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GRABBER(tm) Version 3.9 Shareware Issue ----------------------------- The Screen Capture Program for the IBM PC, XT, AT, PS/2 and Compatibles DOCUMENTATION AND TECHNICAL NOTES February 4, 1992 Copyright 1991, 1992 by Gerald A. Monroe All rights reserved. GRABBER(tm) is being marketed in this special form as shareware. This means you have the opportunity to use and evaluate it before you decide to buy. If you regularly use GRABBER, or any of its "offspring" programs, then you are required to send your regis- tration fee to the author according to the instructions on page 3 of this document. (The cost as of this writing is $29.00 or $59.00 U.S. per single-user license, depending on the features you desire.) When you register, you receive a copy of the latest registered version of GRABBER, which includes the features listed on pages 2 and 3 of this document, plus any enhancements that may have been added since this document was released. Using this shareware issue for more than 10 days constitutes "regular" use under this license, and requires the user to register. If you obtained this program from a shareware disk distributor, then you have paid only for the service of copying this disk, but you have not paid for the program itself. The author receives no part of the price you may have paid to a disk distributor for this disk. +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | Notice to Distributors, Publishers and User's Groups: | | ------------------------------------------------------ | | Please consult the last page of this document for important | | license information and restrictions. | | | +---------------------------------------------------------------+ PC, XT, PC/AT and PS/2 are trademarks, and IBM is a registered trademark, of International Business Machines Corporation. Hercules is a registered trademark of Hercules Computer Technolo- gy Inc. PC Paintbrush is a registered trademark of Zsoft Corpor- ation. WordPerfect is a registered trademark of WordPerfect Corporation. PageMaker is a registered trademark of Aldus Corporation. Ventura Publisher is a registered trademark of Ventura Software Inc. GIF is a trademark of CompuServe Inc. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 2 of 37 Thank you for trying GRABBER! ******************************* Thank you for your interest in the GRABBER screen capture system. Users who register their use of the program receive a copy of the registered GRABBER package. The registered GRABBER package includes the most recent versions of all the programs and documentation included in this shareware issue. Also, with the registered GRABBER package, you can capture graphics and text images which do not carry the registration reminder message in the lower right corner, as the screens in this shareware issue do. There are two registered packages you can choose from, depending on your needs. One is currently available for $59.00 U.S., and the other for $29.00. The $59 registered package is designed with the graphics power user in mind. If you need a program that can capture high reso- lution Super-VGA graphics, or if you want to convert the image files created by GRABBER into a format that can be imported into other software applications for displaying or printing, then the $59 package is for you. The $59 package captures text images of every size, plus CGA, EGA, Hercules, VGA and Super-VGA graphics up to 1024 x 768 in 256 or 16 colors. The $29 registered package is suited for users who do not have intensive graphics needs which require super-VGA hardware support or graphics format conversion, but who still need a product that can capture and display high-quality graphics on IBM EGA and VGA-compatible computers. The $29 package captures text images of every size, plus CGA, EGA, Hercules, and VGA graphics up to 640 x 480 in 16 colors, or up to 320 x 200 in 256 colors. The $59 package includes the GR2PCX and GR2GIF graphics conver- sion utilities which you will find in this shareware issue, as well as a third graphics conversion program, GR2PIC (for creating .PIC-format graphics). The $29 package *does not* include the GR2PCX, GR2GIF or GR2PIC conversion utilities. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 3 of 37 ORDERING INFORMATION --------------------- The prices of the registered GRABBER packages are subject to change after December 31, 1992. The latest shareware issue of GRABBER, which includes the most up-to-date information on pricing and new features, is always posted for downloading in these three places: * CompuServe IBMSYS and GRAPHSUPPORT forums (look for GRABBR.ZIP) * PC-Ohio BBS, "The Best BBS in America" for 1990 and 1991, at (216) 381-3320, in Directory #1. (File name is GRABBxxx.ZIP, where "xxx" indicates the version number. E.g., GRABB394.ZIP means Version 3.94) If you are reading this document after December 31, 1992, it might not be current. To make sure you have the latest informa- tion on pricing and availability of new features, contact the author or look for the latest shareware release of GRABBER in one of the places listed above. TO ORDER BY CHECK --------------------------- To obtain either the current $59 or $29 registered release of the GRABBER package, register by sending the order form below with your check or money order for $59.00 or $29.00 U.S. per copy, payable to Gerald A. Monroe. Send your order to: Gerald A. Monroe 1241 Bunts Road Lakewood, Ohio 44107 U.S.A. Canadian and overseas users: please use a check which states on its face that it is payable at a bank or post office in the U.S. TO ORDER BY CREDIT CARD --------------------------------- You can use your Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover card to obtain the latest release of the $59 or $29 registered GRABBER package, by ordering through the Public Software Library of Houston, Texas. Please note that there is a handling charge of $4.00 per order when you register through PSL (e.g. one copy costs $63 or $33, depending on the version). GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 4 of 37 Credit card orders are shipped directly by the author, usually within 48 hours after reciept by PSL. Please specify to PSL your choice of the $59 or $29 registered version, and your choice of 5.25" or 3.5" diskette. To order by credit card, contact PSL at one of the following numbers: * (800) 242-4775 (Toll-Free) * (713) 524-6394 * CIS 71355,470 (CompuServe Mail) Or, complete the order form below on page 5, and mail it to: Public Software Library P.O. Box 35705 Houston, Texas 77235-5705 U.S.A. Or, complete the order form below on page 5, and "fax" it to: * (713) 524-6398 (FAX only) If you are mailing your credit card order, please be sure to mail it to PSL, not to the author. Credit card orders mailed to the author will be returned. Please note that the PSL telephone numbers and mailing address are for ordering only. For information about dealer pricing, volume discounts, site licensing, shipping, returns, latest version numbers or other technical information, contact the author at the address shown above on page 3, or by CompuServe Mail at ID Number 72321,1257. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 5 of 37 +---------------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | I wish to license _____ copy/copies of the latest release of the | | GRABBER programs. I have enclosed $59.00 and/or $29.00 for each | | single-user license, as indicated. (Prices subject to change.) | | | | Number of copies: _____ $59.00 version; _____ $29.00 version | | | | Name ___________________________________________________________ | | | | Company (if applicable) ________________________________________ | | | | Address ________________________________________________________ | | | | City _______________________________ State ______ Zip ________ | | | | Phone (_______)____________________ ____ day; ____ evening | | | | I prefer: _____ 3.5" disk; _____ 5.25" disk | | | | For credit card orders only: | | ****************************** | | | | Circle one: Visa MasterCard American Express Discover | | | | Card Number _________________________________ Expiration: _______ | | | | Cardholder Name (please print) __________________________________ | | | | Cardholder Signature _____________________________________ 3.94 | +---------------------------------------------------------------------+ TO ORDER BY CHECK: Mail this order form, together with your check or money order, to: Gerald A. Monroe 1241 Bunts Road Lakewood, Ohio 44107 U.S.A. TO ORDER BY CREDIT CARD: Call the Public Software Library at 800-242-4775 (toll-free within the U.S.), or at 713-524-6394. There is a $4 handling charge when you order through PSL. You can also "fax" your completed order form to PSL at 713-524-6398. Or, mail your order form to: Public Software Library P.O. Box 35705 Houston, Texas 77235-5705 U.S.A. Table of Contents PART 1: CONFIGURING AND USING GRABBER Shareware registration and ordering information .... 2, 3-4 Order form ......................................... 5 Overview of GRABBER ................................ 7 GRABBER requirements ............................... 7 Compatibility with text and standard graphics ...... 8 Compatibility with super-VGA graphics .............. 9 Starting GRABBER ................................... 10 Special note for IBM PS/2 and PS/1 users ........... 11 Installation tips for hard disks, floppy systems ... 11 Capturing the screen ............................... 12 Things to know about the filename prompt function... 13 Capturing Hercules-compatible monochrome graphics... 14 Capturing to different drive/directory ............. 14 Errors during the screen capture ................... 15 If the computer is too busy to capture ............. 15 GRABBER configuration options ...................... 15 PROMPT, NOPROMPT .............................. 16 MOUSE, NOMOUSE ................................ 17 SWAPMODE ...................................... 18 FONTPALETTE, NOFONTPALETTE .................... 18 SOUND, NOSOUND ................................ 19 BATCHCAPTURE .................................. 19 NOXMS, NOEMS .................................. 20 UNLOAD ........................................ 21 DEFAULTDRIVE .................................. 22 NOVESA ........................................ 22 VGAREGS, NOVGAREGS ............................ 22 PART 2: USING GRABBER's OFFSPRING .EXE IMAGE FILES Options for displaying offspring files ............. 24 Timed execution: /Tn .......................... 24 Don't clear screen on exit: /F ................ 25 Don't wait for any keypress: /N ............... 25 Keylist and interactive batch files: /K ....... 26 Sample interactive batch file ................. 27 PART 3: MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION Changing GRABBER's hotkey .......................... 30 Testing your VESA BIOS Extension with CHKVBE ....... 31 Calling GRABBER from your own programs ............. 33 Reporting problems/bugs ............................ 34 Hotkey parameter code table (1 of 2) ............... App. A Hotkey parameter code table (2 of 2) ............... App. B License terms for this shareware issue of GRABBER .. App. C GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 7 of 37 PART I: CONFIGURING AND USING GRABBER OVERVIEW OF GRABBER -------------------- GRABBER is a program that saves the images on the screen of your IBM Personal Computer or compatible PC to a disk file. GRABBER does this in a way that makes it very easy for you to summon the images back to your screen at a later time, and exactly as they were originally displayed. GRABBER is memory-resident, which means that after you start it, the program is always waiting in the background, while you continue to run other programs. You tell GRABBER to capture the image currently being displayed on the screen by pressing a combination of keys which GRABBER reserves for itself. GRABBER "captures" the screen in the form of a file on your disk, called a GRABBER "offspring" file. When you want to view the screen later, all you need to do is run this "offspring" file like an ordinary program. GRABBER REQUIREMENTS --------------------- To use GRABBER, you will need: a) an IBM PC, XT, AT, PS/2, or 100% compatible computer; b) at least one floppy diskette drive; and c) IBM-PC DOS, or MS-DOS, Version 2.0 or later. You can use GRABBER with either a color or a monochrome display screen. GRABBER AND WINDOWS -------------------- GRABBER is not compatible with any version of Microsoft Windows. This means you cannot use GRABBER to capture screens from the Windows desktop, or from Windows applications which are running in their own individual windows. However, GRABBER can be used to capture screens from MS-DOS applications which are operating under Windows 3.0 or 3.1. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 8 of 37 WHAT GRABBER CAN CAPTURE ------------------------- GRABBER is capable of capturing practically any size of text image which your computer can display, up to 132 columns by 60 rows. GRABBER is capable of capturing graphic images on systems equipped with any of the following video display adapters: * Color Graphics Adapter (CGA) * Hercules-compatible Monochrome Graphics Adapter (MGA) * Multicolor Graphics Adapter (MCGA) * Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) * Video Gate Array adapter (VGA) GRABBER saves all images, whether text or graphics, to executable program files with an ".EXE" file name extension. GRABBER captures all of the video modes listed in the following chart, which have been standardized by manufacturers of the various video adapters mentioned above: Video Text Graphics Adapters Mode Resolution Resolution Colors Supporting ----- ---------- ---------- ------ -------------------- 00 40 x 25 n/a b&w CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 01 40 x 25 n/a 16 CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 02 80+ x 25+ n/a b&w CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 03 80+ x 25+ n/a 16 CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 04 n/a 320 x 200 4 CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 05 n/a 320 x 200 b&w CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 06 n/a 640 x 200 b&w CGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 07 80+ x 25+ n/a mono MGA/MCGA/EGA/VGA 07 n/a 720 x 348 mono MGA 13 n/a 320 x 200 16 EGA/VGA 14 n/a 640 x 200 16 EGA/VGA 15 n/a 640 x 350 mono EGA/VGA 16 n/a 640 x 350 16 EGA/VGA 17 n/a 640 x 480 b&w VGA/MCGA 18 n/a 640 x 480 16 VGA 19 n/a 320 x 200 256 VGA/MCGA GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 9 of 37 SUPER-VGA and NON-STANDARD VIDEO MODES --------------------------------------- A Super-VGA adapter is a VGA adapter which is fully compatible with IBM's original VGA, but which also supports graphics resolu- tions of 800 x 600 dots or greater in 16-color modes, or resolu- tions of 640 x 400 dots or greater in 256-color modes. In addition to the standard modes listed in the chart on page 8, GRABBER can also capture several non-standard graphics modes that are available on the Super-VGA adapters of many different manu- facturers. It is not feasible to list here each of the mode numbers used by each brand of Super-VGA adapter, or the graphics resolution associated with each mode number. Instead, here is a list of the most common Super-VGA graphics resolutions in use today. GRABBER is designed to work with these resolutions on many different brands of Super-VGA adapters: - 640 x 400 x 256 colors - 1024 x 768 x 16 colors * - 640 x 480 x 256 colors - 1024 x 768 x 256 colors - 800 x 600 x 16 colors - 800 x 600 x 256 colors ( * but not mode 65h on ATI VGA Wonder cards) GRABBER is not designed to work with high-resolution 4-color or 8-color images, or images with more than 256 colors. If GRABBER is asked to capture a high-resolution Super-VGA image of a type which it does not recognize, it will attempt to guess the correct dimensions of the image and the number of colors. Its guess will be accurate to the extent that the adapter's ROM BIOS is truly IBM-compatible in its extended graphic modes. GRABBER's compatibility with a particular Super-VGA adapter depends primarily on the manufacturer of the adapter's VLSI circuitry, or its "VGA chipset" maker. This manufacturer is usually not the same as the company who puts its brand name on the card, because most Super-VGA producers obtain VGA chipsets from outside sources and build their adapters around them. Therefore, the only way to reliably identify the chipset used by your Super-VGA adapter is to check the name printed on top of the VLSI circuit chip which is soldered to the surface of the adapter itself. (The VLSI chip is usually the largest single chip on the board.) GRABBER has been tested and found to work reliably with the VGA chipsets produced by these manufacturers: - ATI Technologies - Headland Technology (Video Seven) - Tseng Laboratories - Western Digital (Paradise) GRABBER is also designed to be compatible with Super-VGA adapters -- regardless of the type of VGA chipset employed -- which fully support the VESA BIOS Extension, a Super-VGA standard adopted in 1990 by the Video Electronics Standards Association. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 10 of 37 STARTING GRABBER ----------------- If you have a hard disk drive, copy the file GRABBER.EXE from your GRABBER distribution diskette to your hard disk. If you don't have a hard disk, copy the GRABBER.EXE file from its distribution diskette to the floppy diskette which you place in Drive A when you start your computer. Consult your DOS manual if you are not sure how to use DOS' "COPY" command. Whenever you call on GRABBER to capture a screen, it attempts to create an offspring file on your hard disk or floppy diskette. Before starting GRABBER, you should decide on which disk drive or hard disk directory you want to instruct GRABBER to place the offspring files, and tell GRABBER this. You have a few options. The way to install GRABBER in memory is to enter one of the following types of commands at the DOS prompt, or as a line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file: (1) GRABBER drive:\pathname (2) GRABBER drive: (3) GRABBER DEFAULTDRIVE In the first and second examples, [drive] can be a single letter for any valid disk drive name in your system, from A to Z. If you have a hard disk divided into subdirectories -- as most hard disks are -- then you have the option of specifying to which of these subdirectory "paths" GRABBER will deposit offspring files. In the third example, the word DEFAULTDRIVE is a special "command line switch" which takes the place of a drive or path parameter. It instructs GRABBER not to place offspring files always in a particular place, but to use whatever drive happens to be closest at hand when you make your capture request. In DOS terminology, this is known as the "default drive and path." Depending on what program you are running, this drive can change from one to another, and it often will. The DEFAULTDRIVE option is recom- mended for systems with a single floppy diskette drive and no hard disk. Please note that GRABBER does not remain resident in memory until you issue the GRABBER command followed by a drive/path destina- tion parameter, or by the DEFAULTDRIVE switch. After GRABBER is installed in memory, you can issue successive GRABBER commands to communicate with the copy of the program that resides in memory. When you do this, you do not have to specify a drive/path destination parameter again, unless you want to change a destination which you previously specified. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 11 of 37 SPECIAL NOTE FOR IBM PS/2 and PS/1 USERS: If GRABBER refuses to load into memory, or causes your system to lock up, or otherwise exhibits strange behavior when you execute the startup commands described above on page 10, try including the characters "@IBM" on the GRABBER command line after your drive/path parameter, like this: GRABBER [d:][\path] @IBM HARD DISK SYSTEMS ------------------ If your hard disk is called drive C:, then using the command GRABBER C: instructs GRABBER to place your offspring files on whatever the current default directory happens to be on your hard disk. This directory will often change while you are running programs on your computer, so in this instance, you might have offspring files scattered among different directories on the disk. To place all your offspring files in the same, specific directo- ry, add a directory name after the drive name. For instance, entering GRABBER C:\ will place your offspring files in the root directory of your hard disk. GRABBER C:\PICTURES will place them in a sub-directory called PICTURES. TWO DISKETTE DRIVES -------------------- If your system has two floppy diskette drives, you can use either the "A:" or "B:" parameters to install GRABBER in memory. You may also follow the drive letter with a directory name if your diskette has subdirectories on it, but be aware that GRABBER will be unable to capture the screen later if you insert a new disk- ette into the installed drive which does not have a subdirectory with the same name as the one you specified when you installed GRABBER in memory with the command GRABBER [drive:][\path]. ONE DISKETTE DRIVE ------------------- If you have no hard disk and only one floppy disk drive, it is recommended that you start GRABBER using the GRABBER DEFAULTDRIVE command. This prevents the possibility of spoiling your screen image with DOS' instruction to "Insert diskette for drive X and press any key" when you are requesting GRABBER to capture the screen. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 12 of 37 CAPTURING THE SCREEN --------------------- When you install GRABBER in memory, the program displays a blue welcome banner on your screen in the upper left corner. The banner is your signal that the program is successfully installed. (It also contains some other useful information, such as your current hotkey combination, the drive/path to which screens will be captured, and how much memory GRABBER is occupying.) You are now ready to capture display screens to disk. To capture the screen, you press GRABBER's reserved key combina- tion, which is [CTRL =]. That is, you hold down the [CTRL] key, press the equal sign key [=], then release the [CTRL] key again. This key sequence will be referred to below as GRABBER's "hotkey" combination. (Note: If you want to, you can change the hotkey combination to something else. See page 30 below for instruc- tions.) The quickest way to test GRABBER is from your DOS prompt. Enter these three commands in this order: CLS DIR /W DIR /W This will clear your screen and fill it again with a directory listing of the current drive and path. Now, press [CTRL =]. You hear a soft beep, and a prompt appears on the top line of the display, showing a default file name to which you may save the current screen. If you wish to accept the default file name which GRABBER is providing, just press <Enter>. If you want to type in your own file name, i.e. one which describes the contents of the screen better than GRABBER's default name, you may do so. After you press <Enter>, the prompt disappears and GRABBER immediately begins to create the offspring file on the correct drive. When GRABBER is finished capturing the screen, you hear an ascending two-tone chirp. Now, you are ready to display the screen you have just captured. It is a program file, ready to be executed just like GRABBER it- self. Go to the drive and directory where it was placed (if you are not already there), and enter this command at the DOS prompt: SCREEN00 (or whatever you named your offspring file.) What you see are the contents of the screen you created a moment ago when you pressed [CTRL =]. This image is contained within the file SCREEN00.EXE, a GRABBER offspring. The image will remain on the screen until you press a key -- almost any key -- to make it go away. The screen then erases itself and you are back where you started, at the DOS prompt. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 13 of 37 When you press [CTRL =] again, GRABBER will create another offspring containing the current screen. If you do not supply your own file name, it will be called SCREEN01.EXE, then SCREEN02.EXE, and so forth, up to SCREEN99.EXE. Each of these offspring programs can be executed just the same way as your SCREEN00.EXE, either from the keyboard at the DOS prompt, or as a line in a batch file. Your computer does not have to be sitting at the DOS prompt, as it was in the example above, for you to capture a screen. It doesn't matter to GRABBER where you are or what program you are running. Whenever you see a screen you want to save for later, just press [CTRL =] and you have a permanent copy of it. THE FILENAME PROMPT FUNCTION ----------------------------- Here are some things you should know about GRABBER's filename prompts: You cannot change the drive or directory path to which your screen will be saved by entering a new one at the prompt. All you may supply is a valid one-character to eight-character filename, using characters DOS regards as "legal" for filenames (i.e., no blank spaces, control characters, wildcards, etc.) If you enter a file name that is less than eight characters long, don't worry about the blank spaces between the end of the file name and the beginning of the ".EXE" extension. GRABBER will ignore them. You cannot change the file name extension at the prompt. The extension of any offspring file must remain ".EXE" so that DOS will recognize the file as an executable program and allow you to view the image later. All images are saved to the drive and/or directory path which you specified when you installed GRABBER according to the instruc- tions on page 10, above. If you want to change the drive and/or directory path to which your images are saved, you may do so by issuing another GRABBER command at the DOS prompt -- see page 14 below. If you want to cancel the screen capture operation at the file name prompt, just press <Esc> once or twice until the prompt disappears. If you make a typing mistake while entering the file name at the prompt, use the backspace key to correct the mistake. For more information about the filename prompt function, refer to the section below called "GRABBER Installation Options." That section also includes instructions for enabling and disabling the filename prompt function. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 14 of 37 SPECIAL NOTE FOR HERCULES-COMPATIBLE GRAPHICS USERS ---------------------------------------------------- When operating in the 720x348 graphic mode, Hercules-compatible monochrome graphic adapters divide the video memory into two segments commonly known as Page 0 and Page 1. These adapters can display a graphic image on either of these two pages, but only one page at a time may be displayed on the screen. Due to certain technical limitations in the architecture of these adapters, it is not possible to determine with certainty which of these two pages, Page 0 or Page 1, is being displayed at any given time. Rather than risking an incorrect guess as to which of these two pages is currently being displayed, (which would result in an offspring file containing only a blank or garbage-filled image), GRABBER requires you to choose which page to capture. After you press GRABBER's hotkey while in the graphic mode, you will hear one short beep. GRABBER is waiting for you to indicate which page you wish to capture. To choose the lower Page 0, press the [0] key. To choose the higher Page 1, press the [1] key. If you press anything other than [0] or [1], you will cancel the screen capture request and return to the foreground application. There are two ways for you to determine, if you are not sure, whether the monochrome graphic image is being displayed on Page 0 or Page 1. The first way is to consult the documentation for the application program which is generating the image to see if it mentions this. (Some applications in their installation proce- dures allow you to force the use of one or the other page.) The second way is by trial and error. If you choose to capture Page 0 but the resulting offspring file is not what you expected, this indicates that you should select Page 1 to capture 720x348 graphic images generated by that application program. CAPTURING TO A DIFFERENT DRIVE/DIRECTORY ----------------------------------------- If you first installed GRABBER to capture offspring files to one drive or directory, and later you want to switch to another drive or directory (or use DEFAULTDRIVE), you can simply issue another GRABBER command at the DOS prompt as described above on page 10. GRABBER will display its status report, which informs you that the new destination is now in effect. Switching offspring paths never changes the sequence of the off- spring file names. For example, if your next offspring will be called SCREEN05.EXE and you switch paths, the next offspring will still be called SCREEN05.EXE, although it will be placed on a different drive or directory. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 15 of 37 ERRORS DURING THE SCREEN CAPTURE --------------------------------- If GRABBER is ever unable to capture your image to an offspring file for any reason, it will tell you so by sounding three short beeps on your PC's speaker. If you hear this signal, it means the screen has not been captured, probably because there is something wrong with the disk you are trying to capture it to. Correct the condition with your disk, and use the hotkey to try the capture again. Usually, these errors are fairly obvious to detect: you forget to put a diskette in the disk drive, or you leave the drive door open, or the diskette is write-protected. Some errors, however, are not so obvious to the eye. GRABBER will also beep if the disk to which you are trying to capture the screen is already full, or its directory area cannot fit anymore entries, or there is a physical defect on the disk itself. IF THE COMPUTER IS TOO BUSY TO CAPTURE --------------------------------------- There may be times when you request GRABBER to capture your screen, but nothing seems to happen. This is usually because the foreground program is in the middle of a sensitive task which cannot be interrupted. Such situations include any kind of reading or writing to a disk by another program; using DOS' Copy or Type commands; or while the computer is waiting for your response after an "Abort, Retry, Ignore" message. In situations like this, GRABBER is aware that you have requested a screen capture, and will pop up as soon as it becomes safe to do so. Some of these kinds of delays can be overcome by using the SWAPMODE configuration option, which is described below on page 18. GRABBER CONFIGURATION OPTIONS ------------------------------ This section identifies the "command line switches" which GRABBER recognizes and responds to. A command line switch is a string of characters which you type after the GRABBER command itself, whether you are calling GRABBER directly from the DOS prompt, or from a line in a batch file. The purpose of these switches is to allow you to modify the way GRABBER performs certain of its operations. Turning GRABBER's beep sounds on and off, or enabling GRABBER's use of the mouse buttons to capture the screen, are just two examples of functions which the command line switches allow you to control. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 16 of 37 All of the command line switches described in this section may be used to configure GRABBER's operations when you initially install the program in memory. In addition, after GRABBER is installed, you may continue to use most of these switches to communicate with the copy of GRABBER that is resident in memory, and recon- figure its operations. Unless the description of a command line switch states otherwise, that switch may be used both when you initially install GRABBER in memory, and to reconfigure GRABBER's operations after the program is made resident. A single command line may contain as many switch options as you desire, in any order, in either uppercase or lowercase letters. Option: PROMPT and NOPROMPT Usage: GRABBER [other options] PROMPT GRABBER [other options] NOPROMPT These switches tell GRABBER whether you wish to be prompted on the screen to enter a name for each .exe image before it is created, or instead whether each .exe file should automatically be assigned a name by GRABBER. The default setting for this option is PROMPT (i.e., prompts enabled). The command GRABBER NOPROMPT can be used to turn off the prompts. They will then remain disabled until the next GRABBER PROMPT command is issued. While the filename prompt function is disabled, GRABBER automati- cally assigns a name to each .exe image file it creates, based on a sort of "serial number" scheme. Files will be named SCREEN00.EXE, SCREEN01.EXE, and so forth up to SCREEN99.EXE, at which point they will again return to SCREEN00.EXE. Please note that while GRABBER operates in this mode, it does *not* check whether a particular SCREENXX file already exists. For example, if there is already a file on your disk called SCREEN05.EXE and the next automatic filename to be assigned by GRABBER happens to be SCREEN05.EXE also, then the contents of the original file will be overwritten with the information for the new screen, and hence lost forever. Therefore, if you have SCREENXX files which you value, and you plan to disable the filename prompt function using the NOPROMPT switch, then you should rename these files to keep them out of the way of GRABBER's default filename scheme. Hercules monochrome graphics users: Please note that the file- name prompt function is not available at all when you are captur- ing 720 x 348 monochrome graphic images, even though the prompt function may be enabled when you are capturing character-based text screens. When GRABBER senses such a graphic image, it automatically assigns the next sequential SCREENXX name to the .exe file that is created. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 17 of 37 EGA, VGA and Super-VGA users: Some foreground applications which operate in graphic modes can be very sensitive to interruptions by underlying memory-resident programs like GRABBER. Because of this, your filename prompts may sometimes appear in a distorted form on your screen when the display is running in a high-resolu- tion graphic mode. There is no way to predict when such distor- tion might occur, and nothing can be done about it except to temporarily disable GRABBER's filename prompts. So, if the prompts cause unacceptable side effects on a particular fore- ground program, you should issue the command GRABBER NOPROMPT before trying to capture screens from inside that program. Please note that even though a filename prompt may appear dis- torted, GRABBER is not aware of the distortion and still waits for you to enter a filename at the keyboard or to cancel the operation by pressing <Esc>. Option: MOUSE and NOMOUSE Usage: GRABBER [other options] MOUSE GRABBER [other options] NOMOUSE The MOUSE switch tells GRABBER to pay attention to the status of your mouse buttons, and to capture the screen when both the left and right buttons are depressed for more than about one second. This "mouse hotkey" function is supported only if your mouse is running under the control of a Microsoft-compatible mouse driver, as most mice do. The default setting for this option is NOMOUSE (i.e., no mouse support). The command GRABBER MOUSE can be used to turn it on. The mouse hotkey will then remain enabled until the command GRABBER NOMOUSE is issued. To capture a screen, press and hold both the left and right mouse buttons for about one or two seconds. This has the same effect as pressing GRABBER's usual hotkey combination at the keyboard, and the filename prompt will appear at the top of the screen. If you wish, you may now use the keyboard to enter a filename. You may also use the mouse buttons to proceed with the screen capture or to cancel. The left button acts in the same way as your keyboard's <Enter> key, and the right button acts like your <Esc> key. The main purpose of the mouse hotkey function is to allow you to capture screens from within applications which so totally monopo- lize the keyboard hardware that they allow no software loaded before them in memory (such as GRABBER) to be informed about events taking place at the keyboard. Many game programs behave this way, among others. If you are unable get GRABBER's atten- tion either at the keyboard or using the mouse with the MOUSE switch, it means that an antisocial programmer has decided that he or she is unwilling to share the mouse either, and the screen is not capturable until we figure out a way around the particular software application. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 18 of 37 Option: SWAPMODE Usage: GRABBER [other options] SWAPMODE The SWAPMODE switch may be used only when you are initially installing GRABBER in memory. It has no effect after GRABBER is made resident. This switch tells GRABBER to run in a special "DOS Swap mode." When GRABBER is operating in this mode and you request a screen capture, GRABBER is able to pop up immediately, without waiting for the foreground program or DOS itself to tell GRABBER that it may proceed (except during certain uninterruptible foreground activities such as disk drive access). You might find the SWAPMODE switch useful, along with the MOUSE switch described above, if you use foreground applications which do not allow GRABBER to pop up instantly when you request a screen capture. Ordinarily, however, it should not be necessary to use the SWAPMODE switch. Option: FONTPALETTE and NOFONTPALETTE Usage: GRABBER [other options] FONTPALETTE GRABBER [other options] NOFONTPALETTE These switches affect the way in which GRABBER saves character- based text images on systems equipped with EGA, VGA and Super-VGA adapters. It has no effect on images captured from CGA or Hercules-compatible systems. The default setting for this option is NOFONTPALETTE. The command GRABBER FONTPALETTE can be used to enable the font/palette function. This function will then remain enabled until the next GRABBER NOFONTPALETTE command. EGA and VGA systems have the ability to display customized character fonts in character-based text modes. VGA systems also have the additional ability to display images using a customized 256-color palette in such modes. When FONTPALETTE is enabled, your captured text-screen .exe files will include the image's palette and font information, so that when you run the .exe file later, you will get the most exact possible replica of the original text screen. When FONTPALETTE is enabled, this palette and font information will be preserved in the .exe file even if your display adapter's color palette and font appearance have not been modified from their defaults. Most of the time, your adapter's font appearance and color palette are not modified from their defaults in charac- ter-based text modes, because few programs take the trouble to do so. Therefore, most of the time, it is not necessary to use the FONTPALETTE switch to get an exact replica of a text image. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 19 of 37 A text image captured with FONTPALETTE enabled will occupy about 5,000 to 8,000 more bytes of disk space than the same image would occupy if NOFONTPALETTE were in effect. An offspring .exe image file containing customized palette and/or font information can be displayed later on systems which do not support customized fonts or palettes, such as CGA and Hercules- compatible systems. However, such earlier adapters will ignore the font/palette information. Option: SOUND and NOSOUND Usage: GRABBER [other options] SOUND GRABBER [other options] NOSOUND These switches tell GRABBER whether it should beep the computer's speaker, or remain silent, when the filename prompt is displayed and when a screen capture operation is successfully completed. The default setting is SOUND. The command GRABBER NOSOUND can be used to silence the program. The beep sounds will then remain disabled until the next GRABBER SOUND command is issued. Please note that GRABBER also makes three low-pitched beep sounds whenever it is unable to capture a screen for any reason. Using the NOSOUND switch does not disable this error indicator. Option: BATCHCAPTURE or BATCHCAPTURE:filename Usage: GRABBER BATCHCAPTURE[:filename] These options tell a memory-resident copy of GRABBER to capture the current screen immediately. This is called a "batch capture" because the most useful way to use these options is in a batch file, when you want to capture the screen without having to stop and press a hotkey. The BATCHCAPTURE options never cause a filename prompt to appear, even if the filename prompt function is otherwise enabled for screens captured in the usual way by pressing GRABBER's hotkey. If you use BATCHCAPTURE by itself, the captured screen will be given a file name according to GRABBER's default "serial number" scheme (see page 16 above). If you use BATCHCAPTURE: followed by a file name, the image will be captured to a file with the name you specify. The "filename" parameter may be any length, and may optionally include a drive or directory path specification. For example: GRABBER BATCHCAPTURE:C:\PICTURES\TESTPIC.EXE GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 20 of 37 If the batch capture is completed successfully, GRABBER passes an errorlevel of zero back to the batch file which issued the BATCHCAPTURE command. If any error occurs, an errorlevel of 1 is returned. The BATCHCAPTURE options may be used only after GRABBER has been installed in memory. Also, any other configuration options which are specified on the same command line as BATCHCAPTURE will be ignored. Option: NOXMS Usage: GRABBER [other options] NOXMS The NOXMS switch tells GRABBER not to reserve any extended memory to be used as temporary work space during its screen capture operations. The NOXMS switch may be used only when you are initially installing GRABBER in memory. NOXMS has no effect after GRABBER is made resident. When you initially install GRABBER in memory on an IBM AT-compat- ible computer, it searches for 28Kb of available extended memory that is controlled by an XMS-compatible extended memory driver, such as Microsoft Corporation's HIMEM.SYS program. If GRABBER finds 28Kb of available XMS extended memory, it will automatical- ly reserve that amount for itself, to use as temporary workspace during screen capture operations. This extended memory workspace is not required by GRABBER, but it does help to speed up certain screen capture operations. XMS extended memory which GRABBER reserves for itself is unavailable for use by other programs which also use extended memory, and GRABBER will not relinquish it until you remove GRABBER from memory by using the UNLOAD command line switch, or by rebooting the computer. If your computer has XMS-compatible extended memory which you do not want GRABBER to use, you should include the NOXMS switch on the command line when you initially install GRABBER in memory. Option: NOEMS Usage: GRABBER [other options] NOEMS The NOEMS switch tells GRABBER not to reserve any expanded memory to be used as temporary work space during its screen capture operations. The NOEMS switch may be used only when you are initially installing GRABBER in memory. NOEMS has no effect after GRABBER is made resident. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 21 of 37 When you initially install GRABBER in memory on an any computer, and there is no available XMS extended memory (or XMS usage has been disabled by the NOXMS switch), then GRABBER will search for 32Kb of available expanded memory that is controlled by a LIM/EMS-compatible expanded memory driver. (LIM Version 4.0 expanded memory or later is supported; LIM 3.2 memory is not.) If GRABBER finds 32Kb of available EMS expanded memory, it will automatically reserve that amount for itself, to use as temporary work space during screen capture operations. This expanded memory work space is not required by GRABBER, but it does help to speed up certain screen capture operations. EMS expanded memory which GRABBER reserves for itself is unavailable for use by other programs which also use expanded memory, and GRABBER will not relinquish it until you remove GRABBER from memory by using the UNLOAD command line switch, or by rebooting the computer. If your computer has EMS-compatible expanded memory which you do not want GRABBER to use, you should include the NOEMS switch on the command line when you initially install GRABBER in memory. Option: UNLOAD Usage: GRABBER UNLOAD The UNLOAD switch tells GRABBER to search your computer's memory for a copy of itself that was previously made resident, and to remove the program from memory if found. If removal is success- ful, then a message is displayed at the upper left corner of your screen which states that "GRABBER is not resident in memory," and all memory that GRABBER was occupying will be released and made available for other programs. This includes any conventional memory, plus any XMS or EMS memory which GRABBER may have been using as temporary workspace. GRABBER cannot be uninstalled if, after you initially installed it, you continued to load other memory-resident software which is activated by any of the same hardware or software interrupts which GRABBER uses. Attempting to use GRABBER UNLOAD under such circumstances will not work, and a message to this effect will be displayed. You will always be able to uninstall GRABBER if it was the most recent memory-resident program to be installed. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 22 of 37 Option: DEFAULTDRIVE Usage: GRABBER [other options] DEFAULTDRIVE The DEFAULTDRIVE switch was described above in the section called "Starting GRABBER." This switch can be used both when you are initially installing the program in memory, and thereafter when you wish to cancel a drive/path destination previously specified and start writing .exe files to the default drive and path instead. During the initial installation of GRABBER, the DEFAULTDRIVE switch can act as a substitute for the drive and/or path parame- ter which is otherwise required to make GRABBER stay resident in memory. If you did not use DEFAULTDRIVE when you initially installed GRABBER in memory, you can instruct GRABBER to start placing .exe image files in whatever location happens to be known to DOS as its current "default drive and path" whenever a screen capture takes place. After you use DEFAULTDRIVE, GRABBER will continue to place all .exe image files in DOS's default drive and path until you issue another command which includes a specific drive and/or path parameter as the first item on the command line after the GRABBER command itself. For example, the following command example can be used to cancel the effect of a GRABBER DEFAULTDRIVE command which was issued previously: GRABBER C:\PICTURES [other options] Option: NOVESA Usage: GRABBER [other options] NOVESA (Please refer to the section on VESA BIOS compatibility on page 31 below.) Option: VGAREGS and NOVGAREGS USAGE: GRABBER [other options] VGAREGS GRABBER [other options] NOVGAREGS These switches affect the way in which GRABBER captures graphic images on VGA systems only. They have no effect on non-VGA systems, and no effect on text-screen captures. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 23 of 37 The VGAREGS switch tells GRABBER to determine certain critical parameters about a VGA graphic image by reading information directly from the hardware registers of the VGA adapter, instead of making assumptions about such parameters based on the ID number of the current video mode. The parameters affected include the size of the image, the number of colors, and the layout of the bitmap in video memory. The purpose of this option is to enable GRABBER to capture certain types of VGA graphics more reliably, particularly those generated by certain animated game programs which tweak a stan- dard VGA video mode to achieve higher performance. The default setting of this option is NOVGAREGS. If you have a VGA graphic application from which GRABBER seems to capture only distorted .exe images, you should try the GRABBER VGAREGS command before capturing screens from that application. VGAREGS may or may not solve the problem. If not, it should be disabled by entering the command GRABBER NOVGAREGS. Please note that the VGAREGS option is primarily for experimenta- tion. It will work on some VGA systems but not all, and with some types of graphic images but not others. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 24 of 37 PART II: USING GRABBER'S OFFSPRING .EXE IMAGE FILES The method described above on pages 12-13 is the easiest and most common way to display your captured screen images. This is simply to run the offspring program file as a normal command. You remove the offspring image from your screen by pressing any key. Below are described four different options you can use to alter the way in which your offspring images leave the screen when they are done. Used alone or in combination with each other, these options can vastly increase GRABBER's usefulness, especially if you know how to use batch files with DOS. TIMED EXECUTION: /Tn ---------------------- If you have an offspring file called SCREEN00 and you want to display it on your screen only for a certain length of time, *and* you don't want to press a key to make it go away, use this command at the DOS prompt or within a batch file: SCREEN00 /Tn The 'n' character represents a time value, in seconds, which you specify. The 'n' value may be any positive integer between 1 and 3600. (3600 seconds equals exactly one hour.) For example, if you use the command SCREEN00 /T20, then the image within the offspring program will be displayed on your screen for exactly 20 seconds, after which it erases itself and the program exits back to the DOS prompt or batch file, just as it would if you had entered SCREEN00 alone, without the parameter. If you want to exit the SCREEN00 image before 'n' seconds have elapsed, simply press <Esc> or <Ctrl-C>. Any other keystrokes will be ignored. Pressing <Ctrl-C> will pass an "errorlevel" of 255 back to DOS or a calling batch file, but <Esc> sends a zero. You may combine the /Tn option together with the /F option described below. If you do this, the image displays itself on your screen until EITHER 'n' seconds transpire OR you press <Esc> or <Ctrl-C>, whichever occurs first. Then the offspring program exits back to the DOS prompt or batch file without erasing itself from the screen. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 25 of 37 The /Tn option is of great usefulness when you want to run a "slide show" routine on an unattended computer. Try this DOS command: FOR %F IN (SCREEN??.*) DO %F /T5 (Within a batch file, use %%F instead of %F in this example.) You may not use the /Tn option together with the /K keylist option, or with the /N option, both described below. DON'T CLEAR SCREEN ON EXIT: /F ------------------------------- Unless you tell an offspring program otherwise, it will assume that you want the screen to be cleared completely when you exit the program. However, if you want to exit an offspring program and leave intact the image it places on the display, then use the /F switch when you execute it from the DOS prompt or from your batch file, like this: SCREEN00 /F With character-based text screens, the /F option can enhance the appearance of a batch-driven "slide show" or menu system by eliminating the blank screens which appear briefly between the offspring programs being executed by the batch file. Please note that the /F option does not affect how long the image will remain on the screen, or what keypress (if any) will be required to exit the offspring program. The exact method which the offspring program uses to exit will depend on whether you have also specified any of the other switches described here (i.e. /Tn, /N, /K, or no switch at all). All the /F option does is to prevent the display from being cleared when the offspring program does exit. The /F option may be used together with the /Tn option (above), and with the /N option (below), and with the /K option (below). DON'T WAIT FOR ANY KEYPRESS: /N -------------------------------- Unless you tell an offspring program otherwise, it will assume that you want to wait for some keyboard input before exiting the offspring program and returning to DOS. However, if you want to display the offspring image and exit immediately back to the DOS command line or batch file from which it was called, without waiting for any keyboard input, then use the /N switch, like this: SCREEN00 /N GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 26 of 37 There is no need to also specify the /F switch, described above, when you use the /N switch. Whenever you use the /N switch, the offspring program automatically assumes that you want the image to remain on the display after the program has exited, and sets the /F switch for you. The /N option may be used by itself, or with the /Tn option above. However, /N may not be used with the /K option described below. KEYLIST OPERATION: /K ---------------------- This option is supported for all offspring files. The format is: SCREEN00 /K... The format of the "/K..." parameter is explained below. GRABBER offspring files which you view from a batch (.BAT) file can communicate with the batch file using the ERRORLEVEL facility built into DOS. This allows you to create offspring screens that interact with the user, by branching control within the batch file based on the user's keyboard response. This method of displaying an offspring file works only when you display it from within a batch file. If you do not know how to create a batch file, or how the ERRORLEVEL principle works, then you should consult these topics in your DOS manual before contin- uing. It's actually very simple. Let's set up an example. Say you have created a GRABBER off- spring image to use as a menu screen on your PC. This image is called MENU.EXE. You want to use this menu to give a user the choice to run one of three different programs. The three pro- grams are called: 1. WORDPROC.COM (a word processor) 2. SPREAD.EXE (a spreadsheet program) 3. CHESS.COM (a game) And your MENU.EXE image looks something like this: _____________________________________ | | | To get to... Press... | | ----------------- -------- | | Word Processing A | | Spreadsheet B | | Chess Game C | | | |___________________________________| GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 27 of 37 Now, all you need to do is create a batch file, (say it's called SHOWMENU.BAT), which looks something like this: Sample batch file SHOWMENU.BAT -------------------------------- (Line no.) _____________________________________________ | | 1 | :BEGIN | 2 | ECHO OFF | 3 | CLS | 4 | MENU /K:A B C | 5 | IF ERRORLEVEL 255 GOTO :BREAK_EXIT | 6 | IF ERRORLEVEL 3 GOTO :RUN_CHESS | 7 | IF ERRORLEVEL 2 GOTO :RUN_SPREADSHEET | 8 | IF ERRORLEVEL 1 GOTO :RUN_WORDPROC | 9 | :RUN_CHESS | 10 | CHESS | 11 | GOTO :BEGIN | 12 | :RUN_SPREADSHEET | 13 | SPREAD | 14 | GOTO :BEGIN | 15 | :RUN_WORDPROC | 16 | WORDPROC | 17 | GOTO :BEGIN | 18 | :BREAK_EXIT | | | |___________________________________________| You are ready to go. Execute SHOWMENU.BAT by entering the command SHOWMENU at the DOS prompt, or by including it as a line (preferably the last line) in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. WHAT SHOWMENU.BAT DOES ----------------------- Lines 2 and 3 of SHOWMENU.BAT clean up the screen in preparation for your menu. The action begins at Line 4. At this point, DOS runs your MENU.EXE program, which displays the menu screen. Notice the parameter /K:A,B,C which follows the MENU command. This is your Keylist, and it tells the offspring program which keys can be used to exit the screen. If the user presses other keys, they will be ignored. Note also the order in which the keys are specified. This is very important, because the ERRORLEVEL which MENU.EXE will assign to a key is determined by its position in the keylist "A B C". GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 28 of 37 If the user presses <A>, then MENU.EXE ends by sending an ERRORLEVEL of 1 back to the batch file. This value will be ignored by Lines 5, 6 and 7 of the SHOWMENU file, but Line 8 will pick it up as a signal to branch to the instructions labeled ":RUN_WORDPROC" at Line 15. Following this label is the command WORDPROC, which starts up your word processing program. Likewise, if the user presses <B>, then MENU.EXE will send an ERRORLEVEL of 2 back to the batch file, because "B" is the second choice in your Keylist. Line 7 takes this as a cue to jump down to the instructions beneath ":RUN_SPREADSHEET" at Line 12. And so forth. Remember one very important thing. When you test the ERRORLEVEL values in a batch file, follow the example shown in SHOWMENU.BAT by always testing them in descending order. Start with the highest possible value and continue down to the lowest possible value. Why, you ask, does SHOWMENU test for an ERRORLEVEL of 255 in the fifth line? This is because there is a always a "back door" exit from an offspring program like MENU.EXE which is running under the control of a Keylist. This is done by pressing either <CTRL C> or <CTRL BREAK> while the image is on your screen, both of which produce what is commonly called a "break" signal in your computer. Whenever you press <CTRL C> or <CTRL BREAK>, the offspring program always sends an ERRORLEVEL of 255 back to your batch file, and exits the screen. Note also, that spaces are used to separate the choices in the Keylist in Line 4 of SHOWMENU.BAT. If the user presses the spacebar, it will be ignored. This is one of several keys which GRABBER offspring programs reserve for their own use when examin- ing your Keylist. You can use these keys to separate your choices for readability, but none can be used to identify a key choice. These "reserved" keys are: the comma, the spacebar, the Tab key, the colon (:), the semicolon (;), and the slash (/). Therefore, each of the following ways of specifying a Keylist is identical to the others: MENU /KABC MENU /K a b c MENU /k:A b C MENU /K a:B:c The GRABBER offspring program will function identically in either situation. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 29 of 37 In addition to any alpha key (A through Z) and any numeric key (0 through 9), you may include in your keylist any of the special function keys listed below. Please note that it takes two characters to identify any of the following function keys on your command line, and the first character is always the backslash (\). To use this PC key Use this code on in your keylist... the command line -------------------- ------------------ <F1> \1 <F2> \2 <F3> \3 <F4> \4 <F5> \5 <F6> \6 <F7> \7 <F8> \8 <F9> \9 <F10> \0 <Home> \H <PgUp> \P <End> \E <PgDn> \N <Up Arrow> \U <Down Arrow> \D <Left Arrow> \L <Right Arrow> \R The /K keylist option may not be used with the /Tn or /N options described above on pages 24 and 25. If you specify a keylist together with either of these other options, the keylist will be ignored. You may, however, use the /K option together with the /F option described above on page 25. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 30 of 37 CHANGING GRABBER'S HOTKEY -------------------------- (The information in this section applies to the GRTXT program also.) GRABBER allows you to change the keystroke sequence which acti- vates the program, from the default [Ctrl =] to almost any other sequence you choose. If GRABBER is already active in your computer's memory, you may tell the resident copy of GRABBER that you want to start using a different hotkey than the one it currently recognizes, and make the change become effective immediately. GRABBER also gives you the option of making your hotkey change permanent, by saving the new hotkey information back to the GRABBER.EXE file itself. When you use this option, the hotkey you choose will take effect automatically every time you install GRABBER in memory by loading the altered GRABBER.EXE file. A typical GRABBER hotkey has two parts. We'll call them the "KEY" and the "SHIFT". The KEY can be an alphanumeric key such as the letter <A> or the number <4>, or a punctuation key such as the <;>, or a function key such as <F10>, <Esc>, <PgDn> or <Del>. In GRABBER's default [Ctrl =] hotkey, the equal sign <=> is the KEY part. The SHIFT part of your hotkey can be made up of any combination of the following keys on your keyboard: <Shift>, <Ctrl>, and <Alt>. In GRABBER's default [Ctrl =] hotkey, the <Ctrl> key is the SHIFT part. You can specify a GRABBER hotkey on the command line both when you are initially installing the program in memory, and when re-invoking GRABBER after it is already resident. Use this syntax: GRABBER [other options] KEY=kk SHIFT=ss [SAVEHOTKEY] "kk" represents a two-character KEY code. Valid KEY codes are listed in Appendix A of this manual. "ss" represents a two-character SHIFT code. Valid SHIFT codes are listed in Appendix B of this manual. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 31 of 37 The SAVEHOTKEY parameter is optional. When you include it on the command line together with the KEY=kk and SHIFT=ss parameters, it instructs GRABBER to save your new hotkey choice permanently to the GRABBER.EXE file. This way, your new hotkey will take effect automatically every time you reinstall GRABBER in memory, and you won't have to specify your new KEY=kk and SHIFT=ss parameters every time you restart the program. If you do not include the SAVEHOTKEY parameter, the hotkey you specify will be effective only for as long as the current copy of GRABBER remains resident in memory, or until you change it again with new KEY=kk and SHIFT=ss codes. Please read Appendices A and B for additional important informa- tion. TESTING THE RELIABILITY OF YOUR VESA BIOS EXTENSION ---------------------------------------------------- As mentioned above on page 9, GRABBER is compatible with VGA systems which include support for the VESA BIOS Extension ("VBE"). The VBE is a standardized method by which programs can take advantage of the enhanced capabilities of high-performance video adapters, independently of the adapters' specific hardware layouts, which vary among different manufacturers. An adapter's support for the VBE can take the form of a set of programming routines which are either permanently built into the adapter itself, or are added by loading a software VBE driver into your computer's memory by way of your CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Some newer VGA adapters have VBE support built into the adapter itself, while most older adapters can be supplemented with VBE support using a software driver which is available from the manufacturer. Although the VBE is now a "standard" in the microcomputer video industry, some VBE software drivers (and even some hardware- encoded VBE drivers) exist which do not fully conform to the official VESA BIOS specifications. In short, they have bugs which prevent programs such as GRABBER from working reliably with the video hardware. When you install GRABBER in memory, it checks for the presence of VBE support for your video adapter. If it finds VBE support, GRABBER will automatically attempt to use it, unless you tell GRABBER otherwise. However, if your VBE driver (hardware or software) is one of those that are not fully compliant with VESA specifications, GRABBER may not function properly. The purpose of the CHKVBE.EXE program included on your GRABBER distribution diskette is to help you identify whether your system has VBE support, and if so, whether your VBE driver is fully compatible with GRABBER and the VESA specifications. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 32 of 37 CHKVBE is executed without parameters. If it reports that your system has no VBE support, or has VBE support which "appears to be compatible with GRABBER," then no further action is necessary, and you can install GRABBER in memory as usual. However, if CHKVBE reports that your system has VBE support which "appears to be incompatible with GRABBER," then you should prevent GRABBER from attempting to use the VBE by including the NOVESA switch on the command line when you install GRABBER in memory. For example: GRABBER [other parameters] NOVESA (If your system crashes when you execute CHKVBE, you may assume that your VBE driver has a serious bug. In this case, you should also use the NOVESA switch when you install GRABBER in memory.) GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 33 of 37 PROGRAMMERS NOTE: CALLING GRABBER FROM YOUR OWN PROGRAMS --------------------------------------- If you are a programmer developing your own software, you can invoke GRABBER to capture the screen from within your own pro- gram, assuming that GRABBER is already resident in memory. This is accomplished by using GRABBER's external programming hook, which is really a customized call to Interrupt 16h, described below. You can write a routine to implement this hook in 8086/8088 assembly language or in any high-level programming language which supports BIOS-level interrupt calls. CUSTOMIZED INTERRUPT 16H TO INVOKE GRABBER, SERVICE 4752H --------------------------------------------------------- On entry: AX = 4752h DL = 0 (to check only if GRABBER is resident) DL = 1 (to capture the current screen) On return: AX = 5247h (if GRABBER is installed in memory) For DL=0 or DL=1: BL contains the logical drive to which the capture would be attempted (DL=0) or was attempted (DL=1). 0=default, 1=drive A, 2=drive B, etc. For DL=1: No --> Capture successful. ES:DX points to Carry an ASCIIZ string which contains the Flag [drive:][\path\]filename of the newly created offspring (drive also coded in BL). Carry --> If DX = FFFFh, then a capture attempt Flag failed due to a critical disk error or Set disk-full error on the logical drive encoded in BL. (Speaker beeped in either case.) If DX does not equal FFFFh, capture was not attempted. GRABBER was busy servicing a prior capture request, or some other disk I/O was occurring, or DOS was not in a re- enterable state. Try again momentarily. GRABBER(tm) Documentation & Technical Notes Page 34 of 37 REPORTING PROBLEMS/BUGS ------------------------ Please let me know if GRABBER ever fails to function on your system as documented in these pages. Also, if you feel there is an aspect of the program which is insufficiently or unclearly documented here, I appreciate your suggestions. Please read all of the documentation carefully before putting GRABBER to heavy use, and before submitting a problem report. This way you can be certain whether there really is a problem, or whether the program is being put to a use for which it is not designed or intended. If you submit a problem report, please be as specific as possible about what happens and in what sequence or situation. Be sure to list these specific things: (1) all of the technical information provided on the screen after you enter the GRABBER command at the DOS prompt, with the program already resident in memory; (2) your brand and model of PC; (3) your brand and version of DOS; (4) your brand and model of video adapter and display screen; (5) what software program you are running when the problem occurs; and (6) the contents of both your CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files. It is not possible to solve the problem without all of this information. Please send all correspondence to: Gerald A. Monroe 1241 Bunts Road Lakewood, Ohio 44107 U.S.A. For a quicker response, the author may also be contacted via the CompuServe Information Service electronic mail at ID# 72321,1257. APPENDIX A ------------ These are the codes you may use with GRABBER's and GRTXT's "KEY=kk" parameter to change their hotkeys. See also page 30 and Appendix B. Key Code Key Code Key Code Key Code --------- --------- ----------- ------------------ A 30 1 02 F1 59 Keypad plus 78 B 48 2 03 F2 60 Keypad minus 74 C 46 3 04 F3 61 Keypad 5 76 D 32 4 05 F4 62 Print Screen 89 E 18 5 06 F5 63 Backspace 14 F 33 6 07 F6 64 Enter 28 G 34 7 08 F7 65 H 35 8 09 F8 66 I 23 9 10 F9 67 J 36 0 11 F10 68 K 37 F11 87 L 38 ` 41 F12 88 M 50 - 12 N 49 = 13 Tab 15 O 24 , 51 Esc 01 P 25 . 52 Ins 82 Q 16 / 53 Del 83 R 19 ; 39 PgUp 73 S 31 ' 40 PgDn 81 T 20 [ 26 Home 71 U 22 ] 27 End 79 V 47 \ 43 * 55 W 17 Up 72 X 45 Down 80 Y 21 Left 75 Z 44 Right 77 NOTES: To view this table on your screen, enter GRABBER KEY=? The asterisk key (fifth from the bottom in the third column) refers to the <*> key which is located next to the right-hand <Shift> on 83-key PC and PC/XT keyboards (which is also marked "PrtSc"), and also to the <*> key which is located on the numeric keypad of 101-key PC/AT and PS/2 enhanced keyboards. The <Print Screen> key (fourth entry in the last column) refers to the key which is labeled "Print Screen" on 101-key enhanced keyboards only. It does not refer to the "PrtSc" key on 83-key keyboards. The "Print Screen" key does not exist on non-enhanced keyboards. Do not specify KEY=89 unless your keyboard has a "Print Screen" key. <Up>, <Down>, <Left> and <Right> at the bottom of the third column represent the arrow keys. These codes refer to the arrow keys on the numeric keypad on all keyboards, as well as to the separate arrow-key block on enhanced keyboards. APPENDIX B ------------ These are the codes you may use with GRABBER's and GRTXT's "SHIFT=ss" parameter to change their hotkeys. See also page 30 and Appendix A. Combination Code --------------------------- No shift keys 00 Shift 03 Ctrl 04 Alt 08 Alt + Shift 11 Ctrl + Shift 07 Ctrl + Alt 12 Ctrl + Alt + Shift 15 NOTES: To view this table on your screen, enter GRABBER SHIFT=? If you wish to use a hotkey which does not include any of these shift keys (for example, <F10> or <Print Screen> alone), you may do so by specifying SHIFT=00 or no SHIFT= parameter at all. However, it is recommended that you include some nonzero SHIFT= parameter to avoid probable keyboard conflicts between GRABBER and other software in your system. The exceptions to this are the <Esc> and <Enter> keys. If you wish to use either of these in your GRABBER hotkey, then you must include some nonzero SHIFT= parameter. GRABBER does not distinguish between the left-hand and right-hand <Shift> keys, which are present on all keyboards. Pressing the left <Shift> key has the same effect on GRABBER as pressing the right <Shift> key, and vice-versa. If you have an enhanced keyboard which has two <Ctrl> keys and two <Alt> keys, GRABBER treats the left and right members of each pair identically as well. APPENDIX C: LICENSE TERMS ------------------------------ GRABBER.EXE, GRABBER.DOC, and CHKVBE.EXE are Copyright 1991, 1992 by Gerald A. Monroe. All rights are reserved except those expressly granted here. GRABBER (tm) is being marketed in this special form as shareware. This means you have the opportunity to use and evaluate it before you decide to buy. If you regularly use GRABBER, or any of its "offspring" programs, or any of its companion utilities, then you are required to send your registration fee to the author accord- ing to the instructions on page 3 of this document. When you register, you receive a copy of the latest registered version of GRABBER. Using this shareware issue for more than 10 days constitutes "regular" use under this license, and requires you to register. Whether or not you become a registered user, you are permitted under this license to copy and distribute the files GRABBER.EXE and GRABBER.DOC freely, provided that: a) absolutely no fee is charged, and no donation requested, for the copying and/or distribution of these files without the express written permission of the copyright owner (unless you are an ASP-approved distributor, in which case permis- sion is hereby granted); b) the files GRABBER.EXE and GRABBER.DOC are always copied and/or distributed together; and c) the files GRABBER.EXE and GRABBER.DOC are not modified, disassembled or reverse-engineered in any way. SPECIFICALLY: NO INDIVIDUAL, ASSOCIATION OR CORPORATION, OTHER THAN SHAREWARE DISTRIBUTORS APPROVED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF SHAREWARE PROFESSIONALS, MAY INCLUDE THE FILES GRABBER.EXE OR GRABBER.DOC, EITHER ALONE OR IN COMBINATION WITH OTHER SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE, ON *ANY* MEDIA OR WITH ANY HARDWARE FOR WHICH *ANY* MONEY IS CHARGED, OR *ANY* DONATION REQUESTED, WITHOUT THE EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNER. SUCH FEES OR DONATIONS INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO, HANDLING FEES, MATERI- ALS FEES, AND OUTRIGHT PREMIUMS. NON-ASP-APPROVED INDIVIDUALS, ASSOCIATIONS OR CORPORATIONS SEEKING PERMISSION TO DISTRIBUTE THESE FILES ON ANY SUCH TERMS, SHOULD APPLY IN WRITING TO: GERALD A. MONROE, 1241 BUNTS ROAD, LAKEWOOD, OHIO 44107, U.S.A. Any use, copying or distribution of the files GRABBER.EXE or GRABBER.DOC, other than that described above, is in violation of this license. * * * End of GRABBER.DOC * * *