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MANUAL2
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1989-02-18
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@@APPBK.COM
APPBK Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 12
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Reminds you of appointments at the times you
specify; provides additional optional hourly
chime and continuous on-screen date/time
display.
Format: [d:][path]APPBK
or
[d:][path]APPBK [f,][b,][s,][h,][a]
Remarks: APPBK is a memory-resident utility that is
normally loaded through your AUTOEXEC.BAT
file. It must be loaded after any system
time/date setting routines, and before
loading SideKick (if used).
Pressing Alt-R opens the on-screen APPBK
window, in which you enter your appointments.
Enter times as 2:00, not 02:00, and include
the A or P before the M in the window. You
can edit your appointment list using the F-1
and F-3 keys, by overstriking letters, and
with the deleting backspace key. F-2 toggles
an hourly chime on and off; F-4 similarly
toggles a continuous on-screen display of the
time and date.
An alarm will sound at the appointment times
specified. Additionally, should you be away
from your desk and not hear the reminder,
your first keystroke following the alarm will
pop up the APPBK window. To close the
window, press Esc or the Alt-R (default)
APPBK trigger key.
At the time it is loaded, APPBK may be
given alternative parameters for its color
(f), border color (b), trigger-key scan code
(s), hourly chime frequency (h), and alarm
frequency (a). The default values are
7,112,19,2217,2960. Tables of acceptable
alternative parameter values are contained on
the following pages. In entering parameters,
separate each with a comma. Commas alone may
be used for initial parameters you do not
wish to change.
Example: APPBK ,,,1760
would change only the frequency (tone) of the
hourly chime (the h parameter).
Parameter Tables
COLOR CODES (f and b parameters)
Color Adapter
-------------
fore- back- fore-
ground ground color ground color
0 0 Black 8 Gray
1 16 Blue 9 Light Blue
2 32 Green 10 Light Green
3 48 Cyan 11 Light Cyan
4 64 Red 12 Light Red
5 80 Magenta 13 Light Magenta
6 96 Brown 14 Yellow
7 112 White 15 Bright White
Monochrome Adapter
------------------
fore- back-
ground ground color
0 0 Black
7 112 White
15 NA Bright White
Add foreground color to the background color to arrive
at parameter number. For example, blue letters on cyan
(light blue) would be 48 + 1 = 49.
Defaults are 7 (white on black) for the datebook field
(foreground) and 112 (black on white) for the frame
(border).
SCAN CODES FOR ALT-KEY COMBINATIONS (s parameter)
Code Key Code Key Code Key Code Key
16 Q 30 A 44 Z 120 1
17 W 31 S 45 X 121 2
18 E 32 D 46 C 122 3
19 R 33 F 47 V 123 4
20 T 34 G 48 B 124 5
21 Y 35 H 49 N 125 6
22 U 36 J 50 M 126 7
23 I 37 K 127 8
24 O 38 L 128 9
25 P 129 0
130 -
Default is 19 (Alt R) 131 =
TONE/FREQUENCY (h and a parameters)
A 55 110 220 440 880 1760 3520 1740 14080
A# 58 117 233 466 932 1857 3714 7428 14856
B 62 123 247 494 988 1976 3952 7904 15808
C 65 131 262 523 1046 2093 4186 8372 16744
C# 69 139 277 554 1109 2217 4434 8868 17736
D 74 149 294 587 1175 2349 4698 9396 18792
D# 78 156 311 622 1245 2489 4978 9956 19912
E 82 165 330 659 1319 2637 5274 10548 21096
F 87 175 349 698 1397 2794 5588 11176 22352
F# 93 185 370 740 1480 2960 5920 11840 23680
G 98 196 392 784 1568 3136 6272 12544 25088
G# 104 208 415 831 1661 3322 6644 13288 26576
Middle C is 262. The defaults are 2217 (C#) for the
hourly chime and 2960 (F#) for the alarm chime.
Note:
1. While APPBK is compatible with most
applications programs and resident
utilities, complete compatibility cannot
be assured. It cannot, for example, be
used with XyWrite.
@@ASC.COM
ASC Jeff Prosise
Command 1987/No. 5
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Provides a pop-up ASCII chart showing
decimal, hexadecimal, and character
equivalents for the full IBM character set.
Format: [d:][path]ASC
Remarks: ASC.COM is a memory-resident utility that is
normally loaded at boot-up, via your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Once loaded, pressing
Alt-A pops up the first page (32 ASCII codes)
of the display window over any currently
active applications program. The Up- and
Down-Arrow, PgUp and PgDn, and Home and End
keys access the remaining ASCII display
pages. Pressing Esc closes the window,
restoring the original screen display.
In operation, ASC.COM requires approximately
2.5K of RAM. It is compatible with most
applications and TSR (terminate and stay
resident) programs that do not themselves
require the Alt-A key combination, and it may
be used with monochrome, color, or EGA
monitors.
Notes:
1. Users familiar with using DEBUG can
modify the default border, text, and
header colors of ASC.COM. These values,
initially 0Fh, 1Fh, and 1Eh,
respectively, are located at offsets
014D through 014F in the .COM file. For
use with a composite monochrome display,
the values 70h, 07h, and 07h are
suggested.
@@CHANGE.COM
CHANGE Michael J. Mefford
Command 1986/No. 19
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Performs a rapid search-and-replace operation
for text strings and/or ASCII decimal codes
throughout a file of maximum 40,000-byte
length.
Format: CHANGE filespec findstring replacestring
Remarks: The filespec parameter may include a drive
letter and a path in addition to the
designated filename.
Findstring and replacestring may consist of
text characters enclosed within (double)
quote marks or ASCII decimal codes whose
numbers are separated by commas. Note that
the format requires that each parameter be
separated by a single space. Text strings in
quotes and ASCII values in numerals may be
combined in either string if separated by
commas.
Example: To change all references to Miss Jones to
Mrs. Smith in the file NOGOSSIP.ART on the
current directory, you would enter
CHANGE NOGOSSIP.ART "Miss Jones" "Mrs. Smith"
Example: To strip out all carriage return-line feeds
(i.e. replace them with a null string) in the
file MCI.B16 in the \COMM subdirectory, enter
CHANGE \COMM\MCI.B16 13,10 ""
Notes:
1. In the second example you might want to
use a space between the quote marks
rather than a null string to keep the
words from running together. Observe
that by putting the number of the month
in hexadecimal (B=November) you can fit
both month and day within the three-
character DOS filename extension.
@@COPYSAFE.COM
COPYSAFE Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 6
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Prevents accidentally over-writing files when
using the COPY command.
Format: [d:][path]COPYSAFE
Remarks: COPYSAFE is a memory-resident utility that
displays the filename(s), drive, and
directory of any file that will be
overwritten if a COPY command is executed.
After being warned, you are given the
opportunity either to terminate the COPY
procedure or to continue, and so overwrite
the file(s).
COPYSAFE should be loaded only once per
session. The best procedure is to include it
in an AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Be sure, however,
to load COPYSAFE after any commands (such as
DATE or TIME) that pause for user input.
Notes:
1. Because of the way DOS processes
commands in a batch file, COPYSAFE
cannot warn against accidental
overwriting if you run COPY as part of a
.BAT file. Similarly, it is not
designed to handle instances in which
the COPY command is used to concatenate
files.
2. COPYSAFE is highly compatible with other
memory-resident programs, but because
absolute compatibility among all
possible TSR (terminate but stay
resident) utilities cannot be
guaranteed, you should check its
operation on your system thoroughly
before you rely on it completely.
@@CS.COM
CS (EGA Clear Screen) Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Clears the screen when using displays of more
than 25 lines.
Format: [d:][path]CS
Remarks: The DOS CLS command is hard-coded for 25-line
displays, and so does not fully clear the
screen when using 43-line (or similar) EGA
displays. CS is a simple replacement for CLS
in such cases.
@@DIRCOMP.COM
DIRCOMP Charles Petzold
Command 1987/No. 2 (Lab Notes)
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Permits comparison of the contents of two
directories in alphabetical order, with the
options of redirecting the screen display
either to a file or to a printer.
Format: DIRCOMP directory1 directory2
Remarks: The directories to be compared do not need to
be on the same drive. Use the normal DOS
backslash (\) character in specifying the
path to a desired directory. The DOS
"wildcard" characters (* and ?) may be used
to limit the filenames displayed.
Identically-named files are shown side-by-
side to facilitate comparison of their size,
date, and time. Other filenames are
presented alphabetically in their respective
directory columns. Use Ctrl-NumLock to halt
the display scrolling temporarily; striking
any key thereafter causes scrolling to
resume.
In comparing large directories it is
frequently desirable to redirect the output
of DIRCOMP either to a file (which you can
then call up with your word processor) or to
a printer.
Example: To create a file called COMPARE.TMP in the
root directory of drive C: (your currently
active drive) that compares the listings in
your \LETTERS subdirectory with the files
contained on a floppy disk in drive B: you
would enter:
DIRCOMP \LETTERS B: > \COMPARE.TMP
Example: To print out the same comparison without
creating a file, you would enter:
DIRCOMP \LETTERS B: > PRN
Notes:
1. DIRCOMP does not provide
forward/backward scrolling capabilities.
If these are desired as an alternative
to alphabetical listings, use
SCANDIR.COM, which is also contained on
this disk.
@@DIREX.COM
DIREX Steven Holzner
Command 1987/No. 1
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Facilitates copying, deleting, protecting, or
unprotecting selected files in a directory.
Format: DIREX [d:][filespec]
Remarks: DIREX displays up to 121 filenames on screen;
the ? and * "wildcards" can be used to
restrict the number of displayed entries.
The cursor arrow keys are used to move a
reverse-video highlight bar from one filename
to another. When a filename is highlighted
it can be selected for further treatment by
pressing the spacebar. (A mistakenly marked
file can be deselected by pressing the
spacebar a second time.)
Single-letter commands implement any one of
the following actions on any marked files:
C Copy (you are prompted for a new path)
D Delete
P Protect (makes read-only)
U Unprotect (makes read-write)
N Change to a new directory
Q Quit
Notes:
1. In handling very large subdirectories,
the NO.COM utility (1986 No. 9, and
contained on PC Utilities Disk 1) can
also be used in conjunction with DIREX
to inhibit display of one or more groups
of filenames.
@@DISKPREP.COM
DISKPREP Jeff Prosise
Command l986/No. 21
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Permits making a floppy disk self-booting
even if the DOS "system" files were omitted
when the disk was formatted and program files
have subsequently been added to it.
Format: DISKPREP [d:]
followed by:
SYS [d:] (a DOS command)
COPY COMMAND.COM [d:] (a DOS command)
Remarks: In addition to having a copy of COMMAND.COM,
diskettes formatted with the /S (system)
option contain the two "hidden" files,
IBMBIO.COM and IBMDOS.COM, as the first two
entries in the disk directory. (The clusters
for IBMBIO.COM must be contiguous.) A non-
system disk stores regular files in the areas
where the "system" files must reside if the
disk is to be self-booting.
DISKPREP relocates clusters currently used by
non-system files to other areas on the disk,
updating the disk directory and file
allocation table accordingly. After running
DISKPREP, the DOS SYS command can install the
hidden system files in their proper
locations, and the DOS COPY command can be
used to put COMMAND.COM on the disk.
DISKPREP does not support high-density (1.2
megabyte) diskettes, 3 1/2-inch disk
cartridges, or hard disks. However, provided
sufficient room remains on the disk, DISKPREP
can be used to upgrade the DOS version on a
self-booting disk. Attempting to replace a
later DOS version with an earlier (lower
numbered) one is not recommended.
Notes:
1. DISKPREP should not be used on floppy
disks that already contain
subdirectories.
2. Since copy-protected disks often employ
non-standard sectoring for their own
purposes, DISKPREP is not recommended
for use on such disks.
@@DRAW.COM
DRAW Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 9
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Provides low-resolution (320 x 200) color or
high-resolution (640 x 200) monochrome
drawing capabilities on a color, enhanced
color, or (with some MGA boards) a monochrome
display, without the need to work in BASIC.
Format: [d:][path]DRAW[/K] (Option I)
[d:][path]DRAW string[/K] (Option I)
[d:][path]DRAW filespec/F[/K] (Option II)
Remarks: Entered at the DOS prompt with no arguments
on the command line (Option I), DRAW looks in
the current directory for a file named
DRAW.DAT and executes the commands in that
file. A sample DRAW.DAT file is included on
this disk. The file can be examined, and
similar files created, with a regular ASCII
word processor.
Alternatively, DRAW can be entered with a
string of commands (Option II, for a simple
graphic) or with the name of a file
consisting of commands (Option III). Any
legal DOS filename may be used, and full path
support is provided, but a /F terminator must
be appended to the filename. An optional /K
may be added to prevent a keystroke from
halting execution.
Example: You can get a feel for how DRAW operates by
entering, at the DOS prompt:
DRAW X0 C2 BU50 M+40,70 L80 M+40,-70 BD5 P2,2
This will create a red triangle in the middle
of your screen. You can trace the specific
steps in this command sequence by referring
to The DRAW Command Set table, presented on
succeeding pages in this manual.
The DRAW Command Set
Xn Change to low resolution 320X200 color graphics.
If X is not found, the default is 640X200 high
resolution black and white graphics. X must be
the first character of the command line or the
first character in a file.
The palette will be changed to n, where n can be
either zero or one. See C color command below for
the color of each palette.
K Do not poll the keyboard while drawing. If K is
not found, any keystroke terminates the program.
Sn Flood the screen color to pattern n. n must be a
decimal number in the range 0-255, and represents
an eight bit pattern. Normally this command is
issued immediately after the X command (if
present), to clear the screen with a background
color other than black. For example, to clear to
color red (2) in low resolution, the command is
S170 (binary 10101010).
color 320X200 640X200
0 0 0
1 85 255
2 170 NA
3 255 NA
Pattern colors may also be used. For example, a
pattern of half green and half black would be S58
(binary 01000100). In high resolution, each bit
represents a dot, eight dots per byte. This is
why only two colors (black or white) are
available. In low resolution, there are two bits
per dot, so four combinations can be represented.
In the example here the sequence is 01 (green), 00
(black), 01 (green), 00 (black). See C (color)
command below for complete coding of the colors.
U,D,L,R,E,F,G,H
These commands, followed by a number, will move in
one of the following compass directions:
U
H | E
\ | /
\ | /
\ | /
L -- -- -- + -- -- -- R
/ | \
/ | \
/ | \
G | F
D
Mx,y Move x,y units either relative to the current
position or to the absolute coordinates, x,y. If
the x coordinate is prefaced with either a plus
sign or minus sign, the move is relative.
Otherwise, the move is absolute. Note, you do not
need to include a plus sign in front of the y
coordinate in a positive y move.
Pp,b Paint the color p until the border color b is
found. The paint originates from the current
position.
B Blank move. The move following a B will move the
desired units without plotting points. The next
command will then continue drawing.
N No update. The draw command following an N
command will plot points, but the position will
not be updated. The next draw command will start
at the same position as the last.
Cn Change the color to n. All draws after a C
command will be in color n. n can be 0 (black) or
1 (white) in high resolution and 0 to 3 in low
resolution. In low resolution, the color is
dependent on the palette.
320X200 640X200
color palette 0 palette 1
0 black black black
1 green cyan white
2 red magenta NA
3 yellow white NA
RELATED COMMANDS
Four commands, BSAVE.COM, BLOAD.COM,
LOWRES.COM, and HIGHRES.COM, are included on
this disk to speed the display of pictures
created by DRAW. (BSAVE and BLOAD may also
be used with text screens for instant
presentation.) The command
BSAVE filespec
saves a byte image of the screen buffer to a
file (with optional drive and path
specifications), and
BLOAD filespec
writes the saved image back to the screen
buffer.
LOWRES and HIGHRES are used in batch files
with BLOAD to set the appropriate display
resolution.
Example: Create the following batch file, SAVE.BAT,
using an ASCII word processor, EDLIN, or COPY
CON:
ECHO OFF
DRAW MOVIE.DAT/F
BSAVE PICTURE
Now, similarly create a second batch file,
INSTANT.BAT:
ECHO OFF
LOWRES
BLOAD PICTURE
PLAY STING.DAT/F
PAUSE > NUL
MODE CO80
If you now enter INSTANT at the DOS prompt
the picture of two con men will appear, with
appropriate musical background. Pressing any
keystroke will clear the display.
Note:
1. The PAUSE > NUL line in INSTANT.BAT
prevents the DOS prompt from intruding
on the picture, but will not work on DOS
versions prior to DOS 3.
@@EGA12.COM
EGA12 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Resets number of screen rows to 12 when used
with an EGA and a 350-line (Enhanced Color or
Monochrome) monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGA12
Remarks: EGA12 can be used in DOS and with "EGA-aware"
applications programs such as XyWrite III and
Microsoft Word 3.0. Applications that reset
the video mode on entry will revert to 25
lines per page.
When used together with EGAMODE 1 (a 40-
column mode), EGA12 produces a more normal
aspect ratio with large-size characters.
When entering the 12-line mode the screen may
momentarily contract or roll once. This is
normal and will cause no harm. You can
return to the normal 25-line mode by entering
either of the following:
EGAMODE 3 (EGAMODE 7 for monochrome)
EGA25
These commands are included on this disk.
The DOS MODE CO80 (or MODE MONO) commands
will also restore normal 25-line operation.
To clear the screen in 12-line mode, use the
CS command contained on this disk. (The DOS
CLS command is hard-coded for 25 lines.) See
also the EGAPRTSC entry in this manual for
using an EGA-aware Print Screen command.
The IBM EGA BIOS loses the cursor (on the
Enhanced Color Display) and the underscore
(on the Monochrome Display) when it has to
recalculate the number of displayable rows,
and this bug is normally duplicated by other
EGA boards. The bug is fixed in EGA12.
Notes:
1. ANSI.SYS should not be used with EGA12.
2. Because EGA12 uses an 8- x 14-pixel
character box size, it can show only 7
lines per page when used with a regular,
200-line Color Display.
@@EGA25.COM
EGA25 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Resets the EGA default font and 25-row
display after using programs (several of
which are on this disk) that change these
conditions when using an EGA and a 350-line
(Enhanced Color or Monochrome) monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGA25
Remarks: When re-entering the 25-line mode the screen
may momentarily contract or roll once. This
is normal and will cause no harm. Alternate
ways of returning to the normal 25-line mode
include issuing the command EGAMODE 3 (color)
or EGAMODE 7 (monochrome). These commands
are included on this disk. The DOS MODE CO80
(or MODE MONO) commands will also restore
normal 25-line operation.
Note:
1. Because EGA25 uses an 8- x 14-pixel
character box size, it can show only 14
lines per page when used with a regular
200-line Color Display.
@@EGA35.COM
EGA35 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Resets number of screen rows to 35 when used
with a 350-line (Enhanced Color or
Monochrome) monitor and an EGA.
Format: [d:][path]EGA35
Remarks: EGA35 can be used in DOS and with "EGA-aware"
applications programs such as XyWrite III and
Microsoft Word 3.0. Applications that reset
the video mode will revert to 25 lines per
page; some others may write only to the top
25 of the 35 displayable lines.
When entering the 35-line mode the screen may
momentarily contract or roll once. This is
normal and will cause no harm. You can
return to the normal 25-line mode by entering
any of the following:
EGAMODE 3 (EGAMODE 7 for monochrome)
EGA25
These commands are included on this disk.
The DOS MODE CO80 (or MODE MONO) commands
will also restore normal 25-line operation.
To clear the screen in 35-line mode, use the
CS command contained on this disk. (The DOS
CLS command is hard-coded for 25 lines.) See
also the EGAPRTSC entry in this manual for
using an EGA-aware Print Screen command.
The IBM EGA BIOS loses the cursor (on the
Enhanced Color Display) and the underscore
(on the Monochrome Display) when it has to
recalculate the number of displayable rows,
and this bug is normally duplicated by other
EGA boards. The bug is fixed in EGA35.
Notes:
1. ANSI.SYS should not be used with EGA35.
2. Because EGA35 uses an 8- x 14-pixel
character box size, it can show only 20
lines per page when used with a regular,
200-line Color Display.
@@EGA43.COM
EGA43 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Resets number of screen rows to 43 when used
with an EGA and a 350-line (Enhanced Color or
Monochrome) monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGA43
Remarks: EGA43 can be used in DOS and with "EGA-aware"
applications programs such as XyWrite III and
Microsoft Word 3.0. (Details on patching
WordStar for a 43-row display are given in
the published article.) Applications that
reset the video mode on entry will revert to
25 lines per page; some others may write only
to the top 25 of the 43 displayable lines.
When entering the 43-line mode the screen may
momentarily contract or roll once. This is
normal and will cause no harm. You can
return to the normal 25-line mode by entering
any of the following:
EGAMODE 3 (EGAMODE 7 for monochrome)
EGA25
These commands are included on this disk.
The DOS MODE CO80 (or MODE MONO) commands
will also restore normal 25-line operation.
To clear the screen in 43-line mode, use the
CS command contained on this disk. (The DOS
CLS command is hard-coded for 25 lines.) See
also the EGAPRTSC entry in this manual for
using an EGA-aware Print Screen command.
The IBM EGA BIOS loses the cursor (on the
Enhanced Color Display) and the underscore
(on the Monochrome Display) when it
recalculates the number of displayable rows,
and this bug is normally duplicated by other
EGA boards. The bug is fixed in EGA43.
Note:
1. ANSI.SYS should not be used with EGA43.
Similarly, because EGA43 uses an 8 x 14
pixel character box size, 200-line Color
Monitors will show only a 25-line
display.
@@EGA50.COM
EGA50 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Resets number of screen rows to 50 when used
with an EGA and a 350-line (Enhanced Color or
Monochrome) monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGA50
Remarks: EGA50 can be used in DOS and with "EGA-aware"
applications programs such as XyWrite III and
Microsoft Word 3.0. Applications that reset
the video mode on entry will revert to 25
lines per page; some others may write only to
the top 25 of the 50 displayable lines.
When entering the 50-line mode the screen may
momentarily contract or roll once. This is
normal and will cause no harm. You can
return to the normal 25-line mode by entering
any of the following:
EGAMODE 3 (EGAMODE 7 for monochrome)
EGA25
These commands are included on this disk.
The DOS MODE CO80 (or MODE MONO) commands
will also restore normal 25-line operation.
To clear the screen in 50-line mode, use the
CS command contained on this disk. (The DOS
CLS command is hard-coded for 25 lines.) See
also the EGAPRTSC entry in this manual for
using an EGA-aware Print Screen command.
The IBM EGA BIOS loses the cursor (on the
Enhanced Color Display) and the underscore
(on the Monochrome Display) when it has to
recalculate the number of displayable rows,
and this bug is normally duplicated by other
EGA boards. The bug is fixed in EGA50.
Notes:
1. ANSI.SYS should not be used with EGA50.
2. Because EGA50 uses an 8- x 14-pixel
character box size, it can show only 28
lines per page when used with a regular,
200-line Color Display.
@@EGA12.COM
EGA512 Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Permits switching between two loaded EGA
fonts when used with a 350-line (Enhanced
Color or monochrome) monitor and software
that supports display of bold characters.
Format: [d:][path]EGA512 x y
Remarks: The values of x and y may range from 0
through 3, and correspond to the EGA memory
blocks into which fonts can be loaded. The x
parameter corresponds to the font that will
be displayed with normal (low intensity)
characters. The y parameter accesses the
font that will be displayed with high-
intensity (boldface) characters.
Example: Load the italic font into EGA memory block 1
with the command
EGAITAL 1
Then enter the command
EGA512 0 1
If your word processor supports on-screen
boldface and does not reset the video mode on
entry, regular characters will now appear
normally and boldface characters will appear
in italics.
To restore the normal display, enter
EGA512 0 0
Notes:
1. The published article (Volume 6, Nos. 14
and 15) contains suggestions for
remapping the EGA palette registers to
use other attributes (e.g. blinking,
underline) instead of the intensity
attribute.
@@EGACOLOR.COM
EGACOLOR Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Permits temporarily remapping any of the 16
default colors displayable on a 200-line CGA
monitor to any of the 64 colors displayable
on a 350-line Enhanced Color Display
connected to an Enhanced Graphics Adapter.
Format: EGACOLOR XX YY
Remarks: The parameters XX and YY are 2-digit octal
(base 8) numbers derived from the table shown
below. Values for XX may range from 00 to
17; values for YY may range from 00 to 77.
IRGB code Default rgbRGB map
------------------ -------------------
Color binary octal hex binary octal hex
----- ------ ----- --- ------ ----- ---
Black 0000 00 00 000000 00 00
Blue 0001 01 00 000001 01 01
Green 0010 02 02 000010 02 02
Cyan 0011 03 03 000011 03 03
Red 0100 04 04 000100 04 04
Magenta 0101 05 05 000101 05 05
Brown 0110 06 06 010100 24 14
White 0111 07 07 000111 07 07
Dark Grey 1000 10 08 111000 70 38
Light Blue 1001 11 09 111001 71 39
Light Green 1010 12 0A 111010 72 3A
Light Cyan 1011 13 0B 111011 73 3B
Light Red 1100 14 0C 111100 74 3C
Light Magenta 1101 15 0D 111101 75 3D
Yellow 1110 16 0E 111110 76 3E
Bright White 1111 17 0F 111111 77 3F
The first digit in the 2-digit octal number
represents the 1/3-intensity rgb signal; the
second is the 2/3-intensity RGB signal.
Example: To change black to blue and white to yellow
(yellow letters on a black screen), execute
EGACOLOR 00 01
EGACOLOR 07 76
Notes:
1. Changing modes resets the default EGA
colors. To create more permanent
mappings, use either the EGAPRMOV.COM
and EGACOSET.COM utilities or
SPECTRUM.COM, all of which are also
contained on this disk.
@@EGACOSET.COM
EGACOSET (and EGAPRMOV) Charles Petzold
Commands 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Loads a customizable 16 (of 64) color palette
that is reloaded each time video mode 3 is
set.
Format: EGAPRMOV
EGACOSET
Remarks: EGAPRMOV (parameter move) is a memory-
resident program that moves the EGA ROM BIOS
parameter table and seven pointers into RAM,
where it can be accessed by EGACOSET (color
set). EGAPRMOV is run once each session,
normally through your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
Running EGACOSET maps a color scheme of your
choice to each of the 16 EGA registers.
These color settings are then activated by
entering the EGAMODE 3 command (described
elsewhere in this manual) or by issuing the
DOS MODE CO80 command. Thus, to bring up
your color scheme each time you boot up, you
would put the following three lines in your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
EGAPRMOV
EGACOSET
EGAMODE 3
The EGACOSET.COM program on this disk
contains the default EGA for a 350-line
monitor. These are, sequentially (in hex):
Black 00 Dark Grey 38
Blue 01 Light Blue 39
Green 02 Light Green 3A
Cyan 03 Light Cyan 3B
Red 04 Light Red 3C
Magenta 05 Light Magenta 3D
Brown 14 Yellow 3E
White 07 Bright White 3F
Entering
DEBUG EGACOSET.COM
d<Enter>
displays the offsets and hex values of the
entire 43-byte program:
:0100 FC 29 C0 8E C0 26 C4 3E-A8 04 26 C4 3D BE 1B 01
:0110 81 C7 A3 05 B9 10 00 F3-A4 CD 20 00 01 02 03 04
:0120 05 14 07 38 39 3A 3B 3C-3D 3E 3F
Entering e 11b returns the first color value
(00), followed by a period (.). Type in the
hex value of the desired color after the
period and hit Enter. After changing as many
values as desired, use the w and q commands,
with a carriage return after each, to write
the changes to disk and end the DEBUG
session.
Example: To remap black (00) to blue (01), white (07)
to bright yellow (3E), and bright white (3F)
to bright green (3A), you would enter:
DEBUG EGACOSET.COM
e 11b
01
e 122
3E
e 12A
3A
w
q
Notes:
1. To use EGACOSET.COM with a regular 200-
line color monitor, change the byte (A3)
at offset :0112 to E3 and the byte (05)
at :0113 to 00. In this configuration,
restrict the colors selected to the 16
values from 00 through 0F.
2. SPECTRUM.COM, also contained on this
disk, provides an alternate way to
provide a customizable 16-color palette
for an Enhanced Color Display connected
to an EGA.
@@EGAPRMOV.COM
EGAPRMOV (and EGACOSET) Charles Petzold
Commands 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Loads a customizable 16 (of 64) color palette
that is reloaded each time video mode 3 is
set.
Format: EGAPRMOV
EGACOSET
Remarks: EGAPRMOV (parameter move) is a memory-
resident program that moves the EGA ROM BIOS
parameter table and seven pointers into RAM,
where it can be accessed by EGACOSET (color
set). EGAPRMOV is run once each session,
normally through your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
Running EGACOSET maps a color scheme of your
choice to each of the 16 EGA registers.
These color settings are then activated by
entering the EGAMODE 3 command (described
elsewhere in this manual) or by issuing the
DOS MODE CO80 command. Thus, to bring up
your color scheme each time you boot up, you
would put the following three lines in your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
EGAPRMOV
EGACOSET
EGAMODE 3
The EGACOSET.COM program on this disk
contains the default EGA for a 350-line
monitor. These are, sequentially (in hex):
Black 00 Dark Grey 38
Blue 01 Light Blue 39
Green 02 Light Green 3A
Cyan 03 Light Cyan 3B
Red 04 Light Red 3C
Magenta 05 Light Magenta 3D
Brown 14 Yellow 3E
White 07 Bright White 3F
Entering
DEBUG EGACOSET.COM
d<Enter>
displays the offsets and hex values of the
entire 43-byte program:
:0100 FC 29 C0 8E C0 26 C4 3E-A8 04 26 C4 3D BE 1B 01
:0110 81 C7 A3 05 B9 10 00 F3-A4 CD 20 00 01 02 03 04
:0120 05 14 07 38 39 3A 3B 3C-3D 3E 3F
Entering e 11b returns the first color value
(00), followed by a period (.). Type in the
hex value of the desired color after the
period and hit Enter. After changing as many
values as desired, use the w and q commands,
with a carriage return after each, to write
the changes to disk and end the DEBUG
session.
Example: To remap black (00) to blue (01), white (07)
to bright yellow (3E), and bright white (3F)
to bright green (3A), you would enter:
DEBUG EGACOSET.COM
e 11b
01
e 122
3E
e 12A
3A
w
q
Notes:
1. To use EGACOSET.COM with a regular 200-
line color monitor, change the byte (A3)
at offset :0112 to E3 and the byte (05)
at :0113 to 00. In this configuration,
restrict the colors selected to the 16
values from 00 through 0F.
2. SPECTRUM.COM, also contained on this
disk, provides an alternate way to
provide a customizable 16-color palette
for an Enhanced Color Display connected
to an EGA.
@@EGAITAL.COM
EGAITAL Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Produces a displayable italic font from the
default EGA font when used with a 350-line
(Enhanced Color or Monochrome) monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGAITAL
or
[d:][path]EGAITAL n
Remarks: EGAITAL can be executed directly from the DOS
prompt. The slanting algorithm employed is
similar (but not identical) to that used by
Microsoft Word to display italics in graphics
mode. The normal character display can be
restored by executing one of the DOS MODE
commands, by issuing the EGAMODE 3 (color),
EGAMODE 7 (monochrome) commands on this disk,
or by executing EGA25.COM (also on this
disk).
The n parameter shown in the second Format
above accepts values from 0 (the default)
through 3. It specifies the EGA memory block
into which the italic font is loaded. An EGA
with 256K memory can hold up to 4 fonts
simultaneously; a 128K EGA, up to 2 fonts. A
64K EGA board is limited to one font. The
EGA512 command, described elsewhere in this
manual, allows two fonts to be active
simultaneously when using software capable of
showing on-screen bold characters.
@@EGAMODE.COM
EGAMODE Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Reports/changes the current video mode.
Format: [d:][path]EGAMODE [M]
Remarks: Entered without the optional M parameter,
EGAMODE displays the current video mode. In
text modes, the commands EGAMODE 03 and
EGAMODE 07 have the same practical effect as
the DOS MODE CO80 and MODE MONO commands,
respectively. The table below lists the M
(mode) parameters to which EGAMODE can be
switched.
Mode Type Disp. Resol. Chars Box Colors Pgs.
---- ---- ----- ------- ----- --- ------ ---
0&1 Text CD 200x320 25x40 8x8 16 8
ECD 350x320 25x40 14x8 16/64 8
2&3 Text CD 200x640 25x80 8x8 16 8
ECD 350x640 25x80 14x8 16/64 8
4&5 Graph CD&ECD 200x320 25x40 8x8 4 1
6 Graph CD&ECD 200x640 25x80 14x8 2 1
7 Text MONO 350x720 25x80 14x9 4 8
8,9,10 --- PCjr modes not supported by EGA ---
11&12 --- Used internally by EGA for loading fonts ---
13 Graph CD&ECD 200x320 25x40 8x8 16 2(1)
4(2)
8(3)
14 Graph CD&ECD 200x640 25x80 8x8 16 1(1)
2(2)
4(3)
15 Graph MONO 350x640 25x80 14x8 4 1(1)
2(2)
16 Graph ECD 350x640 25x80 14x8 4/64(1) 1(2)
16/64(2) 2(3)
Notes: (1)=64K memory; (2)=128K memory; (3)=256K memory
Notes:
1. Users of a Hercules graphics card can
activate "page 1" graphics when an EGA
is installed with the command sequence:
MODE CO80
EGAMODE 16
MODE MONO
Use EGAMODE 14 if your EGA is connected
to a conventional color monitor.
2. Should you switch to a mode not
supported by your monitor, you can
recover by blindly entering EGAMODE 3
(color) or EGAMODE 7 (monochrome).
3. By adding 128 to the mode number desired
you can change modes without clearing
the screen (though the cursor is reset
to the upper left). These high numbered
modes may confuse some applications
programs, however.
@@EGAPAGE.COM
EGAPAGE Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Reports/changes the current video page.
Format: [d:][path]EGAPAGE [P]
Remarks: Entered without the optional P parameter,
EGAPAGE reports which video page is currently
active. The chart presented in this manual
for EGAMODE.COM shows which video pages (P
parameters, beginning with 0) can be used by
each EGA mode.
EGAPAGE can be useful when you have material
on your screen to which you want to return
later. Entering EGAPAGE 1 activates a new
screen while retaining the contents of the
default EGAPAGE 0 in memory. The previous
display can subsequently be recalled by
issuing the EGAPAGE 0 command.
Notes:
1. When using an alternate video page do
not change video modes, or the previous
display contents will be lost.
2. ANSI.SYS cannot be used with other than
video page 0.
@@EGAPALET.COM
EGAPALET Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 14
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Displays all 64 EGA colors simultaneously on
a 350-line color monitor.
Format: [d:][path]EGAPALET
Remarks: If a number of the color squares look the
same at first glance, adjust the contrast
and brightness controls and inspect the
screen at close range to confirm that
different pixels are being lit.
Starting with the upper left square as row 0,
column 0, the octal values for each color can
be determined directly from the screen.
Brown, for example, is octal 24 (row 2,
column 4), a value you might enter in the
EGACOLOR.COM utility included on this disk.
Since the EGA is theoretically limited to
simultaneous display of only 16 (of 64)
colors, EGAPALET employs the unorthodox
technique of remapping eight color registers
every 1/430th of a second. A certain amount
of jitter and flickering must therefore be
accepted on a PC or XT. The display is more
stable on an AT, but the bottom row of
squares is elongated. If you are using an
AT, this can be cured with DEBUG, as follows:
DEBUG EGAPALET.COM
e 102
The value 22. will appear. After the period,
enter 2B and a carriage return. Then write
the modified EGAPALET.COM to disk and quit
DEBUG by entering the following commands,
each terminated by a carriage return:
w
q
EGAPALET.COM is now patched for the PC AT.
Notes:
1. Only 16 colors are available on monitors
displaying 200 lines.
@@EGAPRTSC.COM
EGAPRTSC Charles Petzold
Command 1986/No. 15
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Replaces the normal Print Screen BIOS routine
to permit using the Shift-PrtSc command with
EGA displays with more than 25 rows.
Format: [d:][path]EGAPRTSC
Remarks: Although the EGA BIOS contains a new Print
Screen routine usable for screen dumps of
displays with 43, 50, 35, or other 25-plus
line displays, this routine is not
automatically loaded when you boot up with
the EGA installed.
EGAPRTSC is a memory-resident utility that
installs the updated Print Screen routines.
If you intend to make more than occasional
use of a 43-line display, you should load
EGAPRTSC from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
Notes:
1. EGAPRTSC should be loaded early in the
AUTOEXEC.BAT file, before any printer
buffers, commands such as PC-DOS
GRAPHICS, or other programs that would
use interrupt 5.
@@FREEZE.COM
FREEZE Jeff Prosise
Command l986/No. 22
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Ensures confidentiality of in-memory data
when it is necessary to leave a PC running
without storing the data to a removable
medium or encrypting it. FREEZE temporarily
suspends program operation, blanks the
screen, and disables the Ctrl-Alt-Del reboot
sequence until a user-entered password (up to
64 characters) is re-entered.
Format: [filespec]FREEZE
Remarks: FREEZE is a memory-resident utility, normally
loaded by an AUTOEXEC.BAT file. After
loading, the machine is "locked" by pressing
Alt-NumLock and then entering the passphrase
of choice. The passphrase may include any
characters except Esc and Enter. Pressing
the Esc key aborts password entry, and
pressing Enter initiates the lockdown.
The Backspace key may be used to correct
incidental mistakes, but care must be
exercised, as the characters are not echoed
on the screen during entry. To unlock the
machine, simply re-enter the same password
and press Enter. Again, the Backspace and
Esc keys can be used to correct or abort
password entry.
Notes:
1. The password is never stored and may be
changed each time FREEZE is invoked with
Alt-Numlock. If an attempt is made to
load FREEZE.COM more than once, an error
message will result.
2. While FREEZE is believed compatible with
most other memory-resident programs,
because of the importance of data with
which it is expected to be used, it
should be thoroughly checked out in your
specific configuration. In particular,
FREEZE should be loaded before SideKick.
@@MAKEBAR.COM
MAKEBAR Robert L. Hummel
Command 1987/No. 10 (Lab Notes)
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Compiles Lotus-style menus for non-Lotus
applications programs for use with the
SLASHBAR.COM utility contained on this disk.
Format: MAKEBAR [path]input_file [path]output_file
Remarks: The input_file must contain the keystrokes
needed to activate the application program's
commands, and it must be constructed using
the .BDF format and syntax illustrated by the
ASCII-readable DOS.BDF file contained on this
disk. The output_file produced by MAKEBAR is
a .BAR file suitable for loading as a pop-up
window by SLASHBAR. Maximum length of the
compiled .BAR file is approximately 46,000
bytes.
Constructing a suitable .BDF file for an
application is not a trivial undertaking, and
a thorough study of the original article is
recommended, if at all possible. The first
step is to organize the commands needed by
the application into a menu-tree arrangement
similar to the DOS menu tree shown below on
the following page.
The categories in the left column will appear
on the first line of the first menu screen.
CLS is immediately run from that screen, so
it has no lower branches.
|- COPY
|- FILE --|- DIR
| |- ERASE
| |- RENAME
| |- TYPE
|
| |- ASSIGN
| | |- PARENT
| |- CHDIR ----|- ROOT
| | |- OTHER
| |- FORMAT
|- DISK --|- LABEL
| |- MKDIR
| |- RMDIR
| |- VOL
|
| |- DATE
|- SYSTEM -|- TIME
| |- PROMPT
| |- VER
|
|- CLS
The diagram below shows the basic structure of the
MENU...MEND blocks from which a .BDF file is
constructed. Again, study the DOS.BDF file on this
disk.
PROGRAM "NAME" ---------- Identification Name
MENU NAME -----------------------------------|
OPTION NAME,"HELP LINE" --| |
COMMANDS -| | |
. |-- Commands |-- Option |
. | | Block |
. -| --| |-- Menu
OPTION NAME,"HELP LINE" | Block
COMMANDS |
. |
. |
. |
MEND ----------------------------------------|
MENU NAME----|
. | Additional menu
. |--block(s) as
. | required
MEND---------|
END -------- End Of File Indicator
Precede any comments you may wish to include in a .BDF
menu file with a semicolon. MAKEBAR ignores the
remainder of any line when it encounters the semicolon
character. Use the {c}1 key combination to represent
the semicolon in any names or quoted strings your
application requires.
Two types of text entries are used in menu files. A
STRING is an entry surrounded by quotes ("). "DOS 3.1"
and "JiffyCalc Spreadsheet" are examples of valid
strings. A string may not contain the quote character,
but you can use the {c}3 sequence to represent it in a
string. A NAME is an entry consisting of a single
word, and must contain no spaces. To aid readability,
separation characters may be used in names: DO-THIS,
DO_THAT, DO$IT$NOW, are all valid. Upper/Lower case is
preserved in strings, but names are capitalized in the
output file.
Strings may contain any character or key combination
(except the comment and quote characters) that can be
recognized by the BIOS. Key combinations in a BDF that
are not recognized by the BIOS will produce an error
message. (There may therefore be some commands for a
given application that cannot be included in the menu
structure.)
Alpha-numeric keys are entered by typing them. All
special keys, such as the function keys and shift-key
combinations are entered in symbolic form as text
surrounded by braces. The Shift, Ctrl, and Alt keys
affect only the immediately following key. The
available special keys and their representation in a
.BDF file are:
{ESC} Escape {U} Arrow Up
{TAB} Tab {D} Arrow Down
{ENTER} ENTER {L} Arrow Left
{BS} Backspace {R} Arrow Right
{HOME} Home {INS} Insert
{PGUP} Page Up {DEL} Delete
{PGDN} Page Down {C} Control
{END} End {S} Shift
{A} Alt
Function Keys
{F1} {F2} {F3} {F4} {F5} {F6} {F7} {F8} {F9} {F10}
Redundant key combinations, such as {S}a instead of A,
will produce an error message.
Example: To block out a paragraph in WordPerfect the
sequence would be:
"{A}{F4}{ENTER}"
To enter the WordStar Ctrl-KD sequence (to
end editing and save changes), you would use
the string:
"{C}KD"
To replace the current file in 1-2-3, enter:
"/FSR"
A .BDF file always begins with the word PROGRAM,
followed by a string. The first 10 characters of the
string are encoded in the compiled .BAR file for
display in the pop-up window. PROGRAM must be the
first non-comment line in the program, and it must
appear only once. Conversely, END causes processing of
the input file to cease and is the last command read.
Each .BDF file must include an END.
The remainder of the file consists of MENU-MEND blocks,
as was diagrammed above. Each block corresponds to one
complete set of command choices. In the DOS.BDF
example there are five menu blocks: the top-level
block; three second level blocks (to represent the
FILE, DISK, and SYSTEM submenus); and one third level
block (the CHDIR sub-submenu). Note that the CLS
option does not require a menu block since that command
terminates at the first level. The MENU block that
follows the PROGRAM command is assumed to be the top
level menu and will be the first one to be executed.
Subsequent MENU blocks may be in any order.
Each MENU statement takes a NAME as its argument, and
no two menus can have the same name. The name is used
as a target when control is transferred between menus
with the EXECUTE command. Using identical menu names
will cause MAKEBAR to report a Bad Menu Reference.
The MENU block is divided into one or more OPTION
blocks. An OPTION block comprises three separate
parts: name, help line, and commands. While, like a
menu, each option must have a name, there are no
restrictions as to uniqueness. The same option name
may be used in different menus with different meanings,
though this would not be the best design for a
consistent interface. Because options may be selected
by pressing their first letter, if two options begin
with the same letter, the second option can never be
executed by pressing that letter. (It can be invoked
by positioning the cursor and pressing ENTER.) This
property could be used to prevent accidental use of a
command by making it more difficult to invoke.
The help string must follow each option name on the
same line. This string will be displayed below the
option names when that option is selected with the
cursor. The length of this string must be less than 78
characters in order to fit within the window created by
SLASHBAR. Beginning on the next line, the application
program commands to be executed when that option is
chosen are entered. Each command must begin on a
separate line, and the entire command must be contained
on that line. If more keys need to be entered than can
fit on a single line, multiple TYPE statements (see
below) can be used.
The BDF commands, with their syntax, are listed below:
PROGRAM "string"
END
MENU name
MEND
OPTION name, "string"
ASK "string"
INPUT
TYPE "string"
CR
Remember that a name is a single word with no
separating spaces, and that a "string" is a series of
characters surrounded by quotes ("). The quotes symbol
itself cannot be used within a string, but it can be
represented in a string by the {c}3 sequence.
A number of these commands have been discussed above.
The five that remain, EXECUTE, ASK, TYPE, INPUT, and
CR, may only appear inside an OPTION block. These
commands make up a kind of batch language that controls
the operation of the SLASHBAR utility. At the end of
each menu path is a command string that will accomplish
the desired result when fed to the applications
program, just as if you typed in the commands directly.
The EXECUTE command transfers control down the menu
tree. Any option may invoke another menu by executing
it. Since menu flow is one-way, lines appearing below
an EXECUTE command within the same OPTION block will
never be invoked. In addition, since paths in the menu
tree may not cross, two option blocks cannot execute
the same menu. MAKEBAR checks for this and signals it
as an error. This prevents building a circular
reference into the tree, where a menu could call itself
indefinitely.
The ASK command is used to prompt the user for
information. The string argument appears on the screen
in the upper half of the pop-up window and does not
affect the output keystrokes. Because the logical use
of the ASK command is to request a reply, it is usually
followed by the INPUT command. By using these commands
together, it is possible to solicit information to
complete a command sequence.
The INPUT command accepts input from the keyboard and
appends it to the current command string. The input is
buffered, and the backspace key can be used to correct
the entry. Up to 78 characters may be entered, and
input terminates when the Enter key is pressed. The
keys are put in the command string as they were typed
without the terminating <Enter>.
The TYPE command copies the keys in the string argument
to the command string. Special keys (i.e., function
keys and shift-key combinations) are stored with a
special code to indicate that they are extended ASCII.
A special case of the TYPE command is the CR command.
It is equivalent to the command
TYPE "{ENTER}"
and is included simply for convenience in closing
commands after requesting an input.
@@PARSE.COM
PARSE Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 2
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Displays the number of characters, words, and
sentences in ASCII text files.
Format: PARSE [d:][path]filename
Remarks: PARSE also calculates and reports the
averages of the numbers of characters per
word, words per sentence, and "long" words (8
or more characters). It uses these to
calculate and display an approximation of the
Fog Index grade-level readability rating.
The accuracy of the various counts may be
affected, though usually not significantly,
by the presence of formatting and printing
codes included in the file by non-ASCII word
processors. PARSE does ignore the "high-bit"
codes produced by WordStar and similar
programs, but "dot commands" and the like
will be counted.
Notes:
1. For further information on the Fog Index
see Robert Gunning's The Technique of
Clear Writing (McGraw-Hill, 1952, 1968).
@@PLAY.COM
PLAY Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 8
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Provides many of the music-producing
functions of the BASIC PLAY statement without
the need to work in BASIC.
Format: [d:][path]PLAY[/K] (Option I)
[d:][path]PLAY string[/K] (Option II)
[d:][path]PLAY filespec/F[/K] (Option III)
Remarks: Entered at the DOS prompt with no arguments
on the command line (Option I), PLAY looks in
the current directory for a file named
PLAY.DAT and executes the commands in that
file. The PLAY.DAT file included on this
disk is "Greensleeves." The file can be
examined, and similar files created, with a
regular ASCII word processor.
Alternatively, PLAY can use either a command-
line string (Option II) or any legal DOS
filename (Option III) to supply the music
command arguments. Filenames may include a
path designation, but must include the /F
terminator. A sample file "score," STING.DAT
is contained on this disk.
Pressing any key while PLAY is executing will
terminate operation unless the /K switch has
been added.
The command set used with PLAY is shown on
the following page and is exemplified in the
PLAY.DAT and STING.DAT files.
The PLAY Command Set
K Keyboard. K will cause PLAY not to poll
the keyboard during play. If K is not
found, any keystroke will exit.
On Octave. n is a decimal number between 0
and 6. Middle C starts 03. The default
is 04.
Ln Length of time the notes will be played
until the next L command is encountered.
n is a decimal number between 1 and 64.
For example, L4 = quarter-note and L8 =
eighth note.
Tn Tempo is the pace at which the music is
played. n is a decimal number between
32 and 255. The larger the number, the
faster the pace. The default is T120.
A-G Letter names corresponding to the notes
of the scale. The letter name may be
followed by either a # or + for a sharp,
or a - for a flat. O3C = middle C.
Nn Note to be played. n is a decimal
number between 1 and 84. Each increment
is 1/12 of an octave. N can be used as
an alternative to defining a note by a
letter and an octave. For example, N37
= middle C.
Pn Pause, or rest, for a length defined by
n. P works in the same way as the L
command above. For example, P2 = a half
rest.
MN Music Normal. The note is played 7/8 of
its specified time, and 1/8 is a rest
between notes. This is the default.
ML Music Legato. The note is played the
full length of time specified.
MS Music Staccato. The note is played 3/4
of the time specified, and 1/4 is a rest
between notes.
. Dot. A dot can follow a letter note or
a pause. A dotted note increases play
time by half the duration of the note or
pause. More than one dot may be used.
@@POP-CAL.COM
POP-CAL Leo Forrest
Command 1986/No. 17
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Pops up a calendar window for any month from
January, 1583 to December, 9999.
Format: POP-CAL (loads command into memory)
Alt-C Toggles calendar on/off
Right-Arrow Advance one month
Left-Arrow Back one month
Up-Arrow Advance one year
Down-Arrow Back one year
Remarks: POP-CAL is a memory-resident utility and
should be loaded into memory before you call
up any applications programs. Normally, you
would simply enter POP-CAL as one line in
your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
POP-CAL takes the current month and year as
its initial value. It subsequently remembers
your last-used calendar, facilitating
repeated references.
Notes:
1. You can use DEBUG to change the default
Alt-C toggle key by replacing the
Alt-key scan code value at offset :014B.
The default value is 2E, which will
appear, followed by a period, in
response to the E command shown below.
Enter only the new scan code, not the
2E. Thus, to change the program to use
Alt-Q (scan code 10) you would enter:
DEBUG POP-CAL.COM
E 14b 10
W
Q
The hex values for the various scan
codes are given in Appendix E of the IBM
BASIC manual (3.0) and also in the "Scan
Code Value Table" in connection with
SLASHBAR.COM, elsewhere in this manual.
2. While POP-CAL has been tested for
compatibility with a number of other
memory-resident programs, there is
always the possibility of a conflict
with other TSR (Terminate-Stay-Resident)
programs.
@@REPEATS.COM
REPEATS Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 11
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Checks all directories on a drive and reports
all duplicate filenames.
Format: REPEATS [d:][/P]
Remarks: While not all duplicate files on a disk are
unnecessary, most are. If a hard disk has
been in use for some time it is astonishing
how many outdated versions or outright copies
of the same file are currently wasting space.
REPEATS lists all identical filenames,
together with their directory, size, date,
and time information, so you can decide which
files to delete. The optional /P switch
directs the program output simultaneously to
the screen and to a printer. As an
alternative, you could redirect output to a
file, DUPS.FND, by using the DOS redirection
command, thus:
REPEATS > DUPS.FND
Notes:
1. During the time it operates, REPEATS
requires 128K of available memory. The
program can be terminated prematurely by
pressing Ctrl-Break.
@@SCANDIR.COM
SCANDIR Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 2 (Lab Notes)
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Permits side-by-side comparison of the
contents of two directories using either
separately-controllable or synchronized
forward/backward scrolling.
Format: SCANDIR [d:]directory1 [d:]directory2
Remarks: The directories to be compared do not have to
be on the same drive. Use the normal DOS
backslash (\) character in specifying the
path to a desired directory. The DOS
"wildcard" symbols (* and ?) may be used to
limit the filenames displayed.
The two directory listings are presented in
the normal DOS order and format. A status
line at the bottom of the screen shows
whether the right or the left-hand column
will be scrolled. Use the Left- or Right-
Arrow keys to set scrolling on for the
alternate column, or use the ScrLk key to
toggle synchronized movement on or off. The
Up- and Down-Arrow keys control forward and
backward scrolling of the listing(s) one line
at a time. The PgUp and PgDn keys move the
listing(s) one full screen (20 filename
lines) at a time. In the forward direction,
if scrolling continues beyond the last
filename in a directory, the listing
commences again at the beginning.
Notes:
1. SCANDIR is an on-screen program: its
display cannot be saved to a file or
redirected to a printer. If you require
these capabilities, use DIRCOMP.COM,
which is also included on this disk.
2. Because SCANDIR.COM loads a secondary
command processor, a copy of COMMAND.COM
must be available on the boot-up drive
(floppy or hard disk).
@@SEARCH.COM
SEARCH Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 4
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Searches all or specified directories on a
disk for either designated filenames or the
first occurrence of character strings within
files.
Format: SEARCH [filespec] [string][/P][/C][/B]
Remarks: SEARCH defaults to a diskwide search of all
subdirectories on the current disk. You can
specify a different drive and/or a pathname
as part of the optional filespec parameter.
Filename searches support the DOS * and ?
wildcards. Character strings within files
are identified by putting them in quotation
marks. (The strings may themselves include a
pair of quotation marks.) Pressing either
Ctrl-Break or Ctrl-C terminates SEARCH
manually.
To redirect the output of the SEARCH command
to a printer, add /P to the command line, as
shown in the first example below. Adding a
similar /C switch will make the search for a
character string case-sensitive.
When searching for a character string, SEARCH
normally ignores .COM and .EXE files. While
this saves time, there may be occasions when
you want to find copyright notices, error
messages, et al. in an executable file. To
include binary files in the search, add the
/B parameter on the command line.
Example: To print out a list all the .COM files in the
\PROG subdirectory of your current drive, you
would enter
SEARCH \PROG\*.COM/P
Example: To find which of the file(s) in your \LETTERS
subdirectory contained the salutation, Dear
Miss Jones, enter
SEARCH \LETTERS "Dear Miss Jones"
Notes:
1. SEARCH returns a line number, based on
the number of previous carriage returns
in the file, when it finds a string. It
reports only the first occurrence of the
string in each file.
@@SLASHBAR.COM
SLASHBAR Robert L. Hummel
Command 1987/No. 10
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Pops up a Lotus-style menu of the commands
needed to operate a non-Lotus applications
program.
Format: [d:][path]SLASHBAR [path]menuname.ext [/n]
Remarks: Menuname.ext is a menu (.BAR) file compiled
for the application in question with the
MAKEBAR.COM program contained on this disk.
When first loaded, SLASHBAR becomes memory-
resident and uses the /n parameter to reserve
sufficient room in memory for the largest
.BAR file that will be used during the
current session. The default value of n is
4096 bytes. The maximum value of n is
approximately 60,000 bytes, which is more
than the largest .BAR file that can be
produced by the MAKEBAR compiler. The
SLASHBAR command can be run many times during
a session in order to replace the menu in use
with that for a different applications
program, but the /n parameter is used only
for the first loading.
The default "hot key" used by SLASHBAR to pop
up the menu in current use is Alt-/ (Alt plus
the slashbar key). Instructions for changing
this trigger key are given in the Notes.
Example: To load the sample DOS.BAR menu supplied on
this disk, at the DOS prompt enter
SLASHBAR DOS.BAR
(DOS.BAR requires less than 1500 bytes, so no
n parameter need be given.) Alt-/ brings up
the menu, whose commands are activated either
by moving the highlight bar to the desired
command and pressing Enter, or simply by
typing the first letter of the command. The
second line of the menu is the explanatory
help line for the currently-highlighted
command, as in Lotus 1-2-3.
Notes:
1. If you are familiar with DEBUG, you can
change the "hot key" used by SLASHBAR.
The possible Shift-Mask values (MM in
the DEBUG session below) are listed in a
table on the next page. The default
(the Alt key) is 08 at offset 171.
2. Alternate values for the Scan-Code (SS
in the DEBUG session below) are
similarly listed in the table below.
The default (the slash / key) value is
35, and its offset address is 167.
After selecting new values for SS and
MM, the DEBUG session would be as
follows:
DEBUG SLASHBAR.COM
E 167 SS ;Scan code here
E 171 MM ;Shift mask here
W
Q
End each line above with a carriage
return and do not type in the semicolons
or the words to their right.
SHIFT-MASK Value Table ("X" means key is depressed)
Value Alt Ctrl L-Shft R-Shft
00
01 X
02 X
03 X X
04 X
05 X X
06 X X
07 X X X
08 X
09 X X
0A X X
0B X X X
0C X X
0D X X X
0E X X X
0F X X X X
SCAN-CODE Value Table (in hex)
Key Code Key Code
Esc 01 |\ 2B
!1 02 Z 2C
@2 03 X 2D
#3 04 C 2E
$4 05 V 2F
%5 06 B 30
^6 07 N 31
&7 08 M 32
*8 09 <, 33
(9 0A >. 34
)0 0B ?/ 35
_- 0C R-Shft 36
+= 0D PrtSc* 37
Bksp 0E Alt 38
Tab 0F Sp 39
Q 10 CapsLk 3A
W 11 F1 3B
E 12 F2 3C
R 13 F3 3D
T 14 F4 3E
Y 15 F5 3F
U 16 F6 40
I 17 F7 41
O 18 F8 42
P 19 F9 43
{[ 1A F10 44
}] 1B NumLk 45
Enter 1C ScrLk 46
Ctrl 1D 7Home 47
A 1E 8Up 48
S 1F 9PgUp 49
D 20 - 4A
F 21 4Left 4B
G 22 5 4C
H 23 6Right 4D
J 24 + 4E
K 25 1End 4F
L 26 2Down 50
:; 27 3PgDn 51
"' 28 0Ins 52
~` 29 .Del 53
LShft 2A
@@SPECTRUM.COM
SPECTRUM Robert L. Hummel
Command 1987/No. 12 (Lab Notes)
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Provides existing software with a selectable
16-color palette (from among 64 displayable
colors) when used with an Enhanced Graphics
Adapter and an Enhanced Graphics (or similar)
monitor.
Format: [d:][path]SPECTRUM
or (see second format, below)
[d:][path]SPECTRUM xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx
xx xx xx xx xx xx xx
Remarks: SPECTRUM is a memory-resident utility that is
normally loaded as part of your AUTOEXEC.BAT
file. Once loaded, pressing Ctrl-` (the Ctrl
key and the grave [reverse] accent key) pops
up a display of 16 color boxes, each of which
may be set, on-screen, to any of the 64
displayable values. The cursor pad keys are
then used, as described in the display, to
select any of the boxes and their 2-digit
color codes. Pressing the End key saves the
current color selections and returns you to
your application. Home resets the color
palette to its default values, and Esc aborts
any changes made, restoring your previous
color settings.
For loading or changing the SPECTRUM palette
without using the pop-up window (e.g., as
part of a batch file), the second Format
above may be used. The values for x may
range from 0 through 7 and must be entered in
pairs ON A SINGLE LINE (not on two lines, as
shown). A single space must separate each of
the 16 pairs of digits, and a single space
must also separate the number-pairs from the
command name. Use the pop-up window to
determine the proper number-pairs initially.
Notes:
1. Software programs that write directly to
the EGA registers will override the
SPECTRUM color selections. The SPECTRUM
colors may be restored, if lost, by
activating the display window (Ctrl-`)
and then pressing the Esc key.
2. EGACOSET.COM, also on this disk, is an
alternative program to SPECTRUM.COM.
@@STATUS.COM
STATUS Michael J. Mefford
Command 1987/No. 8
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Reads and reports the system configuration
information from a machine's switch settings
and/or low memory addresses.
Format: [d:][path]STATUS
Remarks: STATUS is entered at the DOS prompt and
produces a single-screen display information
that includes: the configuration switch
settings of an IBM PC or XT (or the
equivalent data contained in the AT equipment
byte); number of disk drives installed;
presence or absence of a math coprocessor;
amount of memory installed on the system
board (PC and XT only); number of parallel,
serial, and game ports installed; initial
video mode; total amount of main memory and
amount of currently free memory; amount (if
any) of extended and/or expanded memory; DOS
version in use; and machine BIOS version.
Notes:
1. Readers have reported that on some
models of the IBM XT the configuration
switch settings are wired upside down
with respect to the STATUS graphic
display. The basic information
presented is correct, however. Also, on
some non-IBM "compatibles" some
information may not be presented.
@@SUGGEST.COM
SUGGEST Michael J. Mefford
Command 1986/No. 20
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Flashes a message on the screen at selected
rates and durations ranging from many minutes
to a brevity approaching the limit of
subliminal perception.
Format: SUGGEST message[/Fn][/Dn]
Remarks: The message may be up to 80 characters in
length; longer messages are truncated. The
optional /F (frequency) and /D (duration)
switches accept a user-entered integer n from
1 through 9. (0 is their default value and
need not be entered). These correspond to
the following approximate timings:
/F9=0:05 /D9=0.170
/F8=3:05 /D8=0.153
/F7=6:05 /D7=0.136
/F6=9:05 /D6=0.119
/F5=12:05 /D5=0.102
/F4=15:05 /D4=0.085
/F3=18:05 /D3=0.068
/F2=21:05 /D2=0.051
/F1=24:05 /D1=0.034
/F0=27:05 (default) /D0=0.017
Example: You might enter the following:
SUGGEST SAVE YOUR WORK/F6/D9
as a useful reminder.
Notes:
1. SUGGEST is a memory-resident utility.
You may load several messages, but you
must reboot to clear the program.
2. Even at its briefest duration the
SUGGEST message is still visible, so the
program is not intended for scientific
investigation of truly subliminal
experimentation.
@@TIMEKEY.COM
TIMEKEY Jeff Prosise
Command 1987/No. 3
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Inserts the date and/or time into documents
being created by other applications programs.
Format: [d:][path]TIMEKEY
Remarks: TIMEKEY is a memory-resident utility and must
be loaded after the system date and time have
been initialized. Subject to this
limitation, it may be loaded either at the
command line or as part of an AUTOEXEC.BAT
file.
Once loaded, TIMEKEY uses the following
keystrokes:
Alt-L inserts a long-form date
(e.g., June 10, 1987)
Alt-S inserts a short-form date
(e.g., 6-10-87)
Alt-T inserts the time (e.g., 12:21 PM)
Notes:
1. Once loaded, TIMEKEY keeps track of the
time automatically, but it does not
change the current date at midnight
unless the system is manually rebooted.
2. TIMEKEY is compatible with BASICA (which
also uses the timer tick) and with many
memory resident utilities (e.g.,
SideKick), but compatibility with all
TSR programs cannot be assured.
@@VISITYPE.COM
VISITYPE Steven Holzner
Command 1986/No. 18
______________________________________________________
Purpose: Expands the PC's normal 15-character
typeahead buffer to 80 characters.
Format: [d:][path]VISITYPE
Remarks: If you enter a series of commands without
waiting until each has finished executing (as
during a long directory scroll or disk-
searching operation, for example), the PC
will beep and discard subsequent keystrokes
when you exceed its built-in 15-character
keyboard buffer.
VISITYPE enlarges the keyboard buffer to 80
characters and temporarily displays the
overflow on the top line of the display
before they are used. Keystrokes so
displayed can be edited, if necessary, by
using the Backspace key and then entering the
correct keystroke.
Notes:
1. VISITYPE is a memory-resident utility
that is normally loaded through your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file. While it will work
with most applications programs, it will
not work with those that completely take
over the keyboard interrupts for their
own purposes.
@@XDIR.COM
XDIR Jeff Prosise
Command 1987/No. 7
______________________________________________________
Purpose: XDIR.COM is a memory-resident utility that
allows you to display the filenames in any
drive/directory even when you are running
another applications program.
Format: [d:][path]XDIR
Remarks: Once loaded (normally as an entry in your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file), pressing the Alt-. (the
Alt and the period key combination) causes a
blank window to pop up on the screen.
Pressing Enter then displays the first 40
filenames of your current directory in the
window. Pressing Esc once clears the
display, and pressing it a second time
returns you to your previous application.
To view other directories, simply enter their
appropriate path designation (including
drive, if different) before pressing Enter
when the window is blank.
The PgUp and PgDn keys are used to display
files beyond the initial 40 shown in the
window. Up to 360 files in any one directory
may be displayed.
Notes:
1. If you are experienced in using DEBUG,
you may wish to change some of the
XDIR.COM defaults. Remember always to
make changes to a copy of the program,
not to your original. After entering
DEBUG XDIR.COM, the following addresses
and initial values may be of interest:
Offset Value Parameter
:013C 4F Border color attribute
:013D 0F Text color attribute
:014D 00 File type (see Note 2)
:0186 34 Period key scan code
:018E 08 Alt-key shift code
2. By default, XDIR displays only normal
filenames (00 at :014D). To show hidden
files, the value here should be 02.
System files are 04, and subdirectories
are 10h. These values are additive. To
display subdirectories and files marked
both hidden and system (e.g. IBMBIO.COM)
you would enter the value 16h at offset
:014D in place of the default 00.
3. While no TSR program can be guaranteed
compatible with all other memory
residents, its special interrupt
handling should make XDIR.COM coexist
even with most "difficult" TSRs.