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──────────────────────────────────────────
10 - DEFINITIONS
──────────────────────────────────────────
Active Layer The active layer is the one
in which you are actually drawing and is
always SCreen 1. The active layer can also
be seen and may be overlaid with the
visual layer.
ASCII <F6 T a, A> ASCII text files can be
imported into a drawing. Position cursor
to the line you want the file to start
displaying at. <a> will stop at the end of
the screen while <A> will continue to the
end of the file. Hit <Esc> to stop.
Animate <F7 a> <F7 Alt-s> Once an object
has been copied or erased with <F7> it can
be moved about on the screen. Animate
allows you to see the object as it moves
to aid in proper positioning. Several
other functions automatically switch to
the animation mode to allow proper object
or text placement. Animation can also be
used with the Key Macro command to jazz up
slide shows. If the animated area is large
the object will tend to flash as it is
moved. The visual horizon can be set to
allow animated objects to disappear below
the horizon. <Alt-s>mear can also be used
to do animation over a blank background.
Figure 10-1 shows a screen from SLIDEMO
that uses <Alt-s> to animate the manned
submersible.
DEFINITIONS 10-1
[recov]
Figure 10-1 Submersible Launch and Recov-
ery using a Motion Compensated Crane.
Angle <[>, <]>, <{>, <}> The angle from
the cursor to the last measured point is,
starting with verison 3.50, constantly
displayed on the prompt line along with
the distance to the measure point and the
x and y coordinates. <[> will rotate the
cursor position counter-clockwise around
the measure point using the cursor speed
step to determine the angle while <]> will
do the same in a clockwise fashion. <{>
rotates counter-clockwise in 90 degree
increments, while <}> rotates clockwise.
The above rotation commands work anytime
the cursor can be moved around the screen
including during line drawing, rectangle,
polygon, animate, and smear. Figure 10-2
shows a logo created with the aid of
angle.
DEFINITIONS 10-2
[logo1]
Figure 10-2 Logo for a letterhead.
Arc <F3 a, A> Arcs are drawn using <F3>.
First move cursor to center. Then mark the
radius and end point followed by the sec-
ond end point. Arcs are always drawn coun-
terclockwise. Pie shaped arcs can be drawn
using <F3 A> and proceeding as with a reg-
ular arc. To draw an elliptical arc use
<$> to modify the screen aspect ratio just
before selecting the first end point. Be
sure to reset the proper aspect ratio
after drawing the arc.
Area <F1 c> The area of an object and the
center of that area can be calculated
based on the color set by <F10>. Calcu-
late works by looking for a color, so to
get the area of a circle for example, the
circle must be painted in, otherwise you
are getting something closer to the per-
imeter than the area. Also see Mass and
Center.
DEFINITIONS 10-3
Arrows <F2 a, Alt-a> Arrows at 45 degree
increments and almost any size can be
added to the screen. The arrow will point
<u>p, <d>own, <l>eft, <r>ight, <e>
up-right, <f> down right, <g> down-left,
and <h> up-left. Set the direction the
arrow is to point and use <u>p and <d>own
to change the size before saving the
arrow. The amount of size change with each
<u> or <d> is a function of the <F9> speed
setting. Arrow color is determined by
<F10>. <F2 a> produces an outline of an
arrow, while <F2 Alt-a> produces a filled
in arrow. An arrow symbol could as be
created with <F6> and rotated to any
angle.
[bspline]
B-Spline <F3 b> Complex
curves can be difficult to
draw with just the cursor
keys, but with <F3 b> you
can let the program con-
nect the dots that you
enter and create smooth
curves. This is a great feature for those,
like myself, that are not artistically
inclined. It makes complex curves easy
from the keyboard. Figure 10-3 shows a
simple b-spline curve.
Background <F5 b>, <F5 c>, <F5, C>, <B>
The screen background color can be set in
medium resolution mode by using the space
bar to page through the colors and the
<ENTER> to fix the desired color. The
background can also be set in high resolu-
tion using <F5 C> and <F5 c>. <B>ackground
sets the color that is used for the back-
ground during many operations. See Spray
paint and Fade for more information.
DEFINITIONS 10-4
BAS File extension for BASICA program. <F7
C>opy can save a screen image as a BASICA
subroutine that can be merged into your
own program. This is useful for including
logos or for creating graphic game pro-
grams. See BASICA manual for information
on merging programs. The subroutine when
called will load an array with the data to
create the image. Use the PUT command to
place the image on the screen.
BASIC is ideal for working with graphics
on a CGA since it contains just about all
of the commands you need to manipulate the
screen and graphics. Other languages
require the use of libraries to get the
graphics functions provided in BASIC.
Some insight into the operation of PC-KEY-
DRAW is possible from the BASIC manual.
In particular look at the graphics com-
mands of PUT, GET, DRAW, LINE, CIRCLE,
and PSET.
Box <F2 r>, <F2 R>, <F2 Alt-r>, <F2 s>,
<F2 S> A box is a rectangle or square.
Start by positioning one of the corners.
Selecting a <r> will display the rectangle
as you move the cursor. Position box as
desired and mark. <R> displays the box and
it is copied into <F7> automatically.
<Alt-r> produces a filled in rectangle at
the color set by <F10>. <s> produces a
rectangular series of dots at the color
set by <F10> in light, medium or dark
shading. <S> functions the same as <R>.
CAMERA A public domain screen capture pro-
gram is included with PC-KEY-DRAW to aid
capturing graphics from other programs.
Run CAMERA from DOS, enter program to dis-
play the desired graphic image, use <Ctrl-
ALT-Right Shift> to grab screen.
DEFINITIONS 10-5
Center animated area <C> Centers the ani-
mated object on the screen.
Center of area <F1 c>, <F1 Alt-c> The cen-
ter of an area or the center of mass of an
object can be calculated. See Area and
Mass for more information. Figure 10-4
shows the results from calculation.
[calc]
Figure 10-4 Center and area being calcu-
lated. The units for the center dimensions
is inches and for the area square inches.
Center of circle <C> The last center of a
circle can be located by <C> in the CURSOR
MODE.
Circle <F3 c> Circles are drawn by first
marking the center and then the radius of
the circle. Use <$> to match the screen
aspect ratio of your monitor and/or
printer. <$> only effects circles drawn
after a change and not already drawn
circles. To change a circle once it is
drawn use <F1> Flip to compress the screen
in the appropriate direction.
DEFINITIONS 10-6
Circle Center Lines <F3 Ctrl-c>, <F3
Ctrl-e> Center lines for circles and
ellipse are automatically drawn using <F3>
<Ctrl-c> or <Ctrl-e>. Start by placing
cursor at center of circle or ellipse and
making selection and then moving cursor to
desired size and selecting <ENTER>.
Color <F5 c>, <F5 C>, <F10> Three color
palettes are available with three colors
each plus a background color in medium
resolution from the standard color board.
<F5 c> will toggle between the three. 15
unichrome colors are also available in
medium resolution by selecting <C>. 15
colors in high resolution are also avail-
able with <c>. <F10> will select the
active color from a given palette for use.
The current color is displayed on the
prompt line as a number to the right of
the appropriately colored box. Some
actions are color specific. If the action
does not seem to work it may be that the
color is set wrong. <F5> allows color
mixes for a total of 29 colors per pal-
ette. With a composite monitor 16 of the
color mixes become distinct colors. For
best results set the color palette to pal-
ette 0 or 2 (RED GREEN YELLOW).
Configure <Ctrl-s> PC-KEY-DRAW must be
configured to your particular system and
desires. This is done by selecting
<Ctrl-s>tatus from the CURSOR MODE and
modifying the Configuration Screen as
desired. In particular the disks that you
have available must be set. The printer
can also be configured for zoom printing.
See Status and Appendix B: for additional
information. The key macro command is
ideal for configuring the program to your
personal requirements. Key macros can be
DEFINITIONS 10-7
called from DOS when calling the program
so that each time you enter PC-KEY-DRAW it
can be set just as you like, beyond what
is saved in the Status Screen.
Coordinates PC-KEY-DRAW was originally
intended for CAD work and as such the cur-
sor position coordinates were always dis-
played on the prompt line as the cursor is
moved. In addition to the x and y coordi-
nates the distance to the measure point
and the angle to the point are also dis-
played. When using PC-KEY-DRAW as a paint
program it may not be desirable to have
the cursor coordinate readout. Use <Alt-q>
to toggle between display on and off.
Copy <F7 c>, <F7 C>, <F7 Ctrl-c> Enclose
area is copied into <F7> buffer to be used
with smear, move, etc. <C> copies area and
allows user to save that portion of the
screen on disk. Enter name of file includ-
ing drive. No extension on the name will
result in the program adding a PIC. A FIG
extension allows partial screens or even
entire screens to be saved in an ASCII
file format. Use <F7 o> to get old or pre-
viously copied areas onto the screen from
the disk. A PIC extension added to the
name will save the enclosed portion of the
drawing in a format compatible with many
other graphics programs allowing inter-
change. The PIC extension is the most com-
pact on disk and is the default extension.
A BAS extension will save the copied area
as a BASICA subroutine for use in user
generated graphics programs. A FNT exten-
sion saves the copied area a part of a
font file under the character specified.
<Ctrl-c> copies the same size area as last
copied without enclosing it first.
DEFINITIONS 10-8
Cursor <F6 c> Lines can be drawn with the
cursor. The line color can be changed at
will during drawing. Use <F6 e>nd to end
and save to the screen. The entire cursor
key pad can be used, thus 45 degree lines
are possible.
CURSOR MODE Anytime the cursor can be
moved around on the screen using the cur-
sor keys or a mouse. If no activities are
pending the words CURSOR MODE is displayed
on the prompt line. The opposite of the
CURSOR MODE is MENU MODE, when moving the
cursor keys moves you through a menu and
doesn't move the cursor. If cursor wrap is
on (default condition), when the cursor is
moved off the edge of the screen it wraps
around to the other side. When off the
cursor will stop at the edge of the draw-
ing area.
Cursor Type <Alt-c> Three cursor types are
available and can be readily selected with
<Alt-c> from the CURSOR MODE or during
configuration. Cursor 0 is a small dot
that is the same as early versions. Cursor
1 is a small arrow that points to the
active area. Cursor 2 is a full screen
cross hair. Which cursor you use depends
on a lot of factors, each has its advan-
tages and disadvantages for a giving draw-
ing task.
Cursor Wrap <_> Prior to version 3.50
when the cursor was moved off the screen
the it would wrap around to the other
side. Use <_> to turn wrap off so that
the cursor will stop at the edge of the
screen and not wrap. When wrap is turned
off a line (_) is displayed under the cur-
sor speed value.
DEFINITIONS 10-9
Customizing PC-KEY-DRAW provides flexi-
bility in customizing the program to an
individuals tastes or needs. KD-DRAW.TXT
can be readily modified with any text edi-
tor to provide different prompts. Care
must be taken to conform to the conven-
tions of the existing file. This is not a
task for the novice. The macro files when
used in a HOT key file make for an ideal
method of customizing PC-KEY-DRAW. Macro
files for particular uses can be created
and combined into a HOT key file. Differ-
ent HOT key files for different tasks can
be kept on disk and called up when needed
with <Alt-k f>unction key set.
DAT Data file extension containing scale
information for full screen saves. These
files can be erased to gain more disk
space, but the scale for a picture will
become pixel scaling.
Date <Alt-d> the DOS date can be displayed
at the specified location on the screen.
(see also Time)
Delete File See Kill.
Delete Lines <F7 Alt-l> Horizontal lines
can be deleted from the cursor position.
The number of lines that will be deleted
is dependent on the cursor speed setting
as shown on the prompt line.
Direct Coordinate Entry <x> the x and y
coordinates can be entered directly if
desired. Direct coordinate entry can be
used from the CURSOR MODE or while in one
of the main menus.
DEFINITIONS 10-10
Directory <F8 d #>, <F6 o #>, <F6 E #>,
<F6 T a #>, <F7 o #>, <F7 C #>, <F8 o #>,
<F8 Ctrl-o>, <F8 Alt-o>, <F8 s #>, <F1
Ctrl-z o #>, <Alt-k r #>, <Alt-k c #>
Where "#" is the drive letter to see the
directory of. The complete disk directory
for any drive is found with <F8 d> fol-
lowed by a single drive letter or complete
drive\path specification. If <=> is used
ahead of the drive\path the drive\path
will be kept as the default for saving and
loading the various files. Partial direc-
tories can be obtained with the other
listed functions by entering the drive
followed by a <ENTER> when asked for file
name. Only those files that pertain to a
given directive will be shown. To be able
to use the partial directory capability be
sure to let the program add the required
extension. The extension names are con-
tained in KD-DRAW.TXT and can be changed
if desired to avoid conflicting with other
programs.
Disable Workspace Set the update frequency
to 0 to disable the updating of the work-
space. This can be used for macros when
space is not available for a workspace, or
when a workspace is not desired.
Display <F8 Alt-o> screens can be loaded
in 1 of 5 display forms for use in slide
shows.
1. Fade In
2. Pull Down
3. Pull Up
4. Pull Left
5. Pull Right
DEFINITIONS 10-11
Dot <F6 d> Single pixel dots are placed by
marking the correct spot with a <ENTER>.
<F10> determines the color of the dot. The
dot can also be made as large as desired
using the width command from the CURSOR
MODE.
Down <F6 T d> To place text vertically
and running down the screen use <F6 T d>.
Edge Detection See Image Processing.
Ellipse <F3 e> As with circles and arcs
the ellipse is drawn by first marking its
center. The horizontal radius and vertical
radius must also be marked. The radius is
marked by moving the cursor keys over and
up.
End <F6 e>, <F6 E> With the exception of
text, all functions in <F6> must be ended.
If a line drawing is ended with <E> the
drawing is saved as a vector for later
use. See Line.
Erase <F7 e>, <F7 E>, <F7 Alt-e>, <F7
Ctrl-e> To erase an area enclose it in a
box as with copy. With <e> the area will
be erased and saved to the <F7> buffer for
use with move, animate, etc. With <Alt-e>
the area is erased but not saved. <Ctrl-e>
will erase a circular portion of the
screen. <E> erases an area and switches
to animate mode to allow quick and easy
movement of a portion of a screen.
Exit <F1-F8 n>; <F8 e> A function can be
exited with <n>, <Esc>, </>, or <Space
Bar>. The program is exited to DOS with
<F8 e>.
DEFINITIONS 10-12
Extension File extensions for the various
files used by PC-KEY-DRAW have been pre-
defined, however they can be easily
changed to what ever you prefer, by edit-
ing the file KD-DRAW.TXT with any text
editor. This manual assumes they have been
kept as originally defined. See the Sec-
tion on Libraries for more information.
Fade <F4 f>, <F4 Alt-f> Objects can be
faded to the background by color using <f>
or all colors can be faded using <Alt-f>.
Fatbits <F1 Ctrl-z> editing of screens at
the pixel level is possible using <F1
Ctrl-z>. Enclosed area to be edited in
fixed sized box. If you want to edited a
larger area select <Ctrl-z> a second time
to display 8 boxes in high resolution or 4
boxes in medium resolution. Select <ENTER>
to reach the editing stage. Set the color
of each individual pixel by specifying the
appropriate number (0,1,2,3). Use <t>race
to draw by selecting <t> and then the
color to be used. Selecting <t> a second
time turns off the trace. Use <Ctrl-PgUp>
and <Ctrl-PgDn> to move through multiple
screens. Use <Esc> to exit. Starting
with version 3.50 Fatbits has been signif-
icantly improved to provide greater flexi-
bility in editing by providing a scroll
feature and eliminating the need for the
multiple page approach which is retain for
backward compatibility only. Scrolling is
activated with <Alt-s>croll, after which
the cursor keys or mouse will move the
screen window in the direction selected.
It is possible to scroll over the entire
screen. <Alt-s> a second time will turn
scrolling off. Trace can be used with
scroll. Upon exiting the area covered is
copied and available in <F7>.
DEFINITIONS 10-13
FIG Figures-see Copy. File is saved in an
ASCII format.
Fill <F5 f>, <F5 Alt-f> Areas that can be
painted can be filled instead. The program
comes with 64 patterns on KD-PTRN.PIC.
These patterns can be changed or modified
as desired and resaved (see section for F7
for handling PIC files). <Alt-f> allows
any PIC file to be called in to act as a
pattern file. The file called becomes the
default (until program is exited) and will
be used the next time <F5 f> is called.
Fillet <F3 f> Automatic fillets to 90
degree corners are created by drawing a
box around corner to set the radius.
Flip <F1 f>, <F1 F> Flip has a variety of
uses. Think of it as rotating the screen
through an angle. This can be used to com-
press the image and is useful in matching
completed screen to printer. <f> is used
to flip a portion of the screen, while <F>
is used to flip the entire screen.
FNT Font file. This ending must be speci-
fied to save part of a screen as a font. A
single file contains all of the font
information for the specified characters.
[softnow]
Figure 10-5 3-dimensional text created by
modifing one of the alternate text fonts
supplied with PC-KEY-DRAW.
DEFINITIONS 10-14
Fonts Two standard fonts are built into
the program. Which one is used depends on
which mode the program is operating in
(high or medium resolution). The standard
text fonts are retrieved with <F6 t>, <F6
T>, <F6 Ctrl-t>. Alternate text fonts can
be created, saved and recalled. The fonts
can be created using any and all of the
program functions. To save a font use <F7
C>opy to copy each individual letter. A
given font should be saved to the same
file with an FNT extension. Fonts are
recalled as needed with <F6 Alt-t> by typ-
ing in the text and specifying the font to
use. Figure 10-6 shows what can be done in
minutes using the four supplied fonts com-
bined with other program functions. The
"CREATE-A-FONT" title was done in several
steps, including <F7 S> and <F1
Ctrl-s>lide. Italics are easily created
using <F1 s>lide and a step of 15. <F1
z>oom allows you to set the number of
steps in a zoom to produce the "ZOOM STEP"
text. Library Disk #3 contains 14 addi-
tional text fonts along with several very
useful macros for creating BOLD, 3-D text,
outlined text and overlaid text quickly
and easily from any of the text fonts.
[create]
Figure 10-6 Simple font modifications.
DEFINITIONS 10-15
Freehand drawing <F6 c> While there are a
variety of methods that can be used in the
program to do freehand drawing, the most
common is to set the cursor to continuous
with <F6 c> and to draw with the cursor
keys or a mouse. The color of the line can
be set with F10 and the drawing can be
temporarily suspended with a <Space Bar>
or second mouse key, then restarted with
an <ENTER> or the first mouse button. <F6
c>ursor acts in much the same way as an
Etch-A-Sketch and as such has some limita-
tion. <F6 l>ine is the preferred method
of drawing lines, since the width can be
set and the <Backspace> can be used to
back up and correct mistakes. Both <l>ine
and <c>ursor must be ended by returning to
<F6> and <e>nding.
FUN Computer graphics are not only very
useful, but can be a whole lot of fun.
GRAPHICS To print a screen on most print-
ers, GRAPHICS.COM must be run first.
GRAPHICS.COM comes with all versions of
DOS and can be part of an AUTOEXEC.BAT,
KD.BAT or run directly from DOS. With
GRAPHICS loaded a <Shft-PrtSc> will send
the screen image to the printer.
GRAFTABL When in the graphics mode of a
CGA, ASCII values greater than 127 are not
defined by default. GRAFTABL is supplied
with DOS 3.* to define the ASCII charac-
ters above 127 as the same as what they
would be in a text mode. Load GRAFTABL as
part of your AUTOEXEC.BAT to use the ASCII
characters 128 to 255. It is also possible
to define your own set of high bit charac-
ters.
DEFINITIONS 10-16
Grid <g>, <Ctrl-g>, <Alt-g> A grid made of
dots can be placed or removed with <g>
from the CURSOR MODE. A grid made of lines
is placed with <Alt-g>. Version 3.50 adds
a third grid type with <Ctrl-g>, that pro-
vides lines that are XORed with the screen
for easier view of what is under the grid.
The user must specify the spacing between
grid points. The color of grid is set by
the current active color when <g> or
<Alt-g> are selected. The grids reside on
a separate layer and do not become part of
the drawing.
Grid Jump <Ctrl-Right Arrow> <Ctrl-Left
Arrow> When using the keyboard to move the
cursor <Ctrl-Right Arrow> will jump to the
nearest grid point to the right, while
<Ctrl-Left Arrow> will jump to the nearest
grid point to the left of the current cur-
sor position.
Help <h>, <H> Help information is avail-
able in the CURSOR MODE or when entering
any function. Selecting <?>, <h> or <H>
the first time will turn on the pull down
menus. Selecting <h>elp a second time will
display a disk file as appropriate for the
section you are in. <H> or <?> is used to
turn off the pull down menus from the CUR-
SOR MODE. Help is available from the CUR-
SOR MODE or anytime the menu is displayed
on the prompt line. Selecting help while
in the PAN mode (<Ctrl-Home>) will display
a map of the current page in relation to
the 64 pages.
DEFINITIONS 10-17
Hot Keys <Shft-F1 to F8>, <Ctrl-F1 to
F10>, <Alt-F1 to F9> 27 hot keys can be
defined to customize PC-KEY-DRAW to your
own personal needs and desires. KD-
DRAW.HOT contains the names of key macros
(previously created) that are activated
with one of the hot keys. The name of the
HOT key file to use is set with <Alt-k
f>unction. The default name is KD-
DRAW.HOT, but as many HOT key files as
desired can be created and kept on disk.
HOT key files may consist only of macro
names associated with the HOT keys, so
that the particular file is called and run
when its HOT key is selected. HOT key
files can also be compiled with MAKHOT-
LIB.EXE to create a single file that
includes both the function key definitions
and the macros themselves. Compiled HOT
key files have a great advantage in mini-
mizing the disk space required for macros.
[imagepro]
Figure 10-7 Basic image processing is pos-
sible with PC-KEY-DRAW. A digitized image
in original form is shown along with pro-
cessing for vertical edge, horizontal
edge, and both edge enhancement.
DEFINITIONS 10-18
Image Processing Basic image processing is
possible on digitized or scanned images.
Figure 10-7 shows a sample picture with
vertical edge, horizontal edge, and both
edge enhancement/detection. Edge detection
is accomplished with the aid of <F7 c>opy
and <F7 m>. For vertical edge detection,
copy the image, move one pixel to the left
and move the image in place. For horizon-
tal edge detection start with a clean
image, copy the image, move one pixel
down, and move the image in place.
Insert line <F7 l> Horizontal lines can be
inserted at the cursor position. The num-
ber of lines inserted is determined by the
setting of the cursor speed, as displayed
on the prompt line. Inserting a line sim-
ply puts space at the cursor position.
Isometric Drawing <i> Toggles the isomet-
ric drawing mode. When activated the cur-
sor moves at a 30 or 60 degree angle
instead of a 45 degree angle. Circles are
also adjusted accordingly. Figure 10-8
shows a drawing made with the aid of the
isometric mode.
[table]
Figure 10-8 Drawing made in isometric
mode.
DEFINITIONS 10-19
Joystick Any standard joystick can be used
with version 3.50 or later of PC-KEY-DRAW.
All references to mice also apply to joy-
sticks.
Jump <j> The joystick and mouse sensiti-
vity is set by the <j>ump factor. A sen-
sitivity number of 5 seems to be good for
a mouse, while 10 works well with a joy-
stick. The jump factor can be saved to
disk with <Ctrl-s Ctrl-s>.
Jump <Ctrl-J>, <Alt-#> Where # is a number
from 0 to 9 inclusive. Allows a screen
position to be set and remembered. First
position the cursor as desired, select
<Ctrl-j>ump or <Ctrl-ENTER> and then
<Alt-#> where # is a number from 0 to 9.
The screen positioned is now remembered on
disk for future use. At any time select
<Alt-#> to jump to the remembered position
instantly. For compatibility with past
versions keep <Alt-1> as 0,0. (Top left
corner) KD-DRAW.JMP is created the first
time a jump position is set.
KD-TRANS.EXE (PC-KEY-DRAW macro TRANSla-
tor) provides easier editing of macro
files by translating keystroke codes into
the names of the keystrokes. While MaCRo
files can be edited directly with many
text editors, it is easier to first trans-
late the MaCRo file to a TeXT file. After
editing use KD-TRANS.EXE to translate back
to a MaCRo file. KD-TRANS.EXE must be
called from DOS.
DEFINITIONS 10-20
Keep <k> While putting a box around an
object or drawing a circle the drawing is
modified by the box. When the <ENTER> is
hit to complete the box the screen is
first restored and then the action takes
place. Sometimes the effect is desirable.
While in the CURSOR MODE selecting <k>
keeps the drawing as it is seen at that
moment. Using <k> will also keep the grid,
help screen, or layer and should be used
with care.
Key Macro <Alt-k> This is a very powerful
feature of Version 3 and potentially the
most useful. I have yet to fully examine
all of the uses, but they include at a
minimum, macros, slide shows with anima-
tion, drawing saves, program customiza-
tion. Several commands such as <*>,
<Alt-v>isual horizon, <Alt-1>, and
<Alt-p>ause have been added specifically
for use with key macros. The demo/tutorial
supplied with the program is a sample of
using a key macro as a slide show. Basi-
cally, what a key macro does is to remem-
ber every key stroke that you make and
save them to an ASCII sequential file for
later retrieval. The file that is saved
consists of the key stroke code followed
by the number of times the key is struck.
The files produced are very small and
offer the maximum use of disk space. A Key
Macro is started by selecting <Alt-k>
while in the CURSOR MODE and assigning a
name to a file to be created. Everything
after this is recorded until <Alt-k> is
selected a second time. Selecting <Alt-k>
a third time allows the just saved key
macro to be run. (See the section on the
Key Macro command)
DEFINITIONS 10-21
Kill <F8 k) Unwanted files can be removed
from a disk by using kill and specifying
the complete name including the drive
designation.
Layers <l>, <L>, <Ctrl-l>, <Alt-l> Up to
64 layers or overlays can be used to aid
in creating drawings. Layers can be
thought of as drawing on clear sheets.
Only the active layer is modified, but
other layers can be visual if desired. It
takes about 1 meg. of memory to handle 64
layers so it is only practical with a hard
disk or better yet a RAM disk. (See RAM
Disk) When layers are active scrolling of
1/2 pages is disabled. Use <Alt-l> to com-
pletely turn off layers.
Lines <F6 l> Lines are drawn by marking
successive end points with <ENTER>. As
the line is drawn, its length and angle
are displayed on the prompt line. Lines
are used to generate vector objects that
can be saved and retrieved at a later time
at any angle or scale. <F6 e>nd will save
the line to the screen only. <F6 E>nd will
save the line to the screen and to a user
specified file as a vector. The object is
saved with scaling so that when it is
recalled it can be matched to the scale of
the drawing in progress. Vectors are use-
ful for flow chart symbols, or for other
commonly used line objects where scale and
angle are important. Use the <SPACE BAR>
to temporarily suspend line drawing and
the <Back Space> to back up. Width and
color can be set as desired. Lines can
also be drawn with <F6 c>ursor. See Cur-
sor for more information.
DEFINITIONS 10-22
Macros <Alt-k> Keystroke macros can be
<c>reated or <r>un. A macro saves the
keystrokes entered in the program while
during macro creation. The saved key-
strokes can then be played back. Macros
can be used to automate frequently
repeated keystrokes, used to save an
entire drawing or used to create a self
running slide show demo. <Alt-k f>unction
lets you change which HOT key file is used
to define the function keys.
MAKHOTLIB.EXE (MAKe HOT key LIBrary) HOT
key files can be compiled (libraried) to
include all of the various macros called
in the HOT key file. MAKHOTLIB.EXE must
be run from DOS. It will create a blank
KD-DRAW.HOT if one is not found in the
current directory. The file can then be
edited, with a standard text editor, to
add the names of macros to be called when
a function key is selected. If MAKHOT-
LIB.EXE is run when KD-DRAW.HOT exists, it
will compile the file by combining it with
all of the macro files that it can find in
the current directory. Use unlibraried HOT
key files for testing and libraried/com-
piled HOT key files for distribution.
Mass <F1 C> The mass of an object and the
center of mass can be calculated based on
user supplied density parameters for each
color. See Area and Center.
MCR macro file extension.
Measure <m>, <M>, <Alt-m> the distance
between two points can be measured by
marking one end with a <m> and moving the
cursor to the second point. The distance
is displayed on the prompt line. Measure
is always active and gives the radius of
DEFINITIONS 10-23
circles, the dimensions of boxes, and the
length of lines. <M> moves the cursor to
the last measured point. (See Scale).
<Alt-m> allows you to set the scale on the
fly. First mark a point with <m> then
move a known distance and with <Alt-m>
tell PC-KEY-DRAW what that distance is.
Menu <Space>, <F1 to F8> PC-KEY-DRAW pro-
vides two basic methods of entering a com-
mand. The command can be entered directly
for fastest operation or selected from a
menu. Version 3.50 provides full menu sup-
port for nearly every command available.
Menus can be supplemented by turning on
the help menu in the top left corner of
the screen. To enter the primary menu
select <Space> then move thru the menu
with the cursor keys. When the desired
function is displayed hit <ENTER> to move
to the next menu, then move through the
menu with the cursor keys to highlight the
desired function and hit enter to start
that function. Any menu item can be
reached directly by hitting the high-
lighted key combination directly. Remember
lowercase, uppercase, control and alter-
nate have a somewhat different effect for
each command. In the menu the need for
shift is displayed with a "S", control
with "C", and alternate with "A".
Merge <F7 m> Two screens can be merged
together as one. Start by loading <F10
o>ld the first screen into either SCreen 1
or SCreen 2. Switch to SCreen F7 and load
the screen to be merged. Switch back to
the first screen and put the cursor in the
top left hand corner. Select <F7> then
<m>, <M> or <Ctrl-m> for the desired
result.
DEFINITIONS 10-24
Mirror <F1 m>, <F1 M> Objects can be mir-
rored using <m>. The entire screen can be
mirrored either horizontally or vertically
with <M>. Figure 10-9 shows a screen
that was created by a macro that mirrored
horizontally, then vertically and then
called itself and let run on GIRL.SCN. A
mirrored JOES was added and that was it.
[injoes]
Figure 10-9 Bar scene at Joes create by a
recursive macro using only <F1 m>.
Mode <Shft-Tab>, <Alt-r> Two screen modes
are available. Mode 2 is the high resolu-
tion mode (640X200) and mode 1 is the
medium and color mode. (320X200) You can
readily switch between the two to achieve
desired results. Virtually all of func-
tions available in the color mode are
available in the high resolution mode.
Each mode has its advantages for different
applications and systems. Sometimes when
an object is copied with <F7> in one mode
and moved into another mode the object
will be distorted. Use <@> to adjust.
<Alt-r> forces the screen mode to high
resolution.
DEFINITIONS 10-25
Modify <F5 m>, <F5 M>, <F5 Ctrl-m>, <F5
Alt-m> Painted areas can be changed or
modified to produce additional colors. Set
<F10> to the color you wish to modify.
Select <F5 m> and define object in box.
<M> operates on the entire screen. Set the
new color to any of the 29 colors.
<Alt-m> allows the 29 colors to be changed
to one of the other 29 colors. <Ctrl-m>
operates as <Alt-m>, but on the entire
screen. A file called KD-PAINT.PIC is on
the program disk and can be viewed with
<F7 o>. It contains the color bar that is
shown on the screen during modify and
paint.
Money How did you get this? If you have
purchased PC-KEY-DRAW from Ed Kidera of
OEDWARE then thank you very much!!, but if
you are using a copy and have not regis-
tered, please take some time and do so.
Isn't this worth the registration price?
See the section on libraries for a way for
you to save some cash or even make some.
Mouse Mode Pull down function and command
menus can be used either with or without a
mouse. When used with a mouse the mouse
can be used to click on a function to
select it, as with many other graphics
programs, but this is a slow and silly way
to run any graphics program. PC-KEY-DRAW
provides a much easier way of using a
mouse, by allowing the menu to be brought
in with the click of button two. Once in a
function select mode, the cursor movement
will move you through the menu and not
around the screen. Use button 1 to make a
selection and return to CURSOR MODE. See
the Hardware section for more information
on the mouse. Also see Chapter 3.
DEFINITIONS 10-26
Move <F7 m>, <F7 M>, <F7 Ctrl-m>, <F7
Alt-m> Previously copied or erased areas
can be moved to a new location. Use ani-
mate to aid in positioning. The four dif-
ferent syntaxes of move will produce dif-
ferent results. The correct one to use
depends on the desired result. Experiment
with the different moves to learn and
understand the results. The following
table applies to smear and replicate as
well:
Command Logical Effect
------- ------- ------
m XOR Mixed
Shft m OR With
Ctrl-m AND Over
Alt-m PSET Replace
Use move after <F7 a>nimate, <F7 s>mear,
and <F7 r>eplicate. <Ctrl-m> is very use-
ful in painting odd shaped objects with
complex patterns. See Examples in earlier
section for tips on using it.
Music See Play
Old <F1 Ctrl-z o>, <F6 o>, <F6 O>, <F7 o>,
<F7 O>, <F8 o>, <F8 O>, <F8 Ctrl-o>, <F8
Alt-o> Previously saved vectors, objects
and screens can be retrieved with old.
Primarily for slide show use text mode
screens can be called into view with <F1
Ctrl-z o>. In F6, vectors drawn with line
and saved with <E>nd can be called up
later for use. Any angle may be specified
as may any scale. A <ENTER> will take the
rotation as drawn and will fit the scale
of the vector to the scale of the current
drawing. <O> takes the last vector and
allows the rotation and scale to be
changed. After setting the scale the vec-
DEFINITIONS 10-27
tor object can be moved across the screen
and left in position with <F7 M>. Objects
that where saved with <F7 C> can be
recalled with <F7 o>. They will appear at
the same size as drawn and so may be out
of scale. <F8 o> is used to retrieve
entire screens saved in <F8> or saved in
some other program. If a DAT file accompa-
nies the drawing the scale will be changed
accordingly. To sequentially bring in the
screens from disk use <F8 O> and <PgDn> to
page through the screens. Select the
screen you want with <ENTER>. This make
finding a screen very easy. See Template
for information on <F8 Ctrl-o>. <F8
Alt-o> can be used in slide show macros to
display the screens in one of five meth-
ods. (See Display) When loading an old
screen it is often desirable to see what
is on the disk. Version 3.33 and older
provide directory information for a given
file type by entering a drive letter and
<ENTER>. Version 3.50 adds the capability
to directly import the file name into the
command line by selecting <Up Arrow> or
<Down Arrow> when asked for the File Name.
Origin <Ctrl-x> The normal screen origin
is the top left corner. This is where both
x and y are zero in SCreen 1 PaGe 00. The
origin can be moved to any location by
positioning the cursor to the desired ori-
gin and selecting <Ctrl-x>. This is can be
very helpful for mechanical drawing.
Outline <F2 o> objects can be outlined in
the color set by F10. Outline searches for
the change between the background color
and the other colors and draws a line at
the edge.
DEFINITIONS 10-28
Page <Ctrl-Home> 64 pages are available
for SCreen 1. Select <Ctrl-Home> followed
by the pan direction. <Down Arrow> scrolls
the screen by 1/2 down. <Up Arrow> scrolls
the screen by 1/2 up. <Right Arrow>
scrolls the screen by 1/2 to the right.
<Left Arrow> scrolls the screen by 1/2 to
the left. <PgUp> scrolls a full screen up.
<PgDn> scrolls a full screen down. <Home>
returns to PaGe 00. <End> goes to the last
screen that has been created. Pages are
stored in quarter screen files. To use all
of the files you must be operating from a
subdirectory for the workspace. The files
are created on the disk only when a par-
ticular page is used. <Ctrl-HOME> twice
returns to PaGe 00 without first saving
the page you are on. Selecting <?>, <h>,
or <H>elp when asked for PAN Direction
will display a map of the 64 screens,
while displaying the current location. At
this point the cursor keys will move the
display box around as desired until
<Enter> is used to select. <Esc> will
exit back to page you where in before
selecting <Ctrl-Home>.
Paint <F5 p>, <F5 P>, <F5 Alt-p> Objects
can be painted with one of the four colors
from the palette in the color mode or one
of two colors in high resolution using
<p>. The border color and the fill color
must be specified. An incorrect border
color or gaps in the border will cause the
paint to leak out. If this happens, be
sure to respond <n>o to the "Correct
(y/n)?" prompt. <P> is identical in oper-
ation to <p>, only it allows you to repeat
the operation any number of times with the
same fill and border color simply by
selecting <ENTER>. 29 colors/ shades can
be used to paint with using <Alt-p>.
DEFINITIONS 10-29
Paintbrush See Smear and Replicate for one
type of paintbrush. Many of the other
functions of PC-KEY-DRAW can also be used
as a paintbrush by properly setting the
<B>ackground so that when the object is
moved around the screen an image is left
behind in the color set by <B>ackground.
Pan <Ctrl-Home> SCreen 1 provides panning
capability on an 8X8 page layout. Select
<?>, <h>, or <H> for help in panning. See
PAGE.
Parallel <F6 p> Parallel lines can be
drawn at any angle by first marking one of
the lines and then only marking one end
point on all subsequent lines. Use <F6 e>
to end the drawing of parallel lines and
save the lines to the screen. All features
of normal line drawing apply to parallel
line drawing.
PATH Starting with version 3.50, PC-KEY-
DRAW will recognize subdirectories. The
subdirectories for the workspace and for
completed drawings can be set in the Sta-
tus Screen. The drawing subdirectory can
also be set in <F8 d>irectory or set tem-
porarily for a given file when entering
the File Name. Since subdirectory names
can be long and cumbersome it is a good
idea to use the SUBST command of DOS. If
you have DOS 3.* you can used SUBST to
represent subdirectories, see the DOS man-
ual. Any drive letter A-Z can be used to
replace a long subdirectory specification.
In version of PC-KEY-DRAW prior to 3.50
the SUBST command is the only way to use
subdirectories.
DEFINITIONS 10-30
Patterns <F5 f>, <F5 Alt-f> 64 patterns
are held in one pattern screen. One pat-
tern screen is supplied with the PC-KEY-
DRAW program disk, but you can create as
many as you would like. Figure 10-10 shows
the patterns of KD-PTRN.PIC. Some are
rather useful, while others are rather
strange. Note the size and complexity that
is possible with PC-KEY-DRAW as compared
to other graphics programs. Library Disk
#2 contains nine additional pattern
screens for a total of 640 patterns. See
section on Fill for how to use patterns.
[pat1]
Figure 10-10 KD-PTRN.PIC from the program
disk. See Appendix H: for other patterns.
Pause <Alt-p>, <F8 O Alt-p> Key macros
normally play back at full speed. Occa-
sionally it is desirable to momentarily
stop the execution of the macro with a
pause statement. Set the number of seconds
desired to pause before continuing. Pause
reads from the system clock so that the
pause time is independent of the computer.
DEFINITIONS 10-31
PIC Extension used to specify format of
partial screen save in F7. This is the
preferred extension for partial screens
since it uses the least amount of disk
space and is therefore the default exten-
sion. Screens saved with a PIC extension
can be called into a BASICA program by
adding the following lines to your pro-
gram:
0005 'Dimension array large enough to
handle image.
0010 DIM ARRAY%(500)
1000 'Find location of array
1010 ALOC%=VARPTR(ARRAY%(0))
1020 'Binary file load to array
1030 BLOAD "FILENAME.PIC",ALOC%
1040 'Put image onto graphics screen
1050 PUT(0,0),ARRAY%
To save an image in BASICA that can be
called up in PC-KEY-DRAW add the following
lines to your program:
0005 'Dimension array large enough to
handle image.
0010 DIM ARRAY%(500)
0900 'load image into array with the
GET function
0910 'See BASIC manual for info
1000 XSIZ%=ARRAY%(0)
1010 YSIZ%=ARRAY%(1)
1020 N%=(4+((XSIZ%+7)\8)*YSIZ%)\2
1030 'Find location of array
1040 ALOC%=VARPTR(ARRAY%(0))
1050 'Binary save of array
1060 BSAVE "FILENAME.PIC",ALOC%,N%
See BAS for an alternate way to include an
image in a BASICA program that doesn't
require an external file of the image to
be on the disk with the program.
DEFINITIONS 10-32
Play <Ctrl-p> music can be played for fun
or as part of a macro. The music syntax
follows that of BASICA exactly. See the
BASICA manual for more information.
Playback <Alt-k r> Previously recorded
keyboard sequences can be played back
(<r>un) from disk. See Key Macro. If you
are creating a slide show to play back
then it is a good idea to disable the
printing of the prompt line by setting <*>
to 1 or 2 during recording. Higher values
of <*> can be used to speed up playback,
but with some lose of features. *|3 in a
macro will speed up circle, sine, rose,
and rectangle by not drawing the object
until the final size is reached. *|4
speeds Fatbits by not switching to the
separate Fatbits screen and speeds line
drawing by not displaying the line as it
is being positioned. * commands are best
added to macros with a text editor and
take effect absolutely, ie. *|2 followed
by *|1 results in the *|1 being the active
level. This differs from earlier version
where * commands where cumulative.
Polar Coordinates The cursor position
readout contains not only the x and y
positions, but the distance to the last
measure point and the angle to the point,
and thus provides continuous display of
polar coordinates with cartesian coordi-
nates.
Polygon <F2 p> Regular polygons of any
number of sides can be dynamically drawn.
The polygon can be rotated as it is being
drawn by using the <[> and <]> keys to
rotate at angle steps set by the cursor
speed or <{> and <}> to rotate in 90
degree increments.
DEFINITIONS 10-33
Print <F8 p> If a graphics screen dump
program is loaded the screen can be dumped
to a dot matrix printer using <PrtSc>. The
print routine allows the 25th line to be
positioned before printing with a title as
desired. If you have an Okidata 92 be sure
to set the configuration printer to 1. The
Configuration Screen also allows you to
alter the printout size for an Okidata
printer.
Printer Support The zoom printer feature
of PC-KEY-DRAW allows you to configure it
to virtually any printer that can take
continuous paper. Single sheet printing is
currently limited to most Okidata 92, 93s
or Epson/IBM graphics compatibles. If you
would like to donate a printer to OEDWARE
we would be happy to write a driver to go
with the program for that particular
printer.
Quality <Q> <Alt-q> The quality of the
cursor movement can be toggled with <Q>. A
"Q" will appear on the prompt line indi-
cating that the quality is turned on. With
the quality turned off the cursor moves
quicker by skipping an occasional step.
With the quality turned on the cursor
moves slightly slower, but does not skip
steps. When the key board macro is set the
quality is automatically turned on. If it
is turned backed off during recording the
playback of the macro will not faithfully
reproduce the original. The <Q>uality com-
mand also effects the way a mouse or joy-
stick behave. Generally the mouse and joy-
stick "feel" the best when the <Q>uality
is off. During macro recording, with
quality on the mouse and joystick motion
is converted to equivalent key strokes,
which slows down the cursor movement. When
DEFINITIONS 10-34
using PC-KEY-DRAW as a paint program the
cursor position readout can be turned off
with <Alt-q>. Use <Alt-q> to toggle it
back on. Note that the cursor speed is
greatly increased with the readout off.
RAM disk PC-KEY-DRAW is written to make
significant use of a RAM disk. A 40K RAM
disk is the smallest that can be used,
while the maximum is over 1Meg! Some may
be wondering how such a large RAM disk is
possible with a standard PC. I strongly
recommend the use of an extended memory
card such as the JRAM-2 by Tall Tree Asso-
ciates which allows up to 2megs per expan-
sion slot. A RAM disk is not only useful
for this program, but you will find many
other uses. Minimum PC RAM should be about
2Megs for maximum use of your machine.
Recording <Alt-k c> Every key stroke hit
can be recorded and saved to an ASCII
sequential file for later playback by
using the <c>reate command. See Key Macro
for more information.
Registration Registered users get support,
low cost updates, printed manual, extra
library disks, support programs and a good
feeling. See Shareware.
Rename <F8 K> disk files can be renamed.
Enter the file to be renamed and the new
name of the file. Include the drive of the
file. It is not possible to rename to a
different disk.
DEFINITIONS 10-35
Replicate <F7 r>, <F7 R>, <F7 Ctrl-r>, <F7
Alt-r> Once an object is copied it can be
moved and replicated. Each touch of the
cursor will step the size of the object
until moved with <F7 M>. This can be used
for a variety of applications. The syntax
of replicate is the same as smear and
move.
Resolution Set <Alt-r> The screen resolu-
tion can be set to 640X200. Use <Shft-Tab>
to toggle between 640X200 and 320X200.
See Mode.
Retrieve file See Old.
Revolve <F1 R> Three dimensional appearing
objects can be created as objects of revo-
lution by first drawing the cross section
then revolving it. User sets number of
steps and view angle. This can be a very
powerful command. Figure 10-11 is a
Christmas card. The Christmas tree was
created by drawing one side of the tree
outline and then by revolving the outline
about the center. Figure 10-12 shows
another sample of revolve.
[xmas]
Figure 10-11 Christmas card.
DEFINITIONS 10-36
[fairlead]
Figure 10-12 Fairlead created by revolving
part of a circle.
Reverse video See Video.
Rose curves <F3 r> Sine and cosine rose
curves of any number of leaves are drawn
to size of circle set with cursors.
Rotate <F1 r>, <F1 Alt-r>, <F1 Ctrl-r>,
<F6 o>, <F6 O>, <F1 a>, <F1 A>, <F1
Ctrl-a>, <F1 Alt-a>, <[>, <]>, <{>, <}>
can be used to rotate any object on the
screen. The object may be rotated once or
a multiple of times (steps). *C*-In the
color mode <r> will rotate only the cur-
rent active color as selected by <F10>,
while <Alt-r> will rotate all colors
within the defined region. <F1 Ctrl-r>
will rotate the entire left portion of the
screen 90 degrees. Use <F1 a> to rotate an
object again, without redefining it. If
the object was first rotate with all color
(<F1 Alt-r>) then all colors will be used
in the again rotate otherwise the active
color selected with <F10> determines which
color is used. <F1 Alt-a> will rotate the
object that was just zoomed. <F1 A> will
rotate and zoom the object at the same
DEFINITIONS 10-37
time. <F1 Ctrl-a> will rotate again after
switching from all color rotate to single
color rotate or vice versa. In F6 vector
objects can be created and saved. Using
<F6 o> or <F6 O> they can be called back
and rotated to any angle. <[>, <]>, <{>,
and <}> can be used to rotate the cursor
position about the <m>easure point. See
Angle for more information.
Save <F6 E>, <F7 Ctrl-e> <F7 C>, <F8 s>
There are five different ways to save
objects and screens. <F6 E>nds & saves
objects drawn with line as vectors (VCT)
to the disk for later use. <F6 Ctrl-e>
saves a previously created line. <F7 C>
saves objects or entire screens to the
disk in one of three ways. See Copy for
use. <F8 s> is the common way to save a
complete screen for later use. The screens
are given a SCN extension and are
retrieved with <F8 o>. A second file is
saved with a screen that gives its scal-
ing, if other then the default, and has a
DAT extension. Each screen, page, layer
must be saved independently.
Scale <Alt-m> The scale of the drawing is
normally set when the program is entered
or following a fresh screen. When setting
the scale on entering PC-KEY-DRAW or after
a fresh screen, you should set the effec-
tive size of the screen, not the actual
size of the screen, ie. you might set the
screen to 40 ft. to draw a house, 20 in.
to draw a small part, or 50 miles to draw
a map. The scale can also be set by match-
ing a measured distance to a desired dis-
tance. Select <m> at one point, move cur-
sor to desired position, select <Alt-m>
and enter in the desired value of the dis-
tance.
DEFINITIONS 10-38
Scale Factor <F1 z>, <F1 Z>, <F1 Alt-z>,
<F6 o>, <F6 O> When zooming you must enter
the scale factor. A scale factor greater
than 1 shrinks the object or screen, while
a scale factor less then 1 expands the
screen. Select </>, <Space Bar>, or second
mouse button to enter the zoom factor
instead of the scale factor.
SCN Screen-see Save and Old. This is the
default extension and indicates a full
graphics screen save. This is compatible
with screens saved in BASICA using a BSAVE
command. To call a screen into BASICA that
was saved with <F8 s> add the following
lines to your BASICA program:
0010 'set screen to graphics mode
1000 'set segment to color graphics
screen memory
1010 DEF SEG=&HB800
1015 'Binary image load
1020 BLOAD "FILENAME.SCN",0
1025 'Return segment
1030 DEF SEG
To save a screen in BASICA that can be
later called into PC-KEY-DRAW add the fol-
lowing lines to your BASICA program:
1000 'with drawing on screen
1010 DEF SEG=&HB800
1020 BSAVE "FILENAME.SCN",0,16384
1030 DEF SEG
See BAS for an alternate way of including
a screen image in a BASICA program.
DEFINITIONS 10-39
Screen <Ctrl-Home>, <Ctrl-End>, <Ctrl-
PgUp>, <Ctrl-PgDn> Multiple screens are
available. They can be used to draw
objects larger than the screen or to use
as temporary workspaces. There are two
primary screens and two secondary screens.
The primary screens are "connected" and
can be scrolled using <Ctrl-PgUp> and
<Ctrl-PgDn> in quarter screen increments.
<Ctrl-Home> and <Ctrl-End> toggle between
the two screens. The last object copied
can be viewed on SCreen F7 by selecting
<Ctrl-PgDn> from SCreen 2. <F1 Z>oom will
not change the drawing scale if used in
SCreen F7. The 25th line or title line is
available to be viewed or modified by
selecting <Ctrl-PgDn> one more time.
SCreen 1 can actually be one of 64 differ-
ent pages. The extra pages are stored on
the workspace disk. Pages are stored in
quarter screen blocks allowing horizontal
and vertical scrolling. 1 megabyte of disk
is needed to use a full 64 pages and this
is where a RAM disk can really pay off.
You should set up a subdirectory for the
workspace.
Screen Aspect Ratio <$> The screen aspect
ratio can be varied for a variety of
results. The main use of the setting the
aspect ratio is to get a circle that looks
round on your monitor or you may want to
adjust the aspect ratio so that the screen
dump is round. <r>otation and <Z>oom of
<F1> are cleanest if an aspect ratio of
1.0 in color or 2.0 in high resolution is
used.
DEFINITIONS 10-40
Shade <F2 s>, <F2 S>, <F4 l>, <F4 m>, <F4
d>, <F4 s>, <F4 Alt-s> Various methods of
shading the drawing are available. <F2>
<s> or <S> produces a rectangular pattern
(see Box). <F4> will fill an irregular
area with dots of the color set by <F10>.
It may take several times to fill a very
irregular area. <F4 s> spray paints (see
Spray paint).
Shareware is the form of distribution
being used with PC-KEY-DRAW. Shareware is
commercial software with a difference.
Shareware can be legally copied and shared
with others, provided it is distributed in
its entirety and not modified. Users that
find the program to be of use to them are
requested to register. Registration pro-
vides many benefits to the user. If you
register PC-KEY-DRAW you will receive:
. Printed Users Manual in IBM size
binder with information on getting the
most out of PC-KEY-DRAW, (it looks
nice on your shelve too).
. Second library disk (see Appendix H)
with 640+ fill patterns, several
library pictures and many very useful
macros.
. Third library disk with 14 extra fonts
and text oriented macros.
. Fourth library disk with more fonts
and flow chart symbols.
. HP LaserJet printer support.
. Registered version of the program with
name in the program code.
. Telephone or mail support when you
need help, for one year after regis-
tration. Phone support is available
from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm seven days a
week.
DEFINITIONS 10-41
. Notification of updates and the abil-
ity to update for only $10 for the
l a t e s t d i s k .
Registration helps you in other ways:
. You are supporting the shareware con-
cept.
1. You can try the software before you
buy it.
2. You pay a reasonable price for you
software.
3. You avoid the frustration of copy
protection.
4. You encourage others to develop
shareware.
. You are also supporting new OEDWARE
developments. PC-KEY-DRAW is con-
stantly being improved, your support
is needed and appreciated.
[share]
Figure 10-13 Like public television,
shareware is supported by those who find
it valuable.
Shift <F5 s> The foreground colors are
each shifted up by one. The background is
not affected. Shift works on the entire
screen.
DEFINITIONS 10-42
Shift Cursor Using the <Shift> key while
drawing rectangles allow you to move the
fixed corner. If the <Shift> key is used
while drawing circles or ellipses the cen-
ter of the circle is moved. <Shift> used
with a joystick or mouse works the same as
with the keyboard allowing the fixed point
to be moved.
Show <s>, <S> The cursor and prompt line
can be removed from the screen. This can
be used when taking pictures of the screen
with a 35mm camera. Selecting <s> shows
only the active screen, while <S> shows
both the active screen and a visual layer
if layering is turned on. If show is used
as part of a macro the macro will pause
indefinitely until a key is hit. During
macro execution a "_" will appear in the
bottom right corner of the screen indicat-
ing that the macro is waiting for a key to
be hit.
Sine curve <F3 t> Trigonometric sine
curves of desired period and amplitude are
shaped by moving the cursor.
Slide <F1 s>, <F1 S>, <F1 Ctrl-s>
<s>-slides an area of the screen either
horizontally or vertically. This is very
useful for creating a variety of effects,
including italics (use a step of 15 for
italics). <S> slides the entire screen.
<Ctrl-s> slides the entire screen to the
power set, either 2,3, or 4.
Slide Show The key macro command can be
used to create a very powerful slide show
quickly and easily. See Key Macro for
details.
DEFINITIONS 10-43
Smear <F7 s>, <F7 S>, <F7 Ctrl-s>, <F7
Alt-s> Previously copied or erased objects
can be smeared across the screen in one of
four syntaxes. Among other uses this
allows the creation of a paintbrush of
sorts. The cursor speed determines the
step of the smear. Like replicate the
smear will continue until the object is
moved with <F7 M>.
Speed <F9>, <+>, <-> Cursor speed, smear
size, and animation speed are controlled
by <F9>. The speed is can be toggled
between one for fine movement and any
value as set by using the <+> and <->
keys. Cursor speed is displayed on the
prompt line. The speed can be forced to 1
using <Shft-F9>, no matter what it is cur-
rently. This is useful in creating certain
key macros.
Spirals <F3 s> Automatic spiral generation
is possible using <F3 s> by marking the
center and the size of the first coil and
then the number.
Spoke <F6 s> Spoked lines from a common
center can be generated quickly, since the
center is only marked once. Spoked lines
can be combined with lines, dots and par-
allel lines. Use <F6 e> to end drawing
spoked lines.
Spray paint <F4 s>, <F4 Alt-s> Previously
drawn and painted areas can be spray
painted to produce 3D type shading. With
the screen aspect ratio set to its normal
values the spray painting will produce a
circular pattern. If <$> is selected and
set to 0 (zero) the spraying directive can
be used to shade a vertical column. Figure
10-14 was created in a short period of
DEFINITIONS 10-44
time by making extensive use of spray
paint. Setting the background color to
something other than 0 can be very useful
and effective when used with spray paint.
[joes]
Figure 10-14 Eat at Joes is an Ed Kidera
original created with extensive use of
spray paint.
Status <Ctrl-s> See Configure for more
information.
Strip <F5 S> All of the foreground colors,
except the one set by <F10> are set to the
background. This can be useful for print-
ing or photographing the screen. Be sure
to save the screen before you strip it, if
you want it back whole later.
Subdirectories See PATH
SUBST SUBST is a DOS 3.* command that pro-
vides an ideal method of shortening the
subdirectory strings used on a hard disk
by allowing a single drive letter to rep-
resent a the subdirectory string. See your
DOS manual for information on its use. The
following line in an AUTOEXEC.BAT would
DEFINITIONS 10-45
make drive G: represent the subdirectory
\FILES\KEYDRAW on drive C: - SUBST
g:=c:\files\keydraw. You must also have
LASTDRIVE=Z in your CONFIG.SYS file.
Suspend <Space Bar> During line drawing
and cursor drawing under F6 it is often
desirable to temporarily suspend drawing
to reposition the cursor. Use the <Space
Bar> or second mouse button to stop draw-
ing and display the cursor. When ready to
continue hit the <ENTER>.
Template <F6 o>, <F7 o>, <F8 Ctrl-o> See
Old, Lines, Copy, and End for discussion
on the use of vectors and figures for tem-
plate purposes. <F8 Ctrl-o> allows another
method of templating. Previously saved
screens of symbols can be called onto the
screen with template in much the same
fashion as calling old screens. In the
template mode the updating of the work-
space is disabled. Objects on the template
can be manipulated at will and then copied
and moved with <F7>. Selecting <F8> <w>
or <W> returns updating of workspace. If
no name is specified for the template file
the present screen or a fresh one may be
used to create part of a drawing to be
added to the working drawing.
Text <F6 t>, <F6 T>, <F6 Ctrl-t>, <F6
Alt-t> <t> allows text to be entered
directly on the drawing. <T> justifies the
text to the left, right, or center. <T>
also allows ASCII text to be imported and
text to be displayed up or down. <Ctrl-t>
copies the text and animates it to aid
placement as desired. Two sizes of text
are available directly for <t>, <T>, and
<Ctrl-t>. The size is determined by the
screen mode. <Alt-t> allows the user to
DEFINITIONS 10-46
write with bitmapped text fonts. Fonts can
be created by the user using all features
of the program and saved with <F7 C>, by
specifying a "FNT" ending to the file
name. A very wide variety of text sizes
and forms can be created quickly and
easily with <F1 z> and <F7> <c>, <S>, and
<M>. Figure 10-15 shows a 3-D text created
from a standard font.
[3dtext]
Figure 10-15 Title slide for presentation.
Text Scrolling <F6 T L>, <F6 T R>, <F6 T
C>, <F6 T A> When entering text it is pos-
sible to have the entire screen scroll.
This is useful for slide show macros, but
not of much use for general drawing. <F6 T
A> is useful for finding the part of a
file needed and works very much like the
TYPE command of DOS. Hit any key to stop
the scrolling.
DEFINITIONS 10-47
Time <Alt-t> the DOS time can be displayed
on the screen at a specified location.
Some operations may capture the time into
the drawing. This is intended primarily
for use in macros that are set to run con-
tinuously in a store or at a show where it
might be nice to keep the viewers informed
of the time. (see also Date)
Translation Macro files consist of a key
stroke code followed by | (vertical bar)
followed by the number of repetitions.
While MaCRo files can be edited with most
word processors it is a little tricky
because key stroke codes are difficult to
read and interpret. KD-TRANS.EXE is pro-
vided to translate a MaCRo file into a
TeXT file where the key stroke codes are
replaced with the actual name of the key,
such as "RIGHT" for right cursor key. The
resulting TeXT file is easily edited. Use
KD-TRANS.EXE to take the TeXT file and
translate it back into a MaCRo file. TeXT
files are much larger than MaCRo files.
KEYTBL.DAT is used by KD-TRANS. See KD-
TRANS.EXE and MAKHOTLIB.EXE for additional
information.
Unfade <F4 Ctrl-f> Small holes in an
object can be filled in with <F4 Ctrl-f>.
The routine uses the surrounding colors to
determine the appropriate color to use.
Unfade is still experimental and works
best on simple rectangular objects.
Up <F6 T u> Runs text up vertically from
the current cursor position.
DEFINITIONS 10-48
Update <u>, <U> Updates the appropriate
workspace with the current screen (see
Workspace). Beware that <u> updates to
SCreen 1 and <U> updates to SCreen 2, no
matter what screen you are currently in.
This means that the previous contents of
the screen will be lost.
Update Frequency is set in the Status
Screen and determines how often the work-
space will be automatically written to.
If the update frequency is set to zero the
use of workspaces is disabled. Disabling
the workspace is ideal for slide show
macros.
VCT Vectors-see Lines.
Video <F1 v>, <F1 V>, <F1 Ctrl-v> A
reversed video image is produced. Useful
in printing certain screens. The following
table indicates how the colors are
switched.
<v> <V> <Ctrl-v>
0 becomes 3 0 becomes 1 0 becomes 2
1 becomes 2 1 becomes 0 1 becomes 3
2 becomes 1 2 becomes 3 2 becomes 0
3 becomes 0 3 becomes 2 3 becomes 1
Video Modes PC-KEY-DRAW currently operates
in the two graphic video modes of the
Color Graphics Card (CGA). The modes are
320X200 medium resolution with 4 colors
and 640X200 high resolution with 2 colors.
To switch modes use <Shft-Tab> to toggle
between the modes or <Ctrl-r> to force the
program to the high resolution mode. To
save high resolution as the default mode
select: <Ctrl-r Ctrl-s Ctrl-s>
DEFINITIONS 10-49
Video Object Reverse <v> During animation
selecting <v> will perform a reverse video
on the animated object and then continue
with the animation.
Visual Horizon <Alt-v> Sets the lowest
point on the screen that the cursor can be
moved. This is most useful during anima-
tion. The animated object can be made to
disappear behind a screen object or rise
up from behind the horizon.
Visual Layer When using layers only one is
active but many can be visual, ie can be
seen while drawing on the active layer.
The visual layer consists of all of the
visual layers combined into one and
resides in SCreen 2. When layers are on
SCreen 2 is laid over SCreen 1.
Width <w> The width for lines, dots,
boxes, and circles can be set to any num-
ber of pixels from 1 to 32. The width can
be set greater than 32, but it won't be
properly used by lines, but will be used
by circles and rectangles.
Workspace <F8 w>, <F8 W> Two separate
workspaces are available to save screens
while working (see Update). <w> corre-
sponds to screen #1 and <W> corresponds to
screen #2. The workspace has several uses.
Originally it was added to retain the
drawing in the event of program crash and
while that is no longer a concern, it can
be useful in the event of a power failure.
The workspace can also be used as tempo-
rary storage. This would let you back up
in the event of a change of mind or let
you preform multiple operations on a
single screen. The workspace is stored on
the drive specified in the Configura-
DEFINITIONS 10-50
tion/Status Screen. The program will peri-
odically save to the workspace depending
on the update frequency. The update can be
forced at any time, from the CURSOR MODE,
with <u>pdate to take the screen you are
looking at and save it as SCreen 1 and
<U>pdate to take the visual screen and
save it to SCreen 2. WRKSPC1.SCN corre-
sponds to SCreen 1, while WRKSPC2.SCN cor-
responds to SCreen 2.
XOR <F1 Alt-v> The entire screen can be
XORed with a number from 1 to 255. An XOR
of 255 produces a reverse video image
(see Video). The program will assign a
random number to use or the user may
select any value between 1 and 255.
Zoom <F1 z>, <F1 Z>, <F6 o>, <F6 O> Sizes
of objects can be changed in three differ-
ent ways. <F1 z> is used to either enlarge
or shrink a defined object. <F1 Z> will
reduce the entire screen by any amount or
expand the top left corner of the screen.
Screen scaling is changed accordingly, if
the screen is set to 1 or 2, but it will
leave the present scale when used in
SCreen F7. <F6 O>, <o> will allow a vector
to be sized to fit the drawing or as
desired (see Old and Line). All three use
the same convention of scaling. A number
greater than one will shrink the object or
screen. For example a factor of two will
cut the object in half. A number less than
one will enlarge objects. Figure 10-16
shows the use of <Z>oom. The main drawing
was first completed, then zoomed down a
factor of 4, and placed back on the screen
to produce the painting on the fireplace.
DEFINITIONS 10-51
[xmas]
Figure 10-16 Christmas Card
Zoom Factor <F1 z>, <F1 Z>, <F1 Alt-z>,
<F6 o>, <F6 O> normally you are asked to
enter the scale factor when zooming. By
selecting the </> or <Space Bar> or second
mouse button you can specify the zoom fac-
tor instead of the scale factor. A zoom
factor greater than 1 enlarges the object
or screen, while a zoom factor less then 1
shrinks the screen or object. For example
a zoom factor of 2 would double the size
of the object.
Zoom Print <F8 P>, <F8 Ctrl-p>, <Ctrl-p>
prints partial screens to a printer. <P>
prints the entire screen to the printer.
Printing is done by characters and not
graphics so virtually any printer can be
used, provided a printer table is first
created for that printer. The print size
is set before printing to a number between
1 and 41. Beware that the printed result
can be very large. Start with low numbers
and work your way up. This is very useful
for printing banners and the like.
DEFINITIONS 10-52