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FileCat
Users Guide and Reference
Table Of Contents
1 Summary of Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3 Warranty and Disclaimer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4 System Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
5 Getting Started. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Subdirectories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Environment Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Floppy-Based Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
6 Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Statistics Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Help Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
The Menu Bar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Add. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Delete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Label. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Config . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Rebuild Indexes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Quit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
7 Reporting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Contents of One Disk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Files By Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
All Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Disks By Free Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Disks By Category . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Scratch Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
All Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Diskette Insert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Appendix A: The FileCat Line Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Appendix B: The Configuration Options Editor . . . . . . . . . 23
Appendix C: Using a Mouse with FileCat . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
FileCat Registration Form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
1 Summary of Changes
Version 2.50
Added the ability to change screen colours.
Increased the number of categories to 32.
Changes to the 'Config' Menu to streamline it.
On most data display screens, more information will be shown.
Miscellaneous small fixes and enhancements.
Version 2.03
Fix to correct an error which caused the small window to be
left on the screen when replying "N" to the "Catalog Manually"
prompt.
Version 2.02
Minor fixes to correct parts of the screen not being restored
when popup windows were removed.
Version 2.01
This version fixes a bug in the reading of certain .ARC files.
The bug is caused by some unknown trailer left over on the
ARC file which can make FileCat 2.00 catalog files that are
not actually present in the ARC file, as well as storing
unusual information on them. It will be distributed FREE to
all registered FileCat 2.00 users.
There is no change to the user's guide, so, to update to
version 2.01, just copy FILECAT.EXE to the directory where
the current version resides.
Version 1.20
Added the Rebuild Indexes function, both as a Main Menu
option, and as an option if a data base error occurs.
Corrected a bug which caused some problems with deleted
records.
Improved data base integrity.
Improved data entry screens.
2 Overview
FileCat is a data base system for files kept on your Personal
Computer, whether they are on your hard disk, or on floppies. FileCat
provides the following features:
1) Capacity of up to 32,000 files and 3000 disks
2) Ability to index files stored within ARC, ZIP, and LZH
compressed files.
3) 32 user-definable categories, and 2 reserved categories
(Scratch and Hard Disk).
4) Ability to label a disk.
5) Ability to preview the contents of a disk before
cataloguing.
6) Reports to screen or printer.
7) Reports can be generated for:
Contents of One Disk
Files by Name
All Files
Disks by Free Space
Disks by Category
Scratch Disks
All Disks
8) Ability to print a diskette insert.
FileCat is a user-supported product. After a reasonable evaluation
period, if you find FileCat to be a useful product, then you are
required to register it.
To register FileCat, send a cheque or money order for $30.00
(Canadians, after January 1, 1991, add 7% GST, Ontario residents add
8% sales tax) to:
JWL Enterprises
47 Brightly Drive
Ajax, Ontario
L1T 1S6
A registration form can be found at the end of this document.
Allow 2-3 weeks for cheques to clear.
When you register, you will receive a fully-functional version of
FileCat (the latest). You will be informed of any updates to the
product, and will receive updates at a nominal charge.
FileCat and this document are Copyright (c) 1988 by JWL Enterprises.
3 Warranty and Disclaimer
FileCat is distributed without any express or implied warranties.
No warranty of fitness for any particular purpose is offered. The
user assumes all risks for the use and operation of FileCat, and shall
be responsible for any losses arising from such use.
By using FileCat, you agree to the above limitations.
IBM, PC-DOS are registered trade marks of International Business
Machines Corporation.
MS-DOS is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
4 System Requirements
To run FileCat, the following configuration is necessary:
1) IBM PC or close compatible running MS-DOS 2.1 or PC-DOS 2.0
(or later).
2) 256K available memory.
3) Hard disk (theoretically, FileCat can run on a floppy-based
system, but it severely limits the capacity of the data base).
5 Getting Started
FileCat consists of 3 files - FILECAT.EXE, FILECAT.DOC, and
FILECAT.WP. If you have received them from a bulletin board system,
they will probably be in a file called FCATnnn.ZIP, where nnn is the
version number of the program. You will need one of the several
available ZIP file extraction programs to get them into a usable form.
The FILECAT.DOC file is a generic text file which can be printed
on any printer that supports form feeds. FILECAT.WP is the same
document in Wordperfect 5.1 form, so, if you have Wordperfect, you
can use that fine word processor to print it, and get a more readable
version.
5.1 Subdirectories
On a hard-disk based system, you should set up the following:
a) A subdirectory for the executable file FILECAT.EXE
b) A subdirectory for the data and configuration files.
Note that these CAN be the same.
5.2 Environment Variables
FileCat will use the environment variable CATDIR, if it can find
it, to determine the location of its data and configuration files.
This variable should be set up in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, using a
command such as
set catdir=c:\data
If the environment variable CATDIR is not found, FileCat will look
for (and create, the first time it is run) its files in the current
subdirectory.
Example.
This series of instructions will set up the CATDIR environment
variable and start up FileCat:
set catdir=c:\data
c:
cd \util
filecat
Here, FileCat is executed from the subdirectory C:\UTIL, and
will create/locate its data and configuration files in
C:\DATA.
5.3 Floppy-Based Systems
On a system without a hard disk, place the diskette containing
FILECAT.EXE in Drive A:, and put a blank, formatted diskette in Drive
B: Then, the following series of instructions is recommended:
b:
a:filecat
This will make Drive B: the default drive, and start the program
from Drive A:.
On a 1-drive system, this should also work, and DOS should prompt
you to change disks.
N.B. - if one of your drives is of higher capacity, you should
make it the DATA drive (e.g. on an AT-type system with a 1.2 meg drive,
reverse the above example, and use drive a: as the data drive).
6 Functions
When initially invoked, FileCat will display a horizontally-
oriented menu at the top of the screen and a statistics/help area
at the bottom.
6.1 The Statistics Area
This area gives information on the following:
a) The number of disks and files currently contained in the data
base. These numbers are updated as a new disk is added or
deleted.
b) The drive currently being processed. This will show as a
letter from 'A' to the value of your LASTDRIVE parameter in
your CONFIG.SYS file. If you don't have LASTDRIVE coded, the
default is 'E' (or your highest actual drive, whichever is
higher). The drive letter is incremented with the F8 key,
and decremented with the F7 key. When it reaches its upper
or lower limit, it will wrap.
c) The current report destination, either 'Screen' or 'Printer'.
To change the report destination, use the F9 key.
d) Whether FileCat is currently processing compressed files.
If ON, any file with extension ARC, ZIP, or LZH will be
scanned, and all files within it will be processed. This
option is toggled on and off with the F10 key.
6.2 The Help Area
This line gives descriptions of the special keys which can be
used from the main menu. These keys are:
Left/Right Arrows - moves the cursor from one menu option
to the next/previous. The cursor will
wrap to the first when advanced from the
last, and vice versa.
F7 - Decrements the drive letter to be
processed. If at Drive A, F7 will set
the drive letter to the DOS LASTDRIVE
setting.
F8 - Increments the drive letter to be
processed. If at the DOS LASTDRIVE, F8
will set the drive letter to A.
F9 - Toggles the report destination between
'Screen' and 'Printer'.
F10 - Toggles compressed file processing
feature. When ON, FileCat will read
compressed (ARC, ZIP, or LZH) files, and
catalog each file contained in them.
When OFF, only the compressed file
itself will be catalogued.
6.3 The Menu Bar
The menu bar is a line from which you can access the main functions
of FileCat. Each option has one letter highlighted. To reach a
particular option, either use the arrow keys and hit ENTER, or type
the highlighted key to execute the option.
The main menu options are described below:
6.3.1 Add
The Add option will add a disk and all its files to the database.
Action taken on Library files depends on the setting of the Library
Extract indicator.
When a disk is scanned, the following actions occur:
1) A check is made whether the disk has a label. If not, you
will be asked for a label name, and FileCat will label the
disk for you. If it is labelled, FileCat will determine if
the disk is already on the data base. If so, you will be asked
if you want to recatalogue it. If you do, then the disk and
all its files will be deleted, then re-added. This makes it
unnecessary to do a separate delete when you change the
contents of a disk.
2) Next, you will be asked to choose its category from a list
of 32. There are two instances where this is bypassed: a disk
which contains no files is automatically put into the SCRATCH
category, and a hard disk also has its own category.
3) The description of the disk is then shown, and all the files
are added to the data base. Sub-directories are not added,
but FileCat will scan all subdirectories and process all files
in them. The following information is stored on the data
base:
Disk Label
Free Space
Disk Size
Disk Category
File Name
File Extension
File Date
File Size
Library Id (if extracted from a Compressed File)
Attributes (e.g. Hidden, Read-Only)
6.3.2 View
The View option will display the contents of a disk to the screen.
Action taken on compressed files depends on the setting of the Library
Extract indicator.
No updates are made to the data base at this time. This
function is designed to give you an opportunity to preview the contents
of a disk before adding it to the data base, or printing a diskette
insert.
As with the Add function, subdirectories are displayed also.
6.3.3 Delete
The delete option will delete a disk and all its files from the
data base. It is not necessary to put the disk in the drive. Deleted
files will be shown as they are deleted.
6.3.4 Update
The Update option allows you to change the category of a disk.
It does not allow updating of the contents of a disk. To do that,
the disk must be re-Added.
6.3.5 Label
The Label option allows you to change the volume label of a disk.
Can be done prior to adding a disk to the data base, and should be
used if you know that the disk has the same volume label as one already
existing on the data base, and you want to catalogue both disks.
6.3.6 Report
The Report option will bring up the Report submenu. See the
Reporting section later in the document for a detailed description
of the various reports available.
6.3.7 Config
The Config option will bring up the Config submenu. This submenu
has 6 items, each of which is discussed below.
6.3.7.1 Data Directory
This option informs FileCat of the drive and which is to contain
the data base. It is initially set to either the value of the CATDIR
environment variable, discussed above, or to the current
drive/directory when FileCat is first started. If you wish to move
the data base to another directory or drive, change this value. NOTE:
FileCat will still look for its configuration file as stated above.
WARNING: If you don't have a CATDIR environment variable, then you
may run into trouble if you change the data file directory, and then
restart FileCat from a directory different from the initial one.
FileCat will then think that it is starting for the first time, and
will create a configuration file in that directory.
6.3.7.2 Default Catalog Drive
This item allows you to change the default drive which FileCat
looks at when adding, viewing, or printing an insert for a disk. This
can be changed temporarily by using the F7/F8 keys, but using this
option will alter it permanently. Key in the new drive letter, and
then press the ENTER key to change the option. ESCAPE exits with no
change. The new drive letter must be in your DOS LASTDRIVE range.
6.3.7.3 Printer Control Codes
FileCat needs to know the codes used to set various options on
your printer. These are Compressed Print On/Off, Eight lines per inch,
six lines per inch, and Form Feed. The default values are correct
for an EPSON/IBM printer, or a printer that emulates one of these.
To change a printer control code, first look up the code in your
printer manual, then enter it as a string of DECIMAL numbers. For
example, the default value for Eight lines per inch is ESC 0 (character
"zero"). Enter this as 2748.
6.3.7.4 Categories
The Category screen lists all 32 categories, and allows you to
change all but categories 21 (scratch) and 22 (hard disk). Each
description can be up to 25 characters in length, and its content
is entirely up to you. FileCat provides you with a starter set of
categories, but you should customize these to your own needs. On this
screen, the ENTER key advances you to the next category, and accepts
what you've entered. The line editor used in FileCat is described
in more detail later in the document. The mouse can also be used to
select the category you wish to process, or to scroll the list by
placing the mouse on the right side of the window and clicking on
one of the 'up' or 'down' arrows.
To save your options permanently, use the F3 key after you've
made all your changes. ESCAPE cancels all changes.
6.3.7.5 Colours
This option allows you to change the various colours FileCat uses
for its displays. When this item is selected, a colour selection screen
appears. This screen has two components. The first, on the right side,
displays the list if configurable items, in their current colour.
The second, on the right side of the screen, shows all the colour
combinations available. Initially, the first configurable item will
be highlighted with a pair of what looks like sideways triangles on
either end of the item. To change a colour, first select the item
you wish to change by using the arrow keys, and then press ENTER.
The current colour combination will then be highlighted in a small
box in the colour combination window. Move this box with the arrow
keys until the desired colour is selected, and then press ENTER again.
The current item's colour will now be changed. When done, press the
F3 key to save your changes, or ESC to quit and ignore any changes
you've made.
6.3.7.6 Compressed File Search
This option is a simple toggle between ON and OFF. If ON,
compressed files will be viewed, and their contents added to the data
base. If OFF, only the name of the compressed file itself will be
catalogued. Set to OFF if you are short on disk space. This option
can be toggled dynamically by using the F10 key, but, setting it here
makes it the default when FileCat is activated.
6.3.8 Rebuild Indexes
On occasion, FileCat's data base indexes can become corrupted.
When this occurs, an error message will be issued, and you will be
given the opportunity to recreate them from the base data files (all
of the data base files used by FileCat are named 'FILECAT.xnn', where
x has values of either D (data) or I (index). The 'nn' characters
are replaced by numbers). When the error occurs, FileCat will
automatically execute this option if you so specify. In the case of
an error condition, the program will halt if another error is detected.
In this case, you can retry the rebuild, but, if that fails, you will
probably have to delete all the FILECAT.xnn files and recreate your
data base by reading all your disks again.
The other reason you might want to rebuild the data base is if
the files are getting very large, AND you have done a significant
amount of deletions. The rebuild process completely recreates the
index files, freeing up any space used by deleted records (when a
disk is deleted, the space in the file is not automatically freed,
but is returned to a 'free space' area, for future re-use). Select
this option from the Main Menu if you want to do this. The program
will continue when the process is complete.
Please note that this process will NOT free up space in the base
data files (FILECAT.Dnn), only the index files (FILECAT.Inn). However,
performance should improve somewhat.
6.3.9 Quit
This option exits FileCat.
7 Reporting
FileCat provides many ways to report on the information contained
in the data base. When the Report Option is selected, the Report Menu
appears. This is a vertically-oriented menu, containing eight different
Report Types. These can be selected by using the up and down arrow
keys, or by pressing the highlighted letter. The Enter key will then
activate the selected option.
If a report is too large to fit within the report window (when
the report destination is Screen), the word 'More...' will appear
in the bottom right corner. Hitting Escape will cancel the report,
and any other key will show the next page. When reporting to the
printer, the Escape key can be used at any time to cancel the report.
You will be notified on the screen when either type of report is
complete.
The various report types are described below. Note that, for file-
oriented reports, the following information is given:
File Name
Extension
Attributes
LIB Id (If contained in an Library File)
Size
Date
Time
Disk ID
For disk-oriented reports, this information is given:
Disk Id
Category
Size
Free Space
7.1 Contents of One Disk
This report lists all files contained in the data base for one
particular disk(ette). You will be prompted to enter the Volume Label
of the disk to report on. An error message will be issued if the label
you enter is not on the data base.
This report contains all the information for both types of reports
mentioned above.
7.2 Files By Name
This is a file-oriented report, which will list files matching
the name you enter. When entering a file name, the '*' character can
be used as a 'wild card' character, much as you can us it when using
the DOS Dir command. The following are valid file names:
a*.com - all .COM files beginning with the letter A
xyz.* - all files with a filename xyz, i.e. xyz.com,
xyz.exe, and xyz.txt would all be listed.
xyzabc.com would NOT be listed.
xyz*.* - all files with a filename beginning with xyz
would be listed. Here, xyz.com, xyz.exe,
xyz.txt, and xyzabc.com would appear.
a*.c* - all files with a filename beginning with A,
and, an extension beginning with C.
NOTE: If used, the '*' must be the last thing entered in either
the file name or extension. Thus, a file name such as '*a.*' is
invalid.
7.3 All Files
This is a file-oriented report which lists all files on the data
base.
7.4 Disks By Free Space
This is a disk-oriented report which lists all disks on the data
base, in descending order by free space. Thus, the disks with the
largest available space will appear first.
7.5 Disks By Category
This is a disk-oriented report which will show all disks of a
particular category. You will be prompted for the category.
If an invalid category is entered, or if there are no disks of
that category in the data base, an error message is issued.
7.6 Scratch Disks
This is really a category report for a special category. It lists
all empty disks.
7.7 All Disks
This is a disk-oriented report listing all disks on the data base.
7.8 Diskette Insert
This option can only be used when the report destination is set
to 'Printer'. It does not use the data base, but reads from the
selected drive, and produces a 'table of contents' of the disk, which
can then be cut out and inserted into the jacket. This, of course,
only works for 5.25" diskettes. First, you are prompted for a title,
which can be up to 40 characters in length. This title will appear
on the top line of the insert. Disk-oriented information will appear
on the top of the insert, followed by a dashed line. The file-oriented
information appears next. The root directory is shown first, then
any files in the root. Any subdirectories follow in a similar fashion.
If there are a large number of files on a diskette, as can occur when
the diskette contains several compressed files, and compressed file
processing is ON, a fold line will be printed.
Appendix A: The FileCat Line Editor
At various times during the use of FileCat, you will be prompted to
enter lines of information, such as Volume Labels, Diskette Insert
Titles, Etc. When you are entering this information, you an use these
editing commands:
<Enter> - Accept what you've keyed in.
<Esc> - Quit without changing line.
<LeftArrow> - Cursor left one character
<Ctrl-S>
<RightArrow> - Cursor right one character
<Ctrl-D>
<Ctrl-LeftArrow> - Cursor left one word
<Ctrl-A>
<Ctrl-RightArrow> - Cursor right one word
<Ctrl-F>
<Home> - Cursor to beginning of line
<Ctrl-Q><S>
<End> - Cursor to end of line
<Ctrl-Q><D>
<Del> - Delete Character at Cursor
<Ctrl-G>
<Backspace> - Delete Character to left of Cursor
<Ctrl-H>
<Ctrl-Backspace>
<Ctrl-End> - Delete to end of line
<Ctrl-Q><Y>
<Ctrl-Y> - Delete entire line
<Ctrl-X>
<Ctrl-Home> - Delete from beginning of line
<Ctrl-T> - Delete word to right of cursor
<Ins> - Toggle insert mode on and off. The
cursor will appear larger when in insert
mode.
<Ctrl-R> - Restore original contents of line
<Ctrl-Q><L>
Appendix B: The Configuration Options Editor
When setting the various options, and entering your customized
categories, you will be using a special data entry editor. When you
are entering this information, you can use these editing commands:
<Enter> - Accept what you've keyed in, and move
to the next field on the screen.
<Esc> - Quit without changing anything.
<CtrlBreak>
<LeftArrow> - Cursor left one character. If at the
<Ctrl-S> beginning of a field, it will move to
the end of the previous field.
<RightArrow> - Cursor right one character. If at the
<Ctrl-D> end of a field, it will move to the
beginning of the next field.
<Ctrl-LeftArrow> - Cursor left one word. If at the beginning
<Ctrl-A> of the first word in a field, it is
moved to the beginning of the last word
in the previous field. A 'word' is any
series of non-blank characters followed
by one or more blanks.
<Ctrl-RightArrow> - Cursor right one word. If at the end of
<Ctrl-F> a field, it is moved to the begin-
ning of the first word of the next
field.
<Home> - Cursor to beginning of field.
<Ctrl-Q><S>
<End> - Cursor to end of field.
<Ctrl-Q><D>
<Del> - Delete character at cursor.
<Ctrl-G>
<Backspace> - Delete character to left of cursor, for
<Ctrl-H> character strings. Delete character at
<Ctrl-Backspace> cursor for numerics.
<Ctrl-End> - Delete to end of field.
<Ctrl-Q><Y>
<Ctrl-Y> - Delete entire field.
<Ctrl-X>
<Ctrl-Home> - Delete from beginning of field to
cursor.
<Ctrl-T> - Delete word to right of cursor.
<Ins> - Toggle insert mode on and off. The
cursor will appear larger when in insert
mode.
<Ctrl-R> - Restore original contents of field.
<Ctrl-Q><L>
<Up Arrow> - Move cursor to the last field above the
<Ctrl-E> current one that starts at a screen
column less than or equal to the column
where the cursor is currently located.
<Down Arrow> - Move cursor to the next field below the
<Ctrl-X> one that starts at a screen column less
than or equal to the column where the
cursor is currently located.
<Tab> - Move cursor to the beginning of the next
<Ctrl-I> field.
<Shift-Tab> - Move cursor to the beginning of the
previous field.
<Ctrl-PgUp> - Move cursor to the first field on the
<Ctrl-Q><R> screen.
<Ctrl-PgDn> - Move cursor to the last field on the
<Ctrl-Q><C> screen.
Appendix C: Using a Mouse with FileCat
FileCat fully supports the use of a mouse in the Menu Bar, the data
entry screens, and the configuration screens. When FileCat is started,
it checks for the presence of a mouse. If detected, a mouse cursor
will be initially activated at the left side of the menu bar. This
cursor is a block shape, its colour selectable by you.
General Mouse Usage
In general, the mouse can be used as follows:
- using the LEFT mouse button is the same as hitting the ENTER
key.
- using the RIGHT mouse button is the same as hitting the ESCAPE
key.
Specific uses of the mouse are:
1) To select a menu item with the mouse:
- move the mouse left or right until the mouse cursor is over
the required menu item. Then, click the LEFT mouse button
to select the item.
- within the report submenu, move the mouse up or down until
the mouse cursor is over the required item. Then click the
LEFT mouse button. To return to the main menu bar, either
click the RIGHT button, or move the mouse cursor to another
menu item, and click the LEFT button.
2) Within the CONFIG Function:
- Moving the mouse cursor to an option, and clicking the LEFT
mouse button will select that option for processing.
- For the Compressed file processing option ONLY, clicking the
LEFT button will toggle between Y and N.
FileCat Registration Form
Name: ______________________________________________________
Company: ___________________________________________________
Address: ______________________________________________________
City: _________________________________________________________
State/Province: _______________________________________________
Zip/Postal Code: ______________________________________________
_____ copies of FileCat @ $30.00 ___________
7% GST (Canada only after Jan 1, 1991) ___________
8% Sales Tax (Ontario Residents) ___________
Total ___________
Available only on 5.25" diskettes.