0 ┤ ⌡" ε& ú) Ω* ┐. 3 ≈6 │9 S< v> Press the appropriate letter for help on one of these topics ... a) This list b) Function keys (also Ctrl-F1) c) Editing keys d) Searching and replacing text e) Deleting, moving and saving blocks f) Printing -- the basics g) Printing -- the margins h) Printing -- headers, footers and linked files i) Printing -- underlining & text codes j) Finding the bottom of the page k) Saving your work l) Calling up a file on disk m) DOS features: Directory, Long Directory, Rename, Delete n) Printing with Epson codes o) Using printer formats p) Help with help q) The Special Functions Menu r) Using the swap screen s) About ABZ FUNCTION KEY HELP Here is a list of the uses of function keys, alone or with (C)ontrol, (A)lt or (S)hift: ╞▒: Help ├¡╞▒: Function keys help ┴¡╞▒: Special funct. menu ╞▓: Enter search ├¡╞▓: Enter replace ┴¡╞▓: Toggle case in search ╞│: Search ├¡╞│: Search/Replace ┴¡╞│: Replace 1 by 1 ╞┤: Cut S/W/P ├¡╞┤: Mark, Mark & cut ┴¡╞┤: Block options ╞╡: Paste ├¡╞╡: Kill buffer ┴¡╞╡: View paste buffer ╞╢: Print ├¡╞╢: Print to screen ┴¡╞╢: Print alternatives ╞╖: Rename file ├¡╞╖: Erase file ┴¡╞╖: Clear screen ╞╕: Dir ├¡╞╕: Long directory ┴¡╞╕: Change directory ╞╣: Load file ├¡╞╣: Insert file ┴¡╞╣: Quit program ╞▒░: Save file ├¡╞▒░: Save with same name ┴¡╞▒░: Save buffer to disk ╞▒▒: Swap screen EDIT KEY HELP Arrow keys move the cursor one character or line at a time. PageUp, Pagedown move text by screenfuls. If the cursor is too slow and you have a programmable keyboard (AT and later), use Superkey from the Alt-F1 keyboard. Here are the other combinations with (C-)ontrol, (A-)lt and (S-)hift for moving the cursor and editing text: Home: Top of screen/top of file End: End of screen/End of file C-left: Prev word A-left: Left end of line C-right: Next word A-right: Right end of line C-PgUp: Prev Para A-PgUp: Prev. Sentence C-PgDn: Next Para A-PgDn: Next Sentence C-backspace: Delete word to left A-F7: Clear screen C-delete: Delete word to right A-delete: Delete paragraph* Esc: Exit most features. S-Esc: Search for printer code In text, make printer code Tab: Insert X spaces (default is 5) S-Enter: End paragraph & indent C-Tab: Set new tab size (X) next line Control + letter keys: C-a: Swap case. C-x: Swap character with one beside it. C-y: Delete line. C-S-y: Retrieve last deleted line. SEARCH & REPLACE HELP How to search and replace text: Searching: Auto search and replace Press F2. If you have already entered search Enter up to 20 characters and replace phrases, press C-F3, to search for. Press enter. then Enter twice to accept them. Press F3. Or press C-F3 and enter new phrases. Replacing one by one: Press C-F3 Enter up to 20 characters to replace. Press enter Press Alt-F3 -- Clear away a previous search/replace entry with A-F7 or C-backspace -- Search for "Enter" character by entering S-enter. -- Search for "escape" or printer character by entering S-Esc, then typing the printer code letter next after the + symbol that appears. -- Stop search/replace by pressing Esc. -- Search will find both capitals and lower-case letters. To search for particular capitalizations, press A-F2 DELETING, MOVING AND SAVING "BLOCKS" OF TEXT F4 Gives you the options of cutting a word, a sentence, or a paragraph at a time. Press W, S or P, depending on which you want. -- The "Cut" may be made either forward or backward from the cursor. -- The cut text is normally removed from the screen and the text is stored at the top of the paste buffer for later retrieval. A-F4 Allows changing these defaults. Not clearing the text from the buffer allows assembling blocks of text to save or move in a new order. Not clearing it from the screen lets you copy to 2nd screen without altering original text. The settings will remain in force until you change them again. C-F4 Mark the beginning and end of any section of text to be cut, instead of a word, sentence or paragraph. (It's faster). F5 Replaces the cut or copied text wherever you want to move it. C-F5 Clears the cut text from the buffer. A-F5 Displays the buffer. A-F10 Saves the cut/paste buffer to disk. Enter a filename at the prompt. PRINTING BASICS F6 Prints the document. C-F6 Prints it to the screen. A-F6 Allows selecting a different destination. Alternatives are (S)creen, (C)om1:, (D)isk file, and (L)pt2: -- S (Screen) is useful to check formatting (same as C-F6). -- C (Com1:) is used with serial printers and possibly modem transfers. Only Com1: is supported. -- D (Disk) creates a file as a printer would see it. Use this option to reformat a file for line-oriented word processors and bulletin boards. -- L (Lpt2:) selects a 2nd printer attached to LPT2: BASIC FORMATTING COMMANDS IN ABZ, WITH (DEFAULT) ∞xx Left margin (10) φ Right margin release (off) ≥xx Right margin (70) ≈ Page wait for cut sheets (off) ⌠xx top (0) ε Print flush-left (on) Γxx bottom line (58) σ Print flush right (off) ≡xx Page length (66) π Print centered (off) °xx Page width for centering (80) Ω Print justified (off) ≤x Space lines (1) See `Printing with Epson codes:' · Force a page break ∩ Formfeeds toggle (on) δ Linefeeds toggle (off) ß Toggle Epson underline (on) ≥xx may not exceed °xx: 12-pitch printing must set both ≥96 and °96. δ ends double spacing with printer that adds linefeeds on its own. Example ∞6≥88°96⌠5Γ56≈ ... Elite printing w/ 1/2 inch side margins on cut sheets. Note: you must also use printer command to select elite. ∞0≥75⌠0Γ0≡0∩ ... format text with line endings and no page breaks for transfer to BBS or some other word processors. -- Commands remain in effect until you change them. Clear them using the A-F1 menu. When you start ABZ again, the defaults will be restored. -- See also PRINTING WITH FORMATS. HEADERS, FOOTERS AND LINKED FILES Headers and footers appear on every page after they are defined in text. Use with formatting commands to print center, left or right. Press ┼≤π first. µ defines one-line footer. Prints after 1 blank line at end of page. Φ defines one-line header. To define at top, but start on Pge. 2, put 1 carriage return above definition. τ Goto next file. Accepts drive/directory names with filename. New files are printed from the top. The text on screen isn't saved. (See PRINTING WITH FORMATS below) ú Prints page number. Useful in footers. └xx Set page number if not 1 ┐xx Skip over pages. Processes file until required number is reached before printing anything. Screwy things may happen to formatting, tho. Examples: ΦπZicari/ú Centered header with page number. τ\letters\boilrplt adds "boilerplt" to letter. CHARACTER & TEXT CODES ⌡ Turns underlining on and off. See PRINTING WITH EPSON CODES. Θ begins non-printed notes in text. Notes must end with Enter. User-defined printer commands: -- Escape and capital letters may be used for control commands for printers. Press Esc, then a capital letter, then add = (equals) and up to 5 letters or numbers as described below. Numbers must be in the range 0 to 255. For example: (esc)E=27 sets ┼ to the ASCII value for Escape, 27. -- Enter up to 5 codes. Commas must separate numbers. Put letters in quotes: ┼=27,"M" sets E to (Escape)M ┼=27,"D",10,15,0 sets E to (escape)D10150 (sets tabs on Epson printer) -- Some Epson commands are predefined. If your printer doesn't recognize them, define the ones your printer needs. See `PRINTING WITH EPSON CODES.' -- Printer codes do not affect the layout of text. You will need to adjust margins when using extra-wide or small text. -- Printer codes remain in effect as long as you are using ABZ. Clear them by way of the A-F1 menu. TIPS ON FINDING THE BOTTOM Many people find their printer runs out of paper before the computer runs out of text or vice versa. ⌠ sets the number of the top line and Γ sets the number of lines to print before going to the next page. Most printers recognize the form-feed command to skip to the next page. If you cancel formfeeds with ∩, you must define the page length with ≡ to eject pages from the printer properly. Some laser printers use form-feed as the signal to start printing. Don't use ∩ with such laser printers If you use single-sheet paper, you may find your printer will not grip the paper adequately to print near the bottom or that it stops printing before the bottom. The only recourse you have is to set Γ to a number that WILL print. Use the · command to force text onto the next page if you don't want a paragraph broken. Headers print with 2 blank lines above the text. The top margin is inserted first. Footers print after 1 blank line under the bottom line set by Γ. SAVING YOUR WORK F10 Checks the filename with you and saves what's on the screen. If the name is already in use on the disk, the previous file will be renamed with the extension .BAK. C-F10 Saves the current file without checking the filename. A-F10 Saves the cut/paste buffer to disk. Provide a filename at the prompt. A-F6 Use Print to Disk to make a file with carriage returns at the end of each line for use of other word processors. Use print commands to set the margins to eliminate extra space if you wish: ∞0≥75⌠0Γ0≡0∩ ... (format for bulletin boards.) Print to disk will not write over a file that already exists. CALLING UP A FILE FROM DISK ╞╣ Loads a file. ├¡╞╣ inserts it into text (note there is a 64K character limit) -- ABZ will accept a filename from the command line of DOS when the program is run. The command would look like this: C:>Speed \path\filename.ext<enter> DIRECTORY FUNCTIONS ╞╕ Provides a DOS disk directory. ├¡╞╕ Provides a DOS directory with 4-line extracts from each file. ┴¡╞╕ Changes the current directory. ╞╖ Renames a file in the current directory. ├¡╞╖ Deletes a file in any directory. A prompt lists files to be deleted and optionally asks for confirmation. ┴¡╞╖ Clears the current document from the screen. If another window is open, the screen switches to it. -- If the memory is full, ABZ will not allow paging back and forth in a directory, but will list the directory on the screen. -- Otherwise, you can use ╨τ╒≡ and ╨τ─ε to review the entire listing. If the list exceeds the memory, you'll be asked if you want more data when you press ┼≤π. While the directory is on the screen you can use: ╞▒ to get help; ╞╣ and ├¡╞╣ to load or insert a file (see separate help items) ╞╖ and ├¡╞╖ to rename or delete a file. ┼≤π to go back to the main screen. PRINTING WITH EPSON LQ-800 CODES Following are the built-in Epson printer commands. If you use another printer, see "CHARACTER AND TEXT CODES" for instructions on redefining them. ├ - Begin condensed type ╔ - Begin italics ═ - Begin emphasized type ─ - Cancel condensed type ╩ - End italics ╬ - End emphasized type ┼ - Elite width ╨ - Pica width ╤ - begin superscript ╥ - Begin subscript ╙ - End sub/superscript ╫ - Begin double-width ╪ - End double-width Others not defined, all beginning with Escape, include: x0 - draft mode x1 - LQ mode g - set 15 char/inch G - begin double-strike H - end double-strike 0 - Tight line spacing (8/inch) 2 - normal spacing (6/inch) If your printer does not recognize Epson codes, change these with the instructions under Printer and Text codes. To redefine underlining, use █= for "begin underline" and ▌= for "end underline." Or enter ß at the beginning of the text to force ABZ to underline by typing a character, backspacing and underlining it. PRINTING WITH FORMATS Formats are predefined sets of printer commands that are called from disk at the time of printing. To create one, type the commands you need on a blank screen and save them with the extension .FMT BOLDFACE.FMT might contain boldfacing commands, for example. The original document will resume printing after the contents of the .FMT file are finished. -- Complex formats are possible. Use ÷ to swap printing back and forth between the format and the main document. ÷ in the format returns control to the main text. ÷ in the document returns control to the format. IMPORTANT: if you use ÷ in a format, you must END the format with ÷. Since ABZ retains changes to printer commands from document to document, an alternative way to set up printing is to call up a file of printer commands, print it to the screen, and then print the original document. Use the Alt-F1 menu to reset to the default values HELP WITH HELP Why Help (F1) sometimes doesn't work: Help is not available if there is no memory available to store it or if the help file can't be found. ABZ looks for the file first in your current directory, then through your system's path (See your DOS manual.) If ABZ the error message says "File Not Found," find the file HELPTXT.TXT (use the directory key, ╞╕) on disk. Note the directory it's in. Then press ┴¡╞▒, and select "Set help directory". Enter the correct directory as follows: \DOS\Utils -- enter backslash at beginning but not end. Press ┼ε⌠σ≥. A full "Path" and filename of the help file appears next. If it is OK, press ┘. If not, press ╬ and try again. OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES Open the special functions menu with ┴∞⌠¡╞▒. -- Change screen colors by repeatedly pressing ß or Γ until you're satisfied. -- Set screen 40 changes to double-width characters on color screens, nice for working with (CGA-compatible) LCD screens in dim light. Screen 80 is normal. -- ─elete excess spaces removes excess spaces to the right of the cursor. -- δ Resets margins and printer commands to those built into the software. Otherwise, the last settings you used remain in effect. -- ≤ speeds up the keyboard. -- ⌠ slows it down again if there are problems. The feature works only on AT and later keyboards, though. SWAP SCREENS Press ╞▒▒ to open a second working window. Press the same key to swap back and forth between windows. If the key is not available, press ┴∞⌠¡╞▒, then σ. If there isn't enough memory available to open a full-size window, ABZ will beep and produce an error message. If F11 doesn't do anything (neither will C-DEL or A-CsrRt and A-CsrLft), exit ABZ and run Newkeys. If you don't have an F11, then use the Alt-F1 menu. You can copy text back and forth between windows with F4 and F5. ABOUT ABZ ABZ is a full-featured, text-oriented ASCII word processor with 2 windows, help screens, a flexible printer command language including 5-byte macros and format merging and an unusual long-directory feature. Its aim is to provide basic features in a small package with a common-sense keyboard layout. The essential core of ABZ is Speedscript, by Randy Thompson, published and copywrited by Compute Books of Radnor, Pa., in 1989. The source code was substantially altered, with new features, including help screens, the keyboard layout, long directory, directory paging, 5-key printer macros, swap screens and Epson commands, fast in-memory file processi, and other things, for ABZ, by Peter Zicari in 1992-3. Case-insensitve searches from Robert Jourdain's Turbo Pascal Express (Brady, 1990). If you have a suggestion or run across a bug (some of the prompts need work), drop a note to me at 2601 Idlewood Rd., Cleveland Hts. OH 44118 or to Compuserve address 71760,257.
