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Text File | 1993-01-21 | 31KB | 849 lines

░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ░┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐░░░░ ░│ ╔═════════╗ ██ ██ ██████ █████▄ ▄████▄ ▄██▄ ╔═════════╗ ├┐ ░░ ░│ ║News and ║ ████ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ████ ║News and ║ │├┐ ░ ░│ ║Bulletin ║ ██ ██ █████ ██████ ████ ║Bulletin ║ │││ ░ ░│ ║Generator║ ████ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ▀▀ ║Generator║ │││ ░ ░│ ║ v3.0 ║ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ██ ▄▄ ║ v3.0 ║ │││ ░ ░│ ╚═════════╝ ╚═════════╝ │││ ░ ░├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤││ ░ ░│ Copyright (c) 1993 BDSoft/PbP Productions All Rights Reserved │││ ░ ░├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤││ ░ ░└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ ░ ░░░ ░ ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ (This document is formatted for printing) DISCLAIMER: ---------- BDSoft nor any of its assigns are in no way responsible nor can be held liable for any consequences incurred as a result of the usage of this program. BDSoft offers no warranty, expressed or implied, for this program. The user assumes all responsibility. ABOUT XTRA! v3.0: ---------------- XTRA! is a utility for Bulletin Board Systems to create bulletins or news displays. It is totally self contained, meaning the text file to use in the display is created within the program itself by the user. XTRA! can create both ansi and ascii displays, and offers the user choice of colors when producing an ansi display. XTRA! v3.0 now offers command line options. The previous versions only allowed the user to enter the text while in the editor screen. With the development of version 3.0, options can be entered on the command line which will allow the user to create files longer than 10 (text) lines. These will be discussed later. DISTRIBUTION AND REGISTRATION INFORMATION: ----------------------------------------- You are free to distribute XTRA! to anyone as long as no files are removed from the package, and no file or files is(are) modified or tampered with in any way. You are encouraged to upload XTRA! to BBS's or make copies for friends. ii You are granted a 30 day trial period to evaluate XTRA! After this trial period, should you decide to continue using the program, you must register it or discontinue its use. Registration is $7.50 U.S., plus $2.50 S&H if you would like a disk mailed to you, and entitles you to free upgrades to future versions. Please support and promote the shareware concept by registering your copy! If you would like your registered copy available for download, you may receive it from : The Old Poop's World Bbs (214)-613-6900 Dallas, Tx. after payment has been received. Even if you don't call to register, just call! You will LOVE Dallas' BEST BBS! And tell The Old Poop Brent sent ya! See REGISTER.DOC for more information on how to register your copy! ************************ NOTE ************************** If your BBS type is not currently supported and you would like it to be, there is a section of the registration form where you can supply all of the necessary information to have your BBS type added to the data. ************************ NOTE ************************** I would appreciate the reports of any bugs or problems found in XTRA!. It has been tested under MS-DOS 5.0 and DRDOS 6.0. If any errors are incurred please note where you were in the program and what you were doing. If you encounter any run-time errors, please write down the error message (it will be in the form Run-time error at XXXX:XXXX). There is a section on the registration form for Bug Reports. Thanks! iii CONTENTS -------- Introduction........................................i Disclaimer..........................................i Registration........................................i How it Works........................................1 Registration........................................i CONFIGURATION.......................................1 Active Keys...................................1 BBS Type......................................2 Default Screens...............................2 Display Files Path............................2 Control Codes.................................2 Clear Screen........................2 Disable Abort.......................2 Disable More........................2 More Prompt.........................2 CHOOSE COLORS.......................................3 Active Keys...................................3 Using.........................................3 CREATE SCREENS......................................4 Setting Attributes............................4 Selecting Box Types...........................4 Centering Subject.............................5 Selecting Screens.............................5 Setting Colors................................6 Append Option.................................6 Editing Environment...........................6 Active Keys.........................6 Entering Text.......................7 Flash Feature.......................8 COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS.............................8 Syntax........................................8 Switches......................................10 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS....................................10 Page 1 HOW IT WORKS: ------------ To begin XTRA!, simply type 'XTRA3'. The BDSoft/PbP Logo screen will be presented. Pressing the return key will take you to the opening screen. Press any key to access the Main Menu. The Up and Down arrow keys move the highlight bar. Move the bar to the desired function and press the return key. The options presented are Create Screens, Choose Colors, and Configure XTRA!. CONFIGURE XTRA! FUNCTION (Main Menu): ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Selecting this option will take you to the config- uration screen. If a config file has not been found, a warning message will appear while at the main menu. In the configuration screen, you are presented with eight(8) configuration variables : BBS Type : Default ANSI Screen : Default ASCII Screen : Display Files Path : Clear Screen : Disable Abort : Disable More : More Prompt : The following keys are active while in the configuration menu: Left, Right Arrow keys : Change option ENTER : Accept Option, move to next ESCape : Exit Configuration and Save BBS Type: -------- The type of BBS Software you are operating. XTRA! defaults to NONE. To change this, press the left or right arrow keys. XTRA! currently supports EzyCom, PcBoard, QuickBBS, Remote Access, Renegade, Spitfire, SuperBBS, TriBBS, UltraBBS, Wildcat!, and WWIV. It is important that you set this as this tells XTRA! Page 2 what control codes it is to use when creating the display screens. If your BBS type is not currently supported, simply select NONE as XTRA! will nullify all control codes. Default Ansi & Ascii Screen: --------------------------- You will notice that as the BBS type changes, the default Ansi and Ascii screens change also. The screens have been selected as the default screens as they are usually the display screens shown to all callers at logon or after the logon process. You may change these screens by pressing the left or right arrow keys. After pressing one of these keys, a cursor will appear and you may then enter the name of the default file you wish to use, followed by the ENTER key. Display Files Path: ------------------ This is the path to where the BBS software reads the display files. XTRA! will automatically use the current directory for this path. You may change this path by pressing the left or right arrow keys. After you have pressed one of these keys, a cursor will appear, and you may enter the path you wish to use. You do not have to place a backslash "\" after the pathname as XTRA! will add one for you. Clear Screen: ------------ When set to "On", XTRA! will place the particular code your BBS uses to clear the screen in the display file created. XTRA! defaults to "Off". To change this, simply press the Right arrow key to toggle it "On". The Left arrow key toggles it "Off". Disable Abort: ------------- When set to "On", disables the caller's ability to break out of the display. Disable More: ------------ When set to "On", disables the more prompt. Most BBS types, after reading so many lines of a file, automatic- ally place a [MORE] prompt, interrupting the display. This will disable that when set to "On". Page 3 More Prompt: ----------- When set to "On", places the code for the [MORE] prompt at the end of the file. When using the configuration editor, you may exit and save your configuration at any time (except while entering default Ansi/Ascii and Display Path information) by pressing the ESCape key. You may change any particular option at any time, such as default screens or display path without affecting the rest of your configuration. The only option that affects a part of the rest of the configuration is the BBS type. As you select a different type of BBS, the default Ansi and Ascii screens change. CHOOSE COLORS (Main Menu): ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This option will set the default colors in the configuration file that XTRA! will use when used on the command line. The four option presented are: Text Color (Default : Bright White) Subject Color (Default : Bright White) Border Color (Default : Bright White) Background Color (Default : Black) A miniature display screen is presented to the right with these four components. As with the Configuration Menu, these keys are active: Left, Right Arrow keys : Change option ENTER : Accept Option, move to next ESCape : Exit Configuration and Save As you change a components color, its representation in the miniature screen to the right will change to reflect your color choice. Page 4 CREATE SCREENS (Main Menu): ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Selecting this option will take you to the setup screen for the editing mode. In this screen you are presented with six (6) options: FROM: ---- This allows you to choose how the top line of the display screen is to read. XTRA! will add what you enter to the line: XTRA! XTRA! from <from who> 'XTRA!' will be blinking in the Ansi display screen. If you simply press ENTER, XTRA! will default to SYSOP. TOPIC: ----- This should be what the news or bulletin is about. If you simply press ENTER, XTRA! will default to GENERAL. Box Text?: --------- This option, if you have entered 'Y', will allow you to select the type of box to use when creating the display screen. If XTRA! v3.0 is not registered, you are limited to boxtypes 1 and 2 only. Pressing ENTER alone will default to 'No'. This will create this type of screen: XTRA! XTRA! from SYSOP ╔═════════╗ ║ General ║ ╚═════════╝ 01-01-1993 ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ XTRA! v3.0 (C) 1993 BDSoft Registered To: UNREGISTERED Page 5 Or if you have selected 'Y' : XTRA! XTRA! from SYSOP ╔═════════╗ ║ General ║ ╚═════════╝ 01-01-1993 ╔═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗ ║ ║ ║ Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ║ ║ xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. ║ ║ ║ ╚═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ XTRA! v3.0 (C) 1993 BDSoft Registered To: UNREGISTERED Regardless if you have selected to box the text or not, the subject will always be boxed. Center Subject?: --------------- If you enter 'Y' here, the subject will be centered over the text. XTRA! XTRA! from SYSOP ╔═════════╗ ║ General ║ ╚═════════╝ 01-01-1993 ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. ════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ XTRA! v3.0 (C) 1993 BDSoft Registered To: UNREGISTERED Note that the center subject option is independent of the box option. ANSI & ASCII Display Screen: --------------------------- Here you would enter, including full path (if different from current path), first the Ansi filename to be created, then the Ascii filename to be created. Page 6 XTRA! will read the configuration file and add the default display files path to the display file name. You must enter the full path and filename if you wish to use a directory other than the default. SELECTING COLORS: ---------------- Next, you will be presented (on the same screen) a list of colors you may use for the display screens. Here you may select, by entering the number that corresponds with the color, what color the Text, Subject, Border, and Background will be. If you press ENTER alone, all except the background color will default to bright white (background is black). When entering numbers, after a single digit number (1-9), you need to press the return key. Two-digit numbers (10-15) do not need a key pressed afterwards. After the second number is entered, it will automatically advance. Numbers entered outside the range 1-15 will result in bright white for Text, Subject, or Color, and Black for background. APPEND OPTION: ------------- After the colors have been selected, XTRA! will search for both the Ansi and the Ascii file you have entered. If either file is found, a message stating this will appear and ask you if you want to append the file. Select 'Y' for yes, 'N' for no. Note that the two files are independent of each other. For example, if there is already a file named NEWS.ANS, but not one named NEWS.ASC, then only a message for NEWS.ANS will be displayed. In this way it is possible to append one file while at the same time creating the other. When files are appended, the most current news is placed at the beginning of the file. Note that if you do not select to append the files that they will be erased and new ones created. EDITING ENVIRONMENT: ------------------- Next, you will be taken to the editing or text entering environment. You have available a 10 row by 70 column (characters) wide field. The following keys are active : ESCape : Abort files and leave editor ENTER : Accept line of text entered and advance one line CTRL-S : Save files and leave editor Page 7 CTRL-D : Delete current line (returns cursor to beginning of line) CTRL-F : Enable (begin) Flashing Letters CTRL-E : Disable (end) Flashing Letters CTRL-C : Change Function Key Character Set Function Keys 1-10 : Special characters to use for drawing, etc. (Such as ╔,╗,╚,╝,═,║, etc.) The set type can be changed with CTRL-C. The text editor also has wordwrapping ability. Note: The Flash Feature and ability to change Fkey Sets are available only in the Registered version. Entering Text: ------------- When the editing screen is presented, it will represent the finished product according to the type of box and colors you have selected. In the top right-hand corner will be a miniature of the finished product representing your selected layout. The miniature will have the background color you have chosen, while the editing screen will always have a black background (for ease of text entering and viewing). Please note that this editor is not full featured, meaning that it does not have and cannot perform all the functions of a basic text editor. This is due to the Flash feature. XTRA! writes your file one line at a time as you go, inserting the necessary codes to enable\disable flashing, thus making it impossible to estimate how many times a user will enable\disable this feature. The text entering screen is continually being worked on to easier facilitate this process, and hopefully in the next version will contain a "full featured" text editor, allowing you to edit lines, etc. (This is one reason why the command line parameters have been added to this version). Once you have completed entering your text, press CTRL-S to save and exit. You may exit without disabling the flash feature or pressing ENTER after the last line. In fact, it is best not to press enter after the last line as XTRA! uses a blank line to separate the top and bottom of the border from the text automatically. Pressing ENTER will create an extra blank line. This, however, is up to you and how you prefer your display to look. If you have selected to Append the files, then the files will also be appended at this time. Page 8 Pressing ESCape at anytime during the text entering screen will abort the files and return you to the Main Menu. If you have selected to Append the files, then the original files will not be erased. If not, then the files will be erased. A NOTE ABOUT THE FLASH FEATURE: ------------------------------ While the flash feature is activated, or has been used on the current line, the wordwrapping feature is disabled. Any key press while at the end of the current line will result in a beep until the ENTER key is pressed, where the cursor will advance to the next line. If the flash feature is active, then the text entered on the next line will flash until CTRL-E is pressed. Again, this is due to the impossibility of estimating how many times the flash feature will be enabled\ disabled, thus not allowing XTRA! to properly adjust the line of text. Also, if the flash is active do not backspace PAST the beginning of the flashing text. For example if you entered ... Now is the time fer all good men to come to the aid of.... and the words 'all......aid' were flashing, you would not back up to 'fer' to correct it as this would not be properly done due to the control codes for the flash feature. You will have to use CTRL-D to delete the line and begin again. Backspacing UP TO the first letter of the word, then pressing CTRL-E to end the flashing will have the same effect. In other words, once you have used the flash feature on a line, you can only delete the line and start over if you need to correct any text that occurs before the flashing sequence. Any text occurring AFTER the flashing sequence can be treated as normal. Hopefully, an improvement on this will be in the next version. USING THE COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ With this version of XTRA!, command line parameters have been added for those who wish to create a file with more than ten (10) lines of text. All features, except the flash feature, are available. Also included is a paginating option for long text files. The command line syntax is : XTRA3 [ASCII sourcefile] [ANSI file] [ASCII file] <switches> Note: The parameters MUST ALWAYS be at least the sourcefile followed Page 9 by the Ansi and Ascii files to be created, or an error will generate. Here you must use full path\filenames if the files are located or are to be created in a directory different from the current one. The only information XTRA! will read from your configuration file is the color setup and control codes. If no configuration file is found, then an error message will display and defaults will be used. These are bright white for Text, Subject, and Border, and black for Background. The default files are NEWS.ANS and NEWS.ASC. These switches are available and can be in any order. Case is not important: A : append files C : center subject P : paginate long files 1-7 : box type to use (only types 1 and 2 if not Registered) ? : display help screen BOXES : display box types available If you do not wish to use a switch, simply omit it! Switch A: -------- Tells XTRA! to Append the files. If the file does not exist, XTRA! will then create the file as normal. Switch C: -------- Tells XTRA! to center the subject. Switch P: -------- Tells XTRA! to Paginate long files. Most BBSes will display a [MORE] prompt after so many lines of text. What this switch does is paginate a long file so that it is shown a page at a time. The [MORE] prompt is displayed after each page, and when the caller presses a key, the screen is cleared and the next page shown and so on until the end. Appended files that were not previously paginated will not be affected, only the current file. This feature was added for those who do not like a long file to scroll across the screen, being interrupted by the BBS's [MORE] prompt. HINT: ---- If you DO wish to have a long file scroll and the BBS to insert the [MORE] prompt, simply disable the Disable More code in your config file, and omit the P parameter. Page 10 Switch ?: -------- This switch will display a help screen showing command line syntax. Ex. XTRA3 ? Switch BOXES: ------------ This switch will display the numbers for the available box types. Ex. XTRA3 BOXES You must separate each parameter by ONE space. XTRA3 recognizes up to seven (7) parameters (including sourcefile and Ansi/Ascii files). Any number beyond this and XTRA3 will run in editing mode. Using A Separate Text File: -------------------------- When using the command line parameters, the text file you use must have the following two conditions met: 1) The VERY first line of the text file is the subject, no more than 35 characters long. DO NOT start the file with a blank line, as this will be used for the subject! 2) The lines of text should be no more than 70 characters in in length. XTRA! will truncate the line to 70 characters if it is longer. Note that the entire file should start at position 1, meaning that the file should all be left justified to position 1. If you wish any lines centered, keep in mind that your range is from 1-70, not 1-80 as a normal line. Therefore, to calculate how far to indent the line: 35 - [(length of line) / 2] = position to start line Example: News of the Day <----- VERY FIRST line of file In today's news......... <----- ........................ <----- rest of text file ........................ <----- That's about it! I hope you enjoy XTRA! v3.0 and find it useful! Special thanks to Sonny Grissom of The Old Poop's World for all of the support! P.S. Please register! All monies help me to get my BBS up and running! (Almost there!) Thanks to all who have registered, you've helped me get one step closer!