Contents
wcDraw Text mode screen editor

What is a display file?

When to use wcDraw

Command Menu

Menu Hotspots

Editing Window

File List

Reference

Adding non-keyboard characters

Creating a bulletin menu

Drawing boxes

Screen color modes

How do I…


Command Menu

The Command menus let you create, edit, and view display files. These are the menu options available from the Command menus:

File

New clears the window and opens a new, untitled file for input and editing.

Open opens a dialog box prompting you for the drive, path and name of the file you wish to open for viewing or editing. You will be prompted to save any changes to the previous file you were working on before the new file is loaded.

Save saves the current file with the current name. Overwrites the existing version of the file, keeping any changes.

Save As prompts you to type a name, path and drive to save your text file. Use this command to create a new copy of an existing file without overwriting the original.

Print  prints the wcDraw .BBS file currently on the screen.

Print Setup pops up the Print Setup property sheet, allowing you to select the printer properties.

Send sends the current document through e-mail.

Exit Closes the current window or application. A warning box will pop up if you have not saved the information on your screen.

Edit

Copy copies the current selection to the Windows clipboard. Note that anything you copy to the clipboard will replace the current clipboard contents.

Cut copies the selected text to the clipboard, and deletes the text from the document. Note that anything you copy to the clipboard will replace the current clipboard contents.

Paste copies the contents of the clipboard to the document, at the cursor location.

Delete deletes the selected item or items.

Select all processes all of the items in a list.

Find searches for specific text in the file.

Replace replaces selected text with different text.

Goto line lets you specify the line number to go to.

View

Toolbar views the toolbar at the top of the edit window.

Statusbar displays the statusbar at the bottom of the drawing window.

True View shows your display file as it would appear on the caller’s screen, with display macros converted to blank space.

Test Data shows your display as it would appear with “sample” information replacing the display macros.

Display macros shows your display with all display macros visible.

File Tree toggles the file tree view on and off. The file tree view lets you open files for editing.

Tools

Keypad Options lets you assign frequently-used sets of drawing keys to your numeric keypad. Use your mouse to select a set of drawing keys. The active set is highlighted with a border.

Display Macros opens a drop down list of available display macros.

ASCII Table lets you use your mouse to select an ASCII character from the table, and double-click to insert it into your display file..

Color palette lets you select the colors that the link appears to the caller.

Line Options Use your mouse or the specific icon to select line drawing options from the list.

Add link code adds a link macro at the current cursor position. You can also use the [F9] key to open the add link macro dialog box.

Draw Box draws a box on the screen. Select the type of lines to use from the Line Options palette.

Block Fill applies foreground and background colors to a selected area. You can also press [F11] to apply block fill.

Line Draw lets you draw lines on your screen. When you are finished drawing lines, go back to the tools menu and deselect Line Draw mode.

Quick Color Fill applies the current color selection, visible in the bottom right corner of the status line, to selected text.

Help

About wcDraw displays version information about wcDraw.

Index  Opens the help system to the index, allowing you to search for specific topics or words.

Using Help Opens the Windows Help engine. This command lets you get help on “Help”.


Editing Window

Keyboard commands

Marking Text

Copying Text

Moving Text

Deleting Text

Replacing Text

Formatting Text

Undoing changes

Redoing changes

Printing

Hotspots

Linking


Keyboard commands

If you have used other word processors and text editors, you are probably familiar with how to use the arrow keys, [PgUp] and [PgDn] keys to move the cursor around the screen. Here are some additional keyboard commands you may find useful.

[CTRL] [O]	Open an existing file
[CTRL] [S]	Save the current file
[CTRL] [P]	Print the current file
[CTRL] [N]	Create new file
[CTRL] [T]	Delete word right
[CTRL] [V]	Paste from Windows clipboard
[CTRL] [X]	Cut marked text to Windows clipboard
[CTRL] [Y]	Delete line
[CTRL] [DEL]	Delete marked block
[SHIFT] [DEL]	Cut to Windows clipboard
[SHIFT] [INS]	Paste from Windows clipboard
[CTRL] [Z]	Undo editing
[ALT] [F3]	Find text
[CTRL] [PGUP]	Top of screen
[CTRL] [PGDN]	Bottom of screen
[CTRL] [HOME]	Beginning of file
[CTRL] [END]	End of file


Redoing changes

You can redo changes, and restore your text to the way it was before you undid the last command, with the Edit/Undo command or [Ctrl][Shift].


Replacing Text

You can replace specific text by using the Replace command. Much the same way that Find and Find Next find text, Replace will allow you to replace specific text. Enter the text to get rid of, and the text to replace it with. If you want to match capitalization exactly, select the Match Case check box. Click on Find Next, verify that you want the text replaced, and click Replace.

You can use the Edit/Replace All command to globally replace text in your file.


Printing

You can print your file by selecting File/Print, or pressing [Ctrl][P]. An options box will appear, allowing you to select the printer to use, page range, the number of copies, and print setup.


File List
 The file list area lets you select from conferences, languages, and display files. This means that if you have a file stored on a networked machine, it will still be accessible.


Conference
Each conference, or message area, can have its own set of display files, bulletins, menus, questionnaires and help files. Select the conference whose display files you want to edit from this list.

To define a unique path for a conference, start wcConfig and select conferences.


Link macro
 Adds a link macro at the cursor position.


Single lines
 When you draw a box on a menu, this option creates that box using double vertical lines with single horizontal ones.


Double horizontal lines
 When you draw a box on a menu, this option creates that box using double horizontal lines with single vertical ones.


Double vertical lines
 When you draw a box on a menu, this option creates that box using double vertical lines with single horizontal ones.


File tree view
Toggles the file tree view on and off. When this feature is on, the file tree is displayed on the left side of the wcDraw screen. All files can be opened using the file tree view no matter what machine they are stored on, as long as the paths have been defined in wcConfig.


Language
Each language can have its own set of display files, bulletins, menus, questionnaires and help files. Languages are defined in wcConfig.

Select the language whose display files you want to edit from this list.


Display Files
 This is a list of all the display files available for the currently selected conference and language.

Double-click to select the display file to view or edit.


Help Files
 This is a list of all the help files available for the currently selected conference and language.

Double-click to select the help file to view or edit.


Questionnaire Files
 Double-click to select the questionnaire menu file to view or edit.


Bulletins
Double-click to select the bulletin menu file to view or edit.


Menu Files
Menu files are displayed to callers in place of the dynamically-generated menus created in wcMenu. Each security profile has a corresponding menu display set defined in wcConfig.

Double-click to select the menu file to view or edit.


Security Files
 Security files are displayed to callers when they log on. Each security profile has a corresponding security file defined in wcConfig.

Double-click to select the Security file to view or edit.


Select all
Process all the items in a list.


Find
Finds each occurrence of specified text in a file.


Replace
Replaces each occurrence of specified text in a file with other text.


Goto
Places the cursor at a specified line on the display screen.


True View
True View shows your display file as it would appear on the caller's screen, with at-codes converted to blank space.


File Tree
 Displays the file tree view, letting you select files from any path defined in wcConfig.


Printer setup
 Opens the printer setup dialog box, allowing you to select the options you want for printing this file.


Send
 Launches your e-mail system and inserts the currently active file as an attachment.


Test Data
 Test Data shows your display as it would appear with "sample" information replacing the at-codes.


Display macros
 Display macros shows your display with all display macros visible.


Colors

You can change the foreground and the background color to be sued when defining a color scheme.

Foreground

Background


Add link code
 Inserts a link code at the current cursor position.  This is used for creating hotspot menu links.


Tools: Display macros
Display macros

The Wildcat! codes for system and user variables can be easily added to a file. Codes are grouped by function, and each code is followed by a brief description.

Display macros: Miscellaneous

Display macros: Conference

Display macros: File

Display macros: Message

Display macros: Other user info

Display macros: Sub

Display macros: User info


Display macros: Miscellaneous

Macro	Notes
CLS	Clears the screen, just like the DOS command CLS.
DATE	Displays the current date.
DAYOFWEEK	Displays the current day of the week, for instance "Monday" or "Friday".
TIME	Displays the current time, from the PC clock.


Display macros: Conference

Macro	Notes
CONF.NAME	Displays the name of the current conference.
CONF.NUMBER	Displays the number of the current conference.


Display macros: File

Macro	Notes
FILE.AREA	Name of the current file area.
FILE.COST	Cost in credits to download this file
FILE.DATE	The date this file was created
FILE.DESCRIPTION	File description, up to 60 characters
FILE.DLTIME	Time required to download this file, calculated from the caller's connect speed.
FILE.DOWNLOADS	The number of times this file has been downloaded.
FILE.FAILEDSCAN	Yes/No. Has file failed upload scanning?
FILE.FILETIME	The time this file was created.
FILE.FREEFILE	Yes/No: No charge to download this file?
FILE.LASTACCESSED	The date and time this file was last downloaded.
FILE.NAME	The name of the file on disk.
FILE.NEVERDELETE	Yes/No: Prevent Wildcat! from deleting this file?
FILE.NEVEROVERWRITE	Yes/No: Prevent Wildcat! from overwriting this file?
FILE.OFFLINE	Yes/No: Is this file stored offline?
FILE.ONCD	Yes/No: Is this file on CD-ROM
FILE.PASSWORD	Yes/No: Is the file password protected?
FILE.SIZE	The size of the file in bytes
FILE.STOREDPATH	The location on disk for this file, if it is not stored in the file area path.
FILE.TIME
FILE.UPLOADER	The name of the user who uploaded this file.


Display macros: Message

Macro	Notes
MSG.DATE	The date this message was created
MSG.FROM.NAME	The sender's name
MSG.NUMBER	The message number
MSG.PRIVATE	Yes/No: Is this message private?
MSG.REFERENCE	Original message, for which this is a reply.
MSG.SUBJECT	The subject of this message
MSG.TO.NAME	The addressee for this message.


Display macros: Other user info

Macro	Notes
OTHERUSER.ADDRESS1	User's address, line 1 of 2
OTHERUSER.ADDRESS2	User's address, line 2 of 2
OTHERUSER.ALIAS	User's alias name
OTHERUSER.BIRTHDATE	User's date of birth
OTHERUSER.CHATAVAILABLE	Yes/No: Is the user available for chat?
OTHERUSER.CITY	User's city, for address information
OTHERUSER.COMMENT1	User record comment line 1 of 5
OTHERUSER.COMMENT2	User record comment line 2 of 5
OTHERUSER.COMMENT3	User record comment line 3 of 5
OTHERUSER.COMMENT4	User record comment line 4 of 5
OTHERUSER.COMMENT5	User record comment line 5 of 5
OTHERUSER.COMPANY	User's company name
OTHERUSER.COMPUTERTYPE	User's CPU type or other optional user record information
OTHERUSER.CONFERENCE	User's current conference
OTHERUSER.COUNTRY	User's country, for address information
OTHERUSER.DATANUMBER	User's data telephone number
OTHERUSER.DOWNLOADS	Total number of files downloaded
OTHERUSER.EDITOR	Message editor type: line, fullscreen
OTHERUSER.ERASEMOREPROMPT	Yes/No: Erase the "Continue" prompt?
OTHERUSER.EXPIREDATE	Expiration date for this user
OTHERUSER.FAXNUMBER	User's fax telephone number
OTHERUSER.FILEDISPLAY	User's file display mode: single, double, full (DIZ) or ANSI lister
OTHERUSER.FIRSTCALL	The date this user first called the BBS
OTHERUSER.FROM	User's location, for "Who is online"
OTHERUSER.HELPLEVEL	User's menu level: novice, regular or expert
OTHERUSER.HOTKEYS	Yes/No: process single keystrokes without pressing [Return]
OTHERUSER.ID	User ID number for this user
OTHERUSER.LANGUAGE	User's default language selection
OTHERUSER.LASTCALL	The date and time of the user's last call
OTHERUSER.LASTCALLDATE
OTHERUSER.LASTNEWFILES	User last searched for new files on this date.
OTHERUSER.LINESPERPAGE	Number of lines to display before a page brake (normally 23)
OTHERUSER.MEMODATE	User's memo date
OTHERUSER.MINUTESLOGGED	Total number of minutes spent online by this user
OTHERUSER.MSGDISPLAY	User's message display mode: scroll, clear screen or lock header
OTHERUSER.MSGSWRITTEN	Total number of messages written by this user
OTHERUSER.NAME	User's first and last names
OTHERUSER.NETMAILBALANCE	Balance in user's netmail account
OTHERUSER.PHONENUMBER	User's voice phone number
OTHERUSER.PROTOCOL	User's default file transfer protocol
OTHERUSER.QUOTEONREPLY	Yes/No: Quote entire message when replying?
OTHERUSER.SECURITY	User's security profile
OTHERUSER.SEX	User's sex: male, female or not disclosed
OTHERUSER.SORTEDLISTINGS	Yes/No: Sort file listings alphabetically?
OTHERUSER.STATE	User's state, for address information
OTHERUSER.SUBSCRIPTIONBALANCE	Balance in user's subscription account
OTHERUSER.TERMINALTYPE	User's display type: ANSI, ASCII or Auto Detect
OTHERUSER.TIMELEFTTODAY	Minutes remaining in user's total time today
OTHERUSER.TIMESON	Total number of times this user has called
OTHERUSER.TITLE	User's title, displayed next to name on messages
OTHERUSER.TOTALDOWNLOADKBYTES	Total number of kbytes downloaded by this user
OTHERUSER.TOTALUPLOADKBYTES	Total number of kbytes uploaded by this user
OTHERUSER.UPLOADS	Total number of files uploaded by this user.
OTHERUSER.ZIP	User's zip code, for address information


Display macros: Sub

Macro	Notes
SUB1	Substitution variable 1 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB2	Substitution variable 2 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB3	Substitution variable 3 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB4	Substitution variable 4 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB5	Substitution variable 5 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB6	Substitution variable 6 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB7	Substitution variable 7 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB8	Substitution variable 8 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application
SUB9	Substitution variable 9 of 9. Assigned by Wildcat! or wcCode application


Display macros: User info

Macro	Notes
USER.ADDRESS1	User's address, line 1 of 2
USER.ADDRESS2	User's address, line 2 of 2
USER.ALIAS	User's alias name
USER.BIRTHDATE	User's date of birth
USER.CHATAVAILABLE	Yes/No: Is the user available for chat?
USER.CITY	User's city, for address information
USER.COMMENT1	User record comment line 1 of 5
USER.COMMENT2	User record comment line 2 of 5
USER.COMMENT3	User record comment line 3 of 5
USER.COMMENT4	User record comment line 4 of 5
USER.COMMENT6	User record comment line 5 of 5
USER.COMPAN6	User's company name
USER.COMPUTERTYPE	User's CPU type or other optional user record information
USER.CONFERENCE	User's current conference
USER.COUNTRY	User's country, for address information
USER.DATANUMBER	User's data telephone number
USER.DOWNLOADS	Total number of files downloaded
USER.EDITOR	Message editor type: line, fullscreen
USER.ERASEMOREPROMPT	Yes/No: Erase the "Continue" prompt?
USER.EXPIREDATE	Expiration date for this user
USER.FAXNUMBER	User's fax telephone number
USER.FILEDISPLAY	User's file display mode: single, double, full (DIZ) or ANSI lister
USER.FIRSTCALL	The date this user first called the BBS
USER.FROM	User's location, for "Who is online"
USER.HELPLEVEL	User's menu level: novice, regular or expert
USER.HOTKEYS	Yes/No: process single keystrokes without pressing [Return]
USER.ID	User ID number for this user
USER.LANGUAGE	User's default language selection
USER.LASTCALL	The date and time of the user's last call
USER.LASTCALLDATE
USER.LASTNEWFILES	User last searched for new files on this date.
USER.LINESPERPAGE	Number of lines to display before a page brake (normally 23)
USER.MEMODATE	User's memo date
USER.MINUTESLOGGED	Total number of minutes spent online by this user
USER.MSGDISPLAY	User's message display mode: scroll, clear screen or lock header
USER.MSGSWRITTEN	Total number of messages written by this user
USER.NAME	User's first and last names
USER.NETMAILBALANCE	Balance in user's netmail account
USER.PHONENUMBER	User's voice phone number
USER.PROTOCOL	User's default file transfer protocol
USER.QUOTEONREPLY	Yes/No: Quote entire message when replying?
USER.SECURITY	User's security profile
USER.SEX	User's sex: male, female or not disclosed
USER.SORTEDLISTINGS	Yes/No: Sort file listings alphabetically?
USER.STATE	User's state, for address information
USER.SUBSCRIPTIONBALANCE	Balance in user's subscription account
USER.TERMINALTYPE	User's display type: ANSI, ASCII or Auto Detect
USER.TIMELEFTTODAY	Minutes remaining in user's total time today
USER.TIMESON	Total number of times this user has called
USER.TITLE	User's title, displayed next to name on messages
USER.TOTALDOWNLOADKBYTES	Total number of kbytes downloaded by this user
USER.TOTALUPLOADKBYTES	Total number of kbytes uploaded by this user
USER.UPLOADS	Total number of files uploaded by this user.
USER.ZIP	User's zip code, for address information


Display macros: Special formatting characters

The following codes allow you to position, pad and trim the results of each macro in your display files. Use these positioning and length macros to format your results for any page layout you choose.

Position and length	Operation
@MACRO<10@	Flush left and truncate or pad to 10 characters.
@MACRO>10@	Flush right and truncate or pad to 10 characters.
@MACRO^10@	Center and truncate or pad to 10 characters.


ASCII table
 Use your mouse to select an ASCII character from the table, and double-click to insert it into your display file.


Color Bar
 Use your mouse to select a foreground color from the palette.

To select a background color, click  your mouse to the lower box of the color bar, then select a background color from the palette.

Any new characters you type will appear in the foreground and background colors you selected.


Line Options
 This feature is primarily used to select the type of lines that will be drawn when you draw a box. Use your mouse to select line drawing options from the list.  If you want to draw lines on your screen, go to the Tools menu and select Keypad options mode. Be sure that your NumLock key is active, and that you use the keypad keys to draw the lines.


Insert Mode
 When Insert Mode is on, the existing text "opens up" where you are typing, to make room for the new text. When Insert Mode is off, anything you type will replace, or overwrite, the existing text. Press the [INSERT] key to turn Insert Mode on or off.


Reference

Using color codes

Display macros

Hot spot menus


How do I...

Adding non-keyboard characters

Creating a bulletin menu

Drawing boxes

Screen color modes

Creating a Quote of the Day  file

Adding music to display files

Creating a hotspot menu

Notes about hotspots

Some display files just stop and won't start up again. What could cause this?


Creating a bulletin menu
Creating a hotspot menu

The hotspot menu is a special file that contains "link" codes that tell Wildcat! which file to load for each user selection. Here is an example of a bulletin hotspot menu, as it would appear to a caller:

  * This is a bulletin menu *

  [1] BBS Phone Numbers

  [2] Last ten callers

  [3] Newsletter

And here is how this bulletin menu is actually created:

  * This is a bulletin menu *

  [1] @LINK SEL=1 TITLE="BBS Phone Numbers" GOTO=bull1@

  [2] @LINK SEL=2 TITLE="Last ten callers" GOTO=lastten@

  [3] @LINK SEL=3 TITLE="Newsletter" GOTO=wc:\disp\newsltr@

Note that the first two links do not specify a path for the files BULL11 and LASTTEN. Wildcat! will look for these files in the same directory from which BULLETIN.BBS is displayed.

Note that file extensions are optional. Note that it's not necessary to name your bulletins BULL#.BBS.  However, Wildcat will only scan for new bulletins if they have names of the form BULL#.BBS where # is a number consisting of one to four digits.

The third link loads the NEWSLTR.BBS file from the display directory, as defined in wcConfig.


Adding/Changing color

The active text color is indicated at the left end of the status line. The word "Color" shows the foreground and background colors wcDraw will use for text entry and color fill. To change the active color press [F2] for a color palette window.

Use the cursor keys or mouse to move the color selection box around the palette. The active color is shown in the lower left corner of the palette window in the words "TextColor".

Once the desired color is selected, double-click to exit the palette and save your choice. The selected color is then used for all text entry and paint commands until you change it again.


Adding Display macors
Adding display macros

The Wildcat! codes for system and user variables can be easily added to a file. Press [F8] to pop up a list of available display macros. Codes are grouped by function, and each code is followed by a brief description.

To place an Display macro on your screen, position the cursor at the location you want the expanded text to appear. Then press [F8] and select the desired code from the window:

Codes are placed at the cursor position and are always inserted, regardless of the status of the editor (insert or overtype mode). When placing Display macros remember that the actual text may be much longer than the code when it is expanded.


NOTES about hotspot menus

You may notice that the first two links in the example do not specify a path for the files BULL11 and LASTTEN. Wildcat! will look for these files in the same directory from which BULLETIN.BBS is displayed.

File extensions are optional.

It's not necessary to name your bulletins BULL#.BBS. However, Wildcat! only scans for new bulletins that are named BULL#.BBS where # is a number consisting of one to four digits.

In our example, the third link is a little different. The third link loads the NEWSLTR.BBS file from the display directory, as defined in wcConfig.

wcDraw supports long filenames. Remember, when using these long filenames, be sure to put quote marks around the entire file path. For example, you could use a file named "display file with a very long name.bbs", but you would type it in as:

"WC5:\DISP\DISPLAY FILE WITH A VERY LONG NAME.BBS"


Notes about hotspot links

There are two types of links in a hotspot menu   links to other display files and links to a program. The example above (of our Bulletin menu) shows how to link to a display file.

To link to another program, such as a questionnaire, add a ! (exclamation point, or "bang') in front of the program to run, and enclose the entire GOTO link in quotes. For example, to link a questionnaire named QUES2 using the selection key "2", you would use the link:

[2]  @LINK SEL=2 TITLE="Questionnaire 2" GOTO="!QUES2"@


Atcodes: Menu hotspots
Display macros: Menu hotspots

Menu hotspot codes are made up of three components, and the entire hotspot is enclosed in @ signs. The three components are:

Macro	Notes
LINK SEL =	The selection key for the menu item
TITLE=	The title of the menu item, as it appears on the caller's screen
GOTO=	The file to display in response to the key selection.


What is a display file

Display files include information files, hello screens, menus, help files, and any other file you ask Wildcat! to show to a caller in response to a command.

Some display file names are "internal" -- that is, their names are fixed within Wildcat!'s program code. Some examples of internal display files are hello screens, bulletins, help screens and information files. Other display file names are defined by you, and are associated with menus and menu commands.


Screen color modes

Wildcat! supports Wildcat! color and HTML (HyperText Markup Language). Wildcat! will determine the caller's display type as the caller is logging on, and shows the appropriate set of screens. Each display type has its own set of files, for instance HELLO1.BBS for Wildcat! color, and HELLO1.HTM for HTML.

The .BBS Wildcat! color files do double duty as black and white or color files. You can include color information by adding Wildcat! color codes (@0E@ for yellow text on a black background, for instance).

The .HTM graphic screens are for callers with HTTP emulation selected. These files provide a fully-graphical, mouse-driven interface for the BBS. You can create HTML screens with an ordinary text editor such as NOTEPAD, or you can use a specialized HTML editor. Once again, there are several HTML editors available for download at MSI HQ BBS.

One of the most common problems arises as a result of creating a display file that is too long and gets a "-Continue-" prompt in the middle. This happens because almost all ANSI screens are saved as 25 lines, to fill a normal 25-line monitor.

This problem has a simple solution. After creating the file, carefully edit it in a plain text editor such as NOTEPAD. Set the margins in your editor to 0 for the left and 255 for the right. THEDRAW places ANSI cursor location codes at the end of the file to move the cursor to line 25, column 1. These are the codes you need to remove.

Move the cursor to the bottom line of the file and then past the last character on the end of the line. Once there look to the left and locate the last printable character you actually want to display to the caller. If your display file is composed of a message in a double-line border, this would be the lower right corner of the border. Place the cursor to the right of this last printable character and delete the rest of the line.

The characters to be deleted will include ESC codes followed by square brackets, numbers and letters. When you have deleted the necessary characters, press [Enter] immediately after the last printable character to start a new line. Your file should now display properly.

Whenever you re-edit a color file you must use your editor to check your embedded codes and to delete the extra codes at the end of the file.


Some display files just stop and won't start up again. What could cause this?

You probably have upgraded from a Test Drive version Wildcat! and still have some of the old style control codes in your display files. In particular the old ^S^P that was used to force a -more- prompt can cause this problem. With these control codes, your caller's communication software may be interpreting the ^S as an XOFF character and stopping the display until the caller sends a ^Q XON. The solution is to simply remove the old codes.


Exit
Closes the current window or application. A warning box will pop up if you have not saved the information on your screen


New
Clears the window and opens a new, untitled file for input and editing.


Open
Opens a dialog box prompting you for the drive, path and name of the file you wish to open for viewing or editing. You will be prompted to save any changes to the previous file you were working on before the old file is Save


Save
Saves the current file with the current name. Overwrites the existing version of the file, keeping any changes.


Save As
 Prompts you to enter a name, path and drive to save your text file. Use this command to create a new copy of an existing file without overwriting the original.


Copy
Copies the current selection to the Windows clipboard. Note that anything you copy to the clipboard will replace the current clipboard contents.


Cut
   Copies the selected text to the clipboard, and deletes the text from the document. Note that anything you copy to the clipboard will replace the current clipboard contents.


Delete
Delete the selected item or items.


Paste
Copies the contents of the clipboard to the document, at the cursor location.


Undo
Removes the results of last editing command you executed. For instance, if you cut or cleared a block of text, the Undo command will restore the text to its original place in the document.


Background
Select the background color by right-clicking your mouse on the color palette.


About wcDraw
 Displays version, registration, and system resource information about wcDraw.


Index
Opens the help system to the index, allowing you to search for specific topics or words.


Using Help
 Opens the Windows Help engine. This command lets you get help on "Help".


Foreground
Select the color to use for the foreground (text) area by clicking on the color palette.


Statusbar
Displays current information about the file being edited. Status, current view, cursor position, color, user, insert/overwrite, and mode are displayed.


Print
Pops up the Print dialog box, allowing you to print the current screen.


When to use wcDraw

wcDraw lets you create menus and display files using ANSI graphic codes and special “display macros”. All of the display files your callers will see can be created using wcDraw. Use wcDraw when you want to:

•	Create new display files, help files, menu display files and bulletins.

•	Create prompt files.

•	Update screen information for your users.

•	Make changes to the way your BBS appears.

•	Change colors or automatic or informational links.


Opening files

To open a file:

1.   Start wcDraw.

2.   Toggle File Tree View on.

3.   Select the Conference that the file path requires.

4.   Select the Language that the file uses.

5.   Click on the type of file you are opening. This can be Display files, Menu files, Prompt files, Help files, or Bulletin files.

6.   Double click on the file, or click once and select File/Open.

7.   The file is opened and available for editing.

File Tree View

On systems with multiple machine paths, the file you want to open may not be on the local machine. Using the File Tree View lets you see files in all available paths. If you have configured the path for a set of files to be on another machine, you can use File Tree to access them.

You can grab the file tree view bar and resize the tree view.


Copying Text

To copy text to a different location:

1.   Mark the text to copy.

Use your mouse to select the menu command Edit/Copy, click the Copy icon, or press [CTRL] + C to copy the marked text to the Windows Clipboard.

2.   Move the insertion point to the place where you would like to copy the selected text.

3.   Using your mouse, select the menu command Edit/Paste, use the Paste icon , or press [CTRL] + V.

You can also mark the text with the mouse. After the text is marked, press [CTRL] and hold down the left mouse button. Move the cursor to the place where you want to copy to, and release the mouse button.


Deleting Text

Use the Backspace key to delete the character to the left of the cursor, or [DEL] to delete the character to the right of the cursor. This lets you delete one character at a time.

To delete more than one character:

1.   Mark the text to delete.

2.   Press [DEL] when you want to delete text from the current document but you have text on the Windows Clipboard that you want to keep.

If you want to cut text but save it to the Windows Clipboard:

1.   Select the text you want to cut.

2.   Click the Cut icon or press [CTRL] + X.


Formatting Text

The following commands will help you format text:

End a line	Press [ENTER].
Indent a line	Press [TAB].
Insert a tab	Press [TAB].
Insert a blank line	Move the insertion point to the beginning or end of a line, and then press [ENTER].


Marking Text

Move the insertion point to the beginning of the text to mark using arrow keys or mouse.

To mark text using the mouse:

1.   Hold down the left mouse button while you drag the mouse to the end of the text to mark. Marked text will show up in a contrasting color.

2.   When you have marked all the text you want, release the left mouse button.

To mark text using the keyboard:

1.   Hold down the [SHIFT] key while you move the insertion point using the arrow keys to the end of the text to mark.

2.   When you are finished marking text, release the [SHIFT] key.

[SHIFT] [HOME] marks everything from the current cursor position to the beginning of the line, while [SHIFT] [END] marks everything from the current cursor position to the end of the line. [SHIFT] [CTRL] [HOME] marks everything from the current cursor position to the beginning of the file, while [SHIFT] [CTRL] [END] marks everything from the current cursor position to the end of the line.


Lassoing text

To mark a rectangular area anywhere on your screen:

1.   Position your mouse at the point you want to begin marking.

2.   Hold down the[CTRL] key while you drag the mouse to the point where you want to end marking. Notice that the marked area is highlighted on your screen.

3.   You can then use the Block Fill command to change the foreground or background colors of the marked area.


Moving Text

1.   Mark the text to move.

2.   Cut the marked text to the Windows Clipboard using your mouse to select the menu command Edit/Cut, click the Cut icon or press [CTRL] + X.

3.   Move the insertion point to the place where you would like to move the selected text.

4.   Using your mouse, select the menu command Edit/Paste, or click the Paste icon, or press [CRTL] + V.


Drag-and-Dropping

You can also use the “drag and drop” feature.

1.   Mark the text to move.

2.   Click and hold the left mouse button. The cursor will change to a pointer.

3.   Drag the marked text to the location you want.

4.   Release the mouse button, and the marked text is automatically moved to the new location.

The new location does not need to be in the Editor. You can drag the text to the desktop or to any open application.


Undoing changes

You can undo changes, and restore your text to the way it was before you performed the most recent command, with the Edit/Undo command or  [CTRL] + Z.


Keypad Options

Select Tools/Keypad Options, press [F6] or click the Keypad Options icon. This window lets you assign frequently-used sets of ASCII characters (frequently used as drawing keys) to your numeric keypad.

Use your mouse to select a set of drawing keys. The active set is highlighted with a border.

When you press the corresponding keypad key, the assigned ASCII character will be placed in your file.


Adding non-keyboard characters

To place non-keyboard characters into your file, pop up the ASCII table with the r key, or click the ASCII Table icon.

Double-click the character from the extended ASCII table. The character selected is placed in your file at the cursor position.


Color Palette

1.   Select Tools/Color Palette, or click the Color Palette icon.

2.   Use your mouse to select a foreground color from the palette.

3.   To select a background color, click  your mouse on the lower box on the color bar, then select a background color from the palette.

Any new characters you type will appear in the foreground and background colors you selected.

You can change existing characters by marking the area and pressing o. The marked area will change to the currently selected colors.


Draw Box

To draw a box on the screen:

1.   Select the type of lines to use from the Tools/Line Options palette.

2.   Use the mouse to lasso the area of the box. (Hold [CTRL] while dragging the mouse button to mark the area you want a box in.)

3.   From the Tools menu, select Draw Box.

4.   A box appears in the marked area. This box will be displayed using the current color selections.


Drawing boxes

Creating fancy box menus or display files is easy with wcDraw’s line and box drawing features.

To use a single, double or combination line style:

1.   Press [ALT]+ [F5] before beginning to draw. The choices are presented as all single-line, all double-line, double-vertical with single-horizontal or single-vertical with double-horizontal.

2.   Select the line type that you want your box to have.

3.  Place your cursor where you want to begin drawing, then click the right mouse button and select Line Draw mode.

4.   Mouse users can move the current cursor position at any time during line drawing. Intersecting lines will be connected automatically.

The active mode will be indicated on the status line located at the bottom of the screen.


Block Fill

To apply foreground and background colors to a selected area:

1.   Select text using the mouse, or lasso a rectangular area.

2.   From the Tools menu, select Block Fill.

3.   Use the left mouse button to select a foreground color, and the right mouse button to select a background color.

4.   Click OK.


Line Draw

To draw lines on your screen:

1.   Select Line Options from the Tools menu.

2.   Turn on Line Draw mode from the Tools menu.

3.   Use your arrow keys to draw lines on your screen.

4.   When you are finished drawing lines, go back to the Tools menu and deselect Line Draw mode.


Adding display macros

The Wildcat! codes for system and user variables can be easily added to a file. Press [F8] to pop up a list of available display macros. Codes are grouped by function, and each code is followed by a brief description.

To place an display macro on your screen:

1.   Position the cursor at the location you want the expanded text to appear.

2.   Press [F8] and select the desired code from the window. Codes are placed at the cursor position and are always inserted, regardless of the status of whether the editor is in insert or overtype mode.

3.   When placing display macros remember that the actual text may be much longer than the code when it is expanded. Use the Tools/True View mode to check the display.

  Color codes


Color codes

User Defined color codes

You can define frequently-used color codes in the wcConfig COLORS section, and assign them to display macros. You can then apply the colors to display files created in wcDraw.

Some codes are used by the system. You can not redefine standard system colors.

Code	Description	Foregnd/Backgnd
@A@	Alternate title color	Green/Black
@B@	Menu border	Cyan/Black
@E@	Error color	Red/Black
@F@	Field color	White/Black
@H@	Highlight letter color	White/Black
@L@	Low light color	Gray/Black
@N@	Normal color	Yellow/Black
@O@	Menu title (alt)	Cyan/Dark Cyan
@P@	Menu title bar	Black/Dark Cyan
@Q@	Menu text item	Yellow/Dark Cyan
@R@	Reverse color	Black/Grey
@S@	Menu shadow	Grey/Dark Cyan
@T@	Title color	Cyan/Black
@U@	User input color	White/Black
Standard color codes

You can select standard color combinations by selecting the Standard Colors area of the color palette.


Adding/Changing colors

The active text color is indicated at the left end of the status line. The word Color shows the foreground and background colors wcDraw will use for text entry and color fill. To change the active color:

1.   Press  [F2] or select Tools/Color Palette for a color palette window.

2.   Use the mouse to move the color selection box around the palette. The active color is shown in the lower left corner of the palette window in the words Text Color.

3.   If you are selecting a user defined color, click on the assigned letter and press [ENTER] or double click on the letter.

4.   Once the desired color is selected, press [ENTER] or double-click on the color. You do not need to exit the palette to save your choice.  The selected color is then used for all text entry and paint commands until you change it again.

An alternative method for changing the active color is to move the cursor in the color palette to the new color you want and press [ALT] [U] (Use color) to make it the active color.

If you are using the standard color palette and want to redefine your colors:

1.   Click the left mouse button on the foreground color you want to use.

2.   Click the right mouse button on the background color to use, OR click the background section of the color icon, and a background color selection palette will pop up. Select the background color to use.


Quick color fill
The Quick Color Fill tool applies the current color selection, visible in the bottom right corner of the status line, to selected area.


Creating a hotspot menu

The hotspot menu is a special file that contains “link” codes that tell Wildcat! which file to load for each user selection. Here is an example of a bulletin hotspot menu, as it would appear to a caller:

  * This is a bulletin menu *

  [1] BBS Phone Numbers

  [2] Last ten callers

  [3] Newsletter

And here is how this bulletin menu file actually looks:

  * This is a bulletin menu *

  [1] @LINK SEL=1 TITLE=“BBS Phone Numbers” GOTO=bull1@

  [2] @LINK SEL=2 TITLE=“Last ten callers” GOTO=lastten@

  [3] @LINK SEL=3 TITLE=“Newsletter” GOTO=wc:\disp\newsltr@

Here’s how to create a hotspot menu:

1.   Type your heading, and any boxes or lines that you want the viewer to see. In the example, we’ve typed:

*This is a bulletin menu*

2.   Type the key that you want your users to press to open the display file. In the example above, the user will press “1” to open the files BULL11.BBS. This file is Bulletin #11, a list of BBS phone numbers.

3.   Type the display macro to link the selection key to the file.

Display macros for hotspots are a little more complex than regular display macros. Menu hotspot codes are made up of three components, and the entire hotspot is enclosed in @ signs. The three components are:

1.	SEL =  The selection key for the menu item.

1.	TITLE=  The title of the menu item, as it appears on the caller’s screen.

1.	GOTO=  The file to display in response to the key selection.

1.   In the example above, the correct display macro to add our BULL11. file by pressing the 1 key is

@LINK SEL=1 TITLE=“BBS Phone Numbers” GOTO=bull1@

2.   Follow the steps above for each file you want your callers to access from this menu.

3.   Save your new Bulletin menu using the .BBS extension.

NOTES about hotspot menus:

You may notice that the first two links in the example do not specify a path for the files BULL11 and LASTTEN. Wildcat! will look for these files in the same directory from which BULLETIN.BBS is displayed.  File extensions are optional.

It’s not necessary to name your bulletins BULL#.BBS. However, Wildcat! only scans for new bulletins that are named BULL#.BBS where # is a number consisting of one to four digits.

In our example, the third link is a little different. The third link loads the NEWSLTR.BBS file from the display directory, as defined in wcConfig.

wcDraw supports long filenames. Remember, when using these long filenames, be sure to put quote marks around the entire file path. For example, you could use a file named “display file with a very long name.bbs”, but you would type it in as:

“wc:\disp\display file with a very long name.bbs”

Notes about hotspot links:

There are two types of links in a hotspot menu  links to other display files and links to a program. The example above (of our Bulletin menu) shows how to link to a display file.

To link to another program, such as a questionnaire, add a ! (exclamation point, or “bang”) in front of the program to run, and enclose the entire GOTO link in quotation marks. For example, to link a questionnaire named QUES2 using the selection key 2, you would use the link:

[2]  @LINK SEL=2 TITLE=“Questionnaire 2” GOTO=“!QUES QUES2”@


Creating a Quote of the Day file

QUOTES.BBS is different from other display files, so some additional explanation is in order. Extracts from this file are displayed automatically to the caller during the logon process if QUOTES.BBS exists in the default conference display file path. A sample QUOTES.BBS file is included with Wildcat!. You can put any text you’d like in your quote of the day file.

To create your own QUOTES.BBS file:

1.   Create a new file named QUOTES.BBS. You can use wcDraw or any simple text editor.

2.   Type your first quote. The first entry must begin on the first line of the file.

3.   When you have typed in the quote, press  [ENTER] twice.

4.   You can press [ENTER]  in your quote to jump to the next line, but Wildcat! will not detect a new quote until it sees TWO carriage returns.

5.   Type your next quote.

6.   Press [ENTER] twice.

7.   Continue until you have added all the quotes you want to your file. Your QUOTES.BBS files may be as long as you’d like.

8.   Save QUOTES.BBS and make sure it is in your default conference display file path. When your users call in, a Quote of the Day will automatically be displayed to them.

Here is an example of a QUOTES.BBS file:

This line is quote number 1 [ENTER]
[ENTER]
These lines are all part of quote number 2, and regardless of [ENTER]
the length of the lines [ENTER]
this will be displayed as quote number 2 until [ENTER]
two consecutive carriage [ENTER]
returns are encountered. [ENTER]
[ENTER]
This is quote number 3. [ENTER]
[ENTER]

And so on for the length of the file.

When Wildcat! is run for the first time, it initializes a pointer to the first record in QUOTES.BBS. Thereafter, during each new logon, the user sees the next sequential quote in the file. In other words, if your board receives 50 calls a day, and you have 50 different quotes in QUOTES.BBS, each caller would receive a different quote. Starting with the 51st caller, the file would recycle to the first quote in the file.

To disable the Quote of the Day feature, delete QUOTES.BBS from your default conference display file path.


Adding music to display files

You may want to add music to your ANSI display files, for your callers using QmodemPro or another communications program capable of interpreting the ANSI music characters. Music will be generated on the PC’s speaker only if the following conditions are met:

1.   QmodemPro (or your communications program) is configured for ANSI terminal emulation.

2.   QmodemPro’s Music Toggle is ON.

3.   QmodemPro receives encoded music data.

To be recognized by QmodemPro, encoded music data must conform to the following format:

ESC [M ........ music codes ........ ^N

A good manual on the modern BASIC language should contain further information on the PLAY statement. Music strings must end with the [CTRL] + N (^N) character. If the ^N character is missing, it is assumed by QmodemPro that the following text, up to 255 characters, is playable music.


Prompt files
Prompt files are display files with a special purpose. These are files used to “prompt” the caller to perform an action. Each language can have its own set of prompt files. Prompt files are kept in a subdirectory of the language file. This subdirectory has the same name as the language file as specified in wcConfig. Each prompt file has a .PRM extension.

You can use display macros and color code macros when creating these files.

Wildcat! comes with a set of default prompt files, located in the default language directory.


Open file file name
 Displays the currently selected file.


Open file language
 Displays the currently selected language. Select the language you want to use from the drop down box.


Open file file type
Displays the type of file currently selected. Select the type of file you want to use from the drop down box by clicking the arrow at the right.


Open file file list
 Displays the files available in this conference, language, and folder. Click on a file to highlight it. Double click on a file to open it.


Open file folders
 Displays the conferences available. Click on a conference to highlight it. The files in that conference will then be displayed.


OK button
 Accept your selections.


Apply button
 Applies your selections and continues without closing the window.


Cancel button
Cancels you selections and closes without making changes.


Help button
Launches the online help system.


save as file name
 Type the name you want to use to save the file.


save as language
 Select the language you want to save the file in from the drop down box.


$ save as file type Displays the type of file currently selected. Select the type of file you want to save the file as from the drop down box by clicking the arrow at the right.


save file list
 Displays the files available in this conference, language, and folder. Click on a file to highlight it. This saves the file with the marked name. Note that the old file with this name is overwritten.


save as folders
 Displays the conferences available. Click on a conference to highlight it. The files in that conference will then be displayed.


Color palette user colors
 Activates the User defined colors scheme macros. These colors are either predefined and not editable, or user defined. Changing a color scheme here changes the colors in all instances of the display macro.


Color palette standard colors
 Activates the standard color palette, allowing you to select foreground and background colors for the selected text.


Add link macro
 Type the title for this link. This is what the caller will see.


Add link macro selection
 Type the key that you want the caller to use to select this link macro.


Add link macro goto
Type the actual link parameter. This is the file that should actually be displayed.


Block fill Foreground
 Fills the foreground of the marked area with the selected color. Select the color you want for the foreground (actual text or lines). The selected color appears in the "example" area to the immediate right of the color palette.


Block fill Background
 Fills the background of the marked area with the selected color. The background color palette is active. Select the color you want for the background of the text or lines. The selected color appears in the "example" area to the immediate right of the color palette.


Block fill both
 Activates Fills the marked area with the selected color combination. The selected colors appear in the "example" area to the immediate right of the color palette.


Edit Goto number
 Type the number of the line to go to and click OK. The cursor will appear at the selected line in the active file.