Media Share 9/MEDIASHARE_09.ISO/mag&info/kgl_9401.zip/BOOTCON.RVW

Text File | 1994-02-03 | 7KB | 185 lines

..BOOTCON5.KGL 01/30/94

BOOTCON AND ME: A Simple Solution To A Complex Problem.

A Software Review
By Everett L. Slosman

   As a full-time freelance writer, I work on different projects
each week.  I go from assignments, to self-syndication, to self-
publishing, to spec -- often during the same working session. To
accomplish this efficiently, I need different PATH
configurations on my IBM-compatible clone.

   My CPU has 8 meg of ram, a 33mHz clock, and 200 meg hard
drive.  It also contains 5.25" and 3.5" floppy drives.  The
monitor is a 14" super VGA.  I use MS-DOS 5.0 as the basic
operating system. However I also have a flatbed scanner which
requires WINDOWS, and I use AmiPro to do desktop publishing.
While I have no objection to others tickling mouse tails, I'm
psychologically ill-equipped to mess with Mickey.  (It has to be
a hangover from my Apple II+ days.)  And I _never_ run DOS
through WINDOWS.


"Memory, Mother of the Muses"

   Using memory to the max is what I look for, and that requires
reconfiguring my AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS to match my work
project.  For example, if I'm using WordPerfect 5.1, there is no
need to have WINDOWS loaded.  If I'm using AmiPro, why have my
scanner and OCR programs chewing up the desktop?

   As a firm believer in simplicity, and also being a total
techno-klutz, I went looking for a logical way to do things.
With the possible need for 15 different PATH configurations,
using batch files was not the answer.  I had no intention of
committing 15 more filenames to memory, and I can _never_ find
the sheet that lists all my macros.


The Mahjohng Factor

   Another problem: Incapatibility between hardware and
software. My wife likes to play mahjohng, using a trackball,
which causes an irreconcillable lockup in my communications
program.  And I hate to keep going in and out of the
AUTOEXEC.BAT, REMming and unREMming statements.

   I realized that the ideal situation would be the opportunity
to select configurations from a menu: the "Two-From-Column-A and
One-From-Column-B" approach.  Then, a _PC World_ boxed paragraph
on BOOTCOM caught my eye.

   I called Modular Software System's toll-free number. They
answered a few compatibility questions and sent a flyer, which
asserted that, 'reconfiguration by batch file is passe'.  To
quote: "BOOTCON...lets you use any combination of TSRs, drivers,
devices, and graphical interfaces without reconfiguring your
system" and "eliminates the need for juggling a number of
CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files."

   Like most of us, I own a bookshelf of software that made
"the-greatest-thing-since-rye-bread" promises.  So what hooked
me was the unconditional, 60-day, money-back guarantee.  As long
as I used a PC, XT, AT. PS/2, or 100-percent-IBM compatible with
at least one floppy drive, 512 KB RAM, and 512 KB disk space, it
should work, or my money would be cheerfully refunded.
Operating system specifications were broad also: MS-DOS or
MS-DOS, versions 3.1 to 6.0, and DR DOS 6.0 would all do.

   In short, I ordered a copy.


Real Technical Support!

   When BOOTCON 2.0 arrived, I fumble-fingered my way through
the installation, and it worked.  But not quite as advertised.

   I called Modular Software's technical staff, and they
answered within three rings.  The tech spent almost an hour
making sure ALL my configurations were correct.  They hiked
where Microsoft never dared tread.

   And no one at Modular suggested I never use a keyboard again.

   The manual says BOOTCON handles 26 different configurations;
the box says 100.  If I ever need 100, I'll buy a mainframe.
Screens are in plain English.  The program uses only 384K memory
while running, and 450 bytes (correct) after booting.  STACKER,
SUPERSTOR, DESQview, KWIKBOOT, QEMM, 386MAX, EMM386, and most
memory manipulators require far more memory.

   To install, place the program disk in either A or B drive,
type INSTALL, and read the screens carefully.  BOOTCON copies
the original AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS to a control file in
its own directory.  When your computer goes through 'boot' or
'reboot', the configuration control file compares the original
with the ones running.

   Discrepancies, such as a new program added to the PATH or a
new device, are resolved by updating the control file, if the
user wants an update.  Otherwise, the change(s) in question come
back everytime you do a cold boot.  This feature allows you to
test CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT changes or cobinations without
fully committing to the new combination.

   On startup, BOOTCON calls up one of the specialized
configurations you created during the installation, or creates a
new one.

   Here are some sample configurations as they appear on my
BOOTCON menu:


----------------------------------------
LOADING THE CONFIGURATION
CONTROL FILE ONE MOMENT PLEASE
----------------------------------------

        SELECT A CONFIGURATION

ORIGINAL   Original Configuration Before Bootcon

CLEAN      Clean Boot WP51 without Address Express*

WPADEX     WordPerfect 5.1 with Address Express

WIND       Windows without scanner

WINSCAN    Windows with scanner

AUTOSELECTION COUNTDOWN xx SECONDS REMAIN
(SPACEBAR) CANCELS
______________________________________________


Because BOOTCON uses the original CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT
files, new configurations are created by editing out unnecessary
statements, instead of REMing them out.  This helps eliminate
configuration conflicts, since unnecessary instructions can be
eliminated.

   BOOTCON's editor is a what-you-type-is-what-you-see-on-the-
screen, thereby reducing error and eliminating the need for an
ASCII editors.  To change configurations, reset (Ctrl-Alt-Del),
halt the menu again, and select the desired comment.

   To add a configuration, go to the BCSETUP programs from the
c:> prompt.  The next time it boots, the program will check the
configuration file and update it.


Conclusions: It's a Program that Works

   BOOTCON turns out to be everything I need to control memory,
program loads, and TSRs. I may be over-enthusiastic, but being
able to forget writing batch files, no longer REMing out
statements, and solving memory conflicts is worth the $80.00
price.

   The learning curve is gradual and short. After the techs
straightened out the mess I made, I found my answers in manual.
RFTM avoids stupid operations.

   The program may not be the total answer, but it's what
Microsoft and Digital Research should have come up with in the
first place.  And it beats problem plagued MS-DOS 6.0's multiple
configuration facility by a mile.

   At $80.00 a copy, the BOOTCON package belongs on every PC.
Unfortunately, I have not seen it advertised by the major
mailorder firms, and it may not be available from the retail
stores.  For more information:

   Modular Software Systems
   25825 104th Street SE, Suite 208
   Kent, WA 98031
   1-800-438-3930.

                     -30-

-----------------------------------------------------------------
(Everett Slosman, a polymath, works on several writing projects
at once when he's not shoveling snow in New Hampshire and his
wife Dawna isn't using the computer.)