the buffer. Current release: v3.0
R.A.T.S. - Short for Recorded media Archive Tracking System, this is
a powerful database system that keeps track of all
recorded media in your library, including Records, Tapes,
CD's and Videocassettes. Entries have both brief and
extended description capabilities. An integrated
reporting system is included. Current release: 3.10
FPBlt - A Mail Traffic Summary bulletin generator for use with
the FidoPCB Mail Tossing software by Matjaz Koce, and
PCBoard v14.5 or later. Current release: v1.0
Newspaper v1.1 Page 2
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
I] - Introduction to Newspaper
Newspaper is, in simple terms, a News File display utility for use by
SySops running PCBoard v15.1 or later. Unlike most other News File
generators available today, Newspaper is very easy to set up and run.
Preparation consists of editing the Configuration File, configuring
PCBoard to execute the PPE, Creating the text file that will be
displayed by the PPE, and a dummy file to handle non-commandline
situations. In short, reading this Users Manual is a more involved
than getting the PPE up and running is. But don't take that as an
excuse not to read this thoroughly at least once...
The Newspaper utility was created using Clark Development's PPLC
Compiler, and this is the reason why it will not work with either
versions of PCBoard prior to v15.1, or BBS software other than PCBoard.
Page 3 Newspaper v1.1
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II] - Release Notes
Newspaper is being released as Shareware. In its unregistered format,
the program has the same functional capabilities as its registered
counterpart, but there are a few behavioral differences between them.
Quite simply, the unregistered version of Newspaper will display the
news file in one color only, regardless of the parameters contained in
the configuration file. In addition, a "beg" message is displayed with
an extended pause at the end of the program, and the number of lines
per screenful is hard coded.
The registered version of Newspaper eliminates the "beg" message and
its associated delay, will base the screen size based on the setting of
each individual user's Page Length setting, and has the ability to
display the news file with colors defined by the SysOp.
Registration also entitles you to future upgrades of Newspaper, with
all of its features enabled, because any features that may be added
down the line, will not be accessible to unregistered users. But
enough with the hoopla! A registered version of Newspaper can be yours
for a mere $5.00 (US). Yes, you read correctly: Five US Dollars, and
you're the proud owner of a copy of Newspaper for life!
Newspaper v1.1 Page 4
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III] - Installing Newspaper
a) Requirements: As stated, you need to be running PCBoard v15. You
will also need a Text File Editor such as QEdit, PCWrite, or EDLIN
(urgle). Finally, you need to decide where the PPE files will be
stored and executed from.
b) Preparation (PPE): Copy the NEWSPPER.PPE and NEWSPPER.INI files
into the directory of your choice (where you park all your PPE's is
fine too). Next, with your Text Editor, edit the NEWSPPER.INI
file. It contains four lines, as follows:
° 1] Name to display as part of the Registration message
2] Must be all zeroes (0) -sixteen in all- or contain the
validation key provided by the author
3] The full path and name of the file to be displayed
° 4] The base Color Set used to display the file. It is also
used to draw the borders of each screen. This color
code must be a valid PCBoard @X color macro
° 5] The secondary color set used in displaying the file. It
is used as an alternate color for displaying News File
text on each screenful. This color code must be a valid
PCBoard @X color macro
° 6] The border trim used on the left side of the News File,
on lines adjoining the 'page separator' lines
° 7] The border trim used on the left side of the News File,
on all other lines
° 8] The border trim used on the right side of the News File,
on lines adjoining the 'page separator' lines
° 9] The border trim used on the right side of the News File,
on all other lines
° 10] The Leftmost character of the Dividing Line (1 char limit)
° 11] The Rightmost character of the Dividing Line (1 char limit)
° 12] The Character used to make up the Inner part of the Dividing
line (1 char limit)
13] Clear Screen Flag. If set to "Y" (no quotes), the screen
will be cleared first. The default is no screen clearing
° Enabled in the Registered version only
c) Preparation (PCBoard): To make Newspaper work, you need to load
PCBSetup. Choose Main Menu option B (File Locations), and from this
submenu, select option B (Configuration Files). Highlight the line
identified as "Name/Loc of Default CMD.LST" and press <F2>.
Page 5 Newspaper v1.1
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- Enter 'NEWS' in the Commands column (sans quotes)
- Enter the security level of your choice in the
Security column
- Enter the drive, path and PPE name (plus extension)
in the PPE/MNU File column
- Save the modified CMD.LST file
The above will take care of those instances where a user on the BBS
enters the NEWS command to view the file you specified in the
configuration file. But this doesn't cover those situations where
PCBoard displays the file of its own volition. This is where the
dummy file that was mentioned previously comes in.
As you know, every conference has an option that defines the name
and location of the News File. PCBoard does not permit you to
replace this information with a PPE execution command. If you
specify the text file used by the PPE, it will be displayed as-is.
Therefore, enter the name of a Dummy file. This Dummy file can
contain any text you want, but at the very least, must have a single
line that invokes the PPE. It can also include leading and/or
trailing text for display prior to, or after running the PPE. The
required line has to be structured as follows:
!<ppe-pathspec>\<ppe-filename>.PPE
The ".PPE" extension is mandatory, as is the initial "!". This file
and the path to it, are what must be specified in the aforementioned
News File Name/Path field in the configuration screen for each
conference.
d) Caveats: There are two items that require special attention at this
point, because they relate to how Newspaper performs.
- Any text preceeding or following the invocation of the PPE in
automatic mode will only be displayed in this situation. This
text will not be displayed when a user issues the NEWS command,
because it goes straight to the PPE. At this point it is
something that cannot be changed.
- The Configuration File naming convention is hard coded to use the
PPE filename as a prefix, and an INI extension. Anything else
will cause an error when running the PPE. This is something that
may be altered in a future release
This completes the installation of Newspaper on your BBS system. All
that remains to be done, is to write your news message.
Newspaper v1.1 Page 6
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
IV] - Writing the News File
Installing and using Newspaper does you no good unless you have a file
for it to display. This section of the manual is meant to guide you in
creating the input file that will be displayed by Newspaper.
To create the input file, you should use an ASCII text editor. In
theory, you can also use a program like WordPerfect or Word, but if you
do this, you need to remember that the file must be saved as ASCII
text, and that the text has to be Left Justified to Column one.
If you're in real dire straits and use EDLIN to write the file, the
author feels sorry for you. Seriously, if you do wind up using EDLIN
you have to be even more careful to keep the lines to the 66 character
maximum, as it offers absolutely no control over margins. A Text
Editor goes a long way toward keeping your text within this limitation,
and is worth considering, especially when you take into account that
many are Shareware, or even Freeware.
Whichever program or utility you use to write the input file, you
should be aware that the maximum useable width of each line, is 66
(sixty six) characters. Any characters after the 66th column position
will be ignored. The only exception to this rule applies when @X macro
codes are detected, they will be stripped out before Newspaper extracts
the 66 character block. Save the file to the name and location
specified in the Configuration file. You're now set to go.
Page 7 Newspaper v1.1
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V] - How it all works
Since this is the author's first attempt at writing a PPE, and was
written cold turkey, a description of its operation follows. This is
meant to illustrate how easy it is to create a PPE.
The first thing Newspaper does after loading, is test if the
Configuration file exists. If it can't be found, an error message will
be displayed and execution ends. The same procedure applies when
Newspaper looks for the Input file, because in both instances, the PPE
won't be able to run correctly. These errors are written to the Log
file.
Next, the PPE will determine the Page Size as set in the caller's
account configuration, the color scheme, and adapt the number of lines
in the page size (Newspaper relies on an even number of lines per
screen). Other determinations are made at this time as well, and some
of these apply to the Registered version only.
The actual processing by the PPE begins by building those strings which
are used by the PPE without modifications. It also checks the input
file to determine its length. At this point, Newspaper begins creating
the formatted News File. This is a continuous loop which begins with a
fixed header. After the header, the input file is read, line by line,
tested for @X codes (which get stripped) and length (again, up to 66
characters), before being formatted, on the fly, for output. If a line
is found to be less than 66 characters, it is filled with blanks
automatically.
This cycle continues until the maximum number of lines per screen is
reached, and a fixed footer is inserted. Finally the user is given a
MORE prompt, at which s/he can eithe continue viewing the file, or
cancel the display. If the user chooses to view the entire file, the
entire process repeats itself until the entire input file has been
read, and displayed in formatted mode to the caller.
Upon completion, control is passed right back to PCBoard, except if
your copy of Newspaper is not registered. Unregistered versions will
advertise themselves as such, and pause briefly before passing control
to the BBS. Execution is recorded in the Caller Log.
Newspaper v1.1 Page 8
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VI] - Error Messages
Any serious Errors are not only displayed to the caller, but also
recorded in the Caller Log. Newspaper can record the following errors
if they are detected:
ERROR: [1] Unable to read <filename>
Displayed if Newspaper cannot locate <filename>. This would be
if the file doesn't exist, is not in the specified directory,
or isn't identified with the specified name.
ERROR: [2] Unable to open <filename>
Displayed when PCBoard cannot open one of the files used by the
PPE. This could happen in a multiuser environment, if more than
one Node tries to access the same file at exactly the same time,
or in similar situations.
Page 9 Newspaper v1.1
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
USER NOTES:
NEWSPAPER v1.1 - PCBoard News File Utility
Order Form
MAIL TO:
George Silberstern
1 Makefield Rd #E-184
Morrisville, Pa 19067-5011
Your Name: _______________________________________________
Address (1): _______________________________________________
Address (2): _______________________________________________
City/State/Zip: _______________________________________________
Home Phone: _________________________________
BBS Name: _______________________________________________
(Exactly as it appears in the PCBOARD.DAT file)
(Please use mixed case if applicable!!)
BBS Phone: _________________________________
(Main Public Access Number)
Ammount enclosed: $________________
Checks or Money Orders should be drawn on United States funds
exclusively, and be made payable to GEORGE SILBERSTERN. Foreign
checks should be drawn on a United States branch or bank, or
include a $10 handling surcharge. Do NOT send cash!
INCOMPLETE ORDERS CANNOT BE PROCESSED AND WILL BE RETURNED
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For Office Use Only!
RDate: ________ Key Code: _____________________ SDate: ________
_____________________