Over 1,000 Windows 95 Programs/Over 1000 Windows 95 Programs (Microforum) (Disc 1).iso/0522/winproof.txt

Text File | 1997-04-03 | 50KB | 1,105 lines

              WinProof (tm) User's Manual

"This is the grammar checker you've been waiting for" (tm)
                    VERSION 3.4

COPYRIGHT 1995 BY INTELLECT SYSTEMS, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

To make a printed copy of this manual, use the Print command
under the File menu of the Notepad program.

                     Chapter 1
             An introduction to WinProof

WinProof is a revolutionary new grammar checker that blazes
new territory by using a "molecular" parsing technology that
allows WinProof to detect the toughest and most embarrassing
grammar errors without flagging every single sentence in
your document.  In a real sense, WinProof "understands" how
English sentences are put together and it uses this
knowledge to provide an amazingly accurate level of grammar
checking.  WinProof doesn't try to change your writing style
by flooding you with annoying style objections and
readability statistics.  Instead, WinProof concentrates on
finding serious grammatical errors.  Even the best writers
can make grammar mistakes because proofreading is a
laborious and difficult task.  Often, the proofreading
process is completely skipped because there isn't enough
time to proofread.  This can lead to embarrassing errors
because it is all too easy to drop words in a sentence or to
misspell a word into another word.  For example:

I put the car it the garage.
The those cars are good.
I we examine the problem, we can solve it.
A teacher tried teach a difficult class.

These are not subtle errors that only a grammar teacher
would point out.  These are errors that could be easily
corrected if they were pointed out in the document.
WinProof's main purpose is to point out sentences which might
contain grammar errors.  When WinProof detects a suspect
sentence, it is presented to the user for proofreading.  A
short description of the suspect problem and how to fix it
is provided.  After proofreading the sentence and examining
the description of the problem, the user can make any needed
corrections.

The program detects grammar errors by looking for unusual
word order or usage.  Because English is a complex language
which can be used in many ways, WinProof cannot detect
errors with a 100% accuracy.  Any sentence which is even
slightly unusual or complex can be flagged as having an
error, even though the sentence is perfectly correct.
Therefore it is the responsibility of the user to decide if
there is actually an error in the sentence.  The complexity
of English also means that WinProof may not be able to
precisely identify the error.  This means that the user
should use the program's advice as a general guide to
finding an error.  The suspect sentence should first be
carefully proofread.  If the sentence looks correct then you
should examine the word which is highlighted and the
explanation/advice message.  Additional advice is available
by pressing the F1 Key.  If the sentence still looks
correct, then it probably is correct and the user should
skip the sentence.  It is important to remember WinProof
flags sentences that might contain an error.  Don't spend
time on sentences that appear correct.  WinProof does flag
some perfectly correct sentences due to the complex nature
of English.

By pointing out the few sentences which might contain
errors, the user has a better chance of detecting and
correcting serious mistakes.  However, WinProof is not a
substitute for manual proofreading.  There will always be
some errors which cannot be detected by any grammar checking
program.  WinProof helps the user to proofread by indicating
which sentences to carefully proofread.  It does not replace
proofreading. A comprehensive list of errors that WinProof
can detect can be found in the file GRAMTEST.TXT. Try running
WinProof with this file to see how all of the errors are
handled.

                         Chapter 2
              Using the commands in WinProof

Activating the menu bar

The top line is the menu bar.  To activate the menus, you
can use the mouse to point at menu items by placing the
mouse pointer over the menu item and pressing the left mouse
button.  You can also press the F10 key to activate the top
menu bar.  Once the menu bar has been activated by pressing
F10, you can use the arrow keys to move through the menu
selections.  You can also activate the menu bar items by
pressing the ALT key and the highlighted letter (shown as
underlined in WinProof) of the menu item.  For example, to
activate the 'Files' menu, press ALT-F.  Once a menu bar
item has been selected, a pull-down menu appears.  To
activate a command, use the mouse to click on a command or
use the arrow keys to highlight the command you want and
then press the Enter key.  On the right side of each
pull-down menu, you will see function key names.  You can
press these function keys to activate the command shown on
the left side of the pull-down menu.  For example, pressing
the F1 key will activate the 'Interactively proofread'
command under the 'Files' menu.

Using dialog boxes

After you select a command, a dialog box may appear.  Dialog
boxes ask for more information and can contain many items.
To select between items (such as buttons and checkboxes) in
the dialog boxes, press the TAB key or point at each item
with the mouse and press the left mouse button.  Use the
arrow keys to move between items in a group of checkboxes or
filenames.  If you want to cancel any command, press the ESC
key.

Quitting WinProof

To quit or exit WinProof, select the "Exit" command in the
"File" pulldown menu or press ALT-X.  Never quit WinProof by
turning off your machine or rebooting.

                       Chapter 3
              Proofreading with WinProof

Before you begin to proofread a document, make sure that you
have saved the document to a disk file and that you know
where the file is located.  Once you have prepared a
document, there are two ways you can use WinProof to
proofread.  The interactive method stops at each suspect
sentence and allows you to take an action.  The report only
method writes all of the suspect sentences to a disk file
for you to review later.

Interactively proofread (Press F1)

Select the 'Interactively proofread' command in the 'Files'
menu to use the interactive method.  You can also activate
this command by pressing the F1 key.  After you select this
command, a dialog box will appear which asks you for the
file to proofread.

Selecting a file to proofread

The top of the dialog box shows a wildcard filename and a
list of files that you can select.  If you know the name and
location of the file to proofread, you can type it in the
top line of the dialog box.  If you want to look at a
different directory, you can type the name of the directory
in the top line.  You can also change the types of files
which are displayed by specifying a wildcard filename (see
your DOS manual about wildcard filenames).  Press the Enter
key to select a filename, new directory or wildcard.  To
select a file shown in the file list, you must press the Tab
key to move into the file list area.  Once you are in the
file list area, you can use the arrow keys to select a
specific file.  The files are shown in alphabetical order.
You can also move the file list pointer by typing the first
letters of the filename that you are interested in.  For
example, if the file you want starts with the letter 'R'
then you can press the R key to move the file pointer to the
beginning of the files which start with the letter R.

Special note for Microsoft products and SHARE.EXE

If you cannot access the file, check if you have SHARE.EXE
in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.  Some programs such as Word 6.0
require that SHARE be loaded.  The share program prevents
two programs from accessing the same file.  Check if the
file is open in another application (like your word
processor).  You will need to close the file in the other
application before you can access the file with WinProof.
You only need to close the file.  You do not have to quit
the word processing program.  After you have opened the file
in WinProof, you can re-open the file in your word processor
to make modifications.

Selecting a report filename

After you have selected a file to proofread, another dialog
box appears which asks you for the name of a file to report
the errors to.  A default filename based on your original
file name is provided.  By default, the report file will
appear in the same directory as your original file and it
will have the same name as the original file except that the
extension will be changed to .RPT.  The report file keeps
track of the errors that WinProof finds.

Proofreading sentences

After you have selected a report file, the proofreading
screen appears.  The top part of the screen shows each word
as it is proofread.  You can pause the proofreading process
by pressing any key.  Once the program has been paused, you
can choose to either quit proofreading or to continue.

Handling errors that WinProof detects

When WinProof finds a suspected error, the program stops and
highlights the suspect sentence.  The window in the middle
of the screen displays a short explanation/advice message
and the bottom window contains seven option buttons to handle
the sentence.  Carefully proofread the sentence.  Pay close
attention to the highlighted word.  If you need a more
detailed explanation of the problem, press the F1 key.  A
one page explanation of the possible problem will appear.

The color of the highlight is determined by how serious the
error is.  There are three possible highlight errors.

Red - This means that a serious error has been detected with
a high probability.  These errors include misused words and
agreement errors.  All sentences highlighted in red should
be carefully proofread for errors.  However, it is still
possible that the sentence is correct.  These errors are
also signaled by three stars *** in the beginning of the
explanation window and in the report file.

Yellow - This means that WinProof has detected a potential
problem, but it cannot determine if a problem actually
exists by itself.  You must carefully read the entire
sentence and decide if WinProof was right or wrong.  These
errors include some of the most serious errors like extra,
dropped and misspelled words.  These errors are also
signaled by two stars ** in the beginning of the explanation
window and in the report file.

Green - This means that WinProof has detected a writing
style problem.  These are usually minor problems that can be
left in your writing.  These errors are also signaled by one
star * in the beginning of the explanation window and in the
report file.  Since these minor style problems are
unimportant to many people, you can turn off all rules of
this type in the program options command.

After you have proofread the sentence, select one of the
seven options or switch directly to your word processor if
you have it running in another window.  Use the mouse to
select a button or press the first letter of the button.
Your options are:

FIND NEXT PROBLEM

Select this option if the sentence is correct.  The sentence
will not be written to the report file and WinProof will
continue proofreading.  Select this option anytime you want
to skip past a sentence.

REPORT THIS PROBLEM

If the sentence is wrong and the explanation of the problem
makes sense to you, then select this option.  The incorrect
sentence and an explanation of the error will be written to
the problem report file.  The following is a sample report
file.

[1] [------ORIGINAL SENTENCE------] on line: 84
Use the program's advice as
a general guide to finding a *problems* .
[-----------------------------]
**********EXPLANATION/ADVICE**************
Check if the highlighted noun
needs to be changed to a singular form.
Verify that any adjectives before
the noun agree in number with the highlighted noun.
******************************************

Using the report file to correct your document

The report file shows the original sentence with the error
word surrounded by asterisks.  A short explanation/advice
message is given after the sentence.  Each sentence in the
report file is numbered to help you keep track of which
sentence you are working on.  The line in your document
which contains the error is also reported so you can easily
find the error.  However, some word processors such as Word
for Windows do not contain line number information in the
file so the line number is not reported.  Use the 'search'
feature of your word processor to find and correct each
sentence in the error report.  If your word processor can
display more than one file at a time, you can load the
report file into your word processor along with the original
text file.

EDIT

If you want to make a correction to the sentence and then
recheck the sentence for errors, use this option.  This
option allows you to edit the incorrect sentence.  A window
on the bottom of the screen will appear which will contain
the original sentence.  The cursor will be placed on the
highlighted error word.  Typing will replace the highlighted
word.  If you want to modify the highlighted word, you must
first use the arrow keys to move the cursor off the
highlighted word.  It is possible that some sentences may be
too large to edit.  You will see an error message if the
sentence is too large.  Use the arrow keys to move the
cursor around.  Press the backspace or Delete key to remove
characters.  Press F10 to finish editing your sentence.  The
original sentence and the edited sentence are written to the
problem report file.  The following is an example of a
report file entry.

[5] [-----ORIGINAL SENTENCE------] on line: 36
The report file can be over
*65000* bytes long.
----------------------------------------
*********EXPLANATION/ADVICE*************
*Check if this large number needs commas.  For numbers which contain
more than four digits, you should place a comma after every three
digits, e.g., "2,345,454" instead of "2345454."
########YOUR CORRECTED SENTENCE######### * LOCATED AT: 1466 1513 *
The report file can be over
65,000 bytes long.
****************************************

If you are checking a WordPerfect, ASCII or PC-Write file, a
location marker will appear with the corrected sentence.
This location marker allows WinProof to insert the corrected
sentence into the original file.  After you have proofread
the entire document, WinProof will ask if you want to modify
your original document.  If you select to modify your
document, all of the editing changes you made will be
transferred to the original document.  However, modifying
your original file is not recommended.  This is because
WinProof cannot control the formatting of your document.  If
you modify your original document, you will need to
carefully check the formatting of the changed sentences.
Inserting or deleting words may cause the margins and page
breaks to change in your document.  You will lose any
formatting commands contained within the edited sentence.
It is a much better idea to save all of your editing for
your word processor.  Remember that you can only modify the
original file if you are using a WordPerfect, PC-Write or
ASCII file.  Otherwise, your corrections will not be made to
the original file.  They will only be noted in the report
file and you will need to redo your changes with your word
processor.

CHANGE

If WinProof suggests a possible correction, you will be able
to make the correction automatically by selecting the change
option.  You can use this option when the explanation window
asks you to consider another word and the change button is
selectable.  Otherwise, the change button is grayed out and
you will not be able to use it.  Like the EDIT command,
WinProof can only directly modify a WordPerfect, PC-Write or
ASCII file.

COMMENT ON THIS SENTENCE

If the program finds a mistake, but the explanation is
completely irrelevant or wrong, this option allows you to
make a note for yourself about what needs to be changed.
Your comment needs to contain enough information for you to
correct the sentence later on.  The following is an example
of a comment in the report file.

[1] [-----ORIGINAL SENTENCE------] on line: 36
If your *select* the interactive option, WinProof will stop
and display each sentence which might contain a grammar
error.
[----------------------------]
*******EXPLANATION/ADVICE***************
**This sentence should be carefully checked.  Look for
unusual word usage or if a comma needs to be added.  The
word "that" may be needed to introduce a phrase in the
sentence.  Pay attention to the highlighted word.  Please
check if "select" followed by "the" is an unusual word
usage.
----YOUR COMMENT ABOUT THE SENTENCE-----
change the word "your" to "you"
****************************************

IGNORE THIS KIND OF ERROR

If WinProof reports errors which are not important to you,
you can easily turn them off with this option.  The program
can report over 100 different kinds of errors.  Some of these
errors such as 'passive voice' may not be important to you.
However, you should be careful that you don't turn off the
more generic error messages which warn you of missing or
misused words.  If you turned these rules off, you would
miss many grammar errors.  The rules that you turn off will
remain that way during your entire proofreading session.
When you quit WinProof, you will be asked if you want to
make your rule changes permanent.  If you make your changes
permanent, the rules that you changed will always be off.
If the error is listed as a custom rule in the
explanation/advice window, then the ignore button is grayed
and you will not be able to ignore this error.  In order to
turn off a custom rule, you must modify the custom rule
file.

QUIT CHECKING FOR PROBLEMS

If you decide that you do not want to check the rest of your
document, select this option to quit.  When you quit or when
WinProof finishes proofreading a document, an information
dialog box appears.  This dialog box indicates where the
report file was written to, the number of sentences in the
document and the percentage of sentences that were written
to the report file.  If you want to quit or exit the
program, press the ESC or ALT-X keys.

Report only proofreading (Press F2)

If you choose the report only proofreading command, WinProof
will proofread the entire document without stopping.  All of
the suspect sentences will be written to the report file.
The advantage of this method is that you can do something
else while your document is being proofread.  You can
continue to work with your word processor while WinProof is
checking your document.  The disadvantage is that you will
need to review both correct and incorrect sentences in the
problem report file and you can't use the on-line help
provided in the interactive mode.

Finishing proofreading

After your document has been proofread, statistics for your
document will be displayed.  The top line will indicate the
name of the report file.  The second line displays the total
number of sentences processed and the third line displays
the number of sentences that were flagged.  The approximate
grade level of the document is displayed in the fourth line.
This grade level is based on the Gunning Fog index and it
represents the approximate education level which is needed
to understand your document.  A grade level of 8 is
considered appropriate for most people.  The last line
reports the total number of words in the document.

Transferring your changes to your document

If you edited sentences in WinProof and you were using a
WordPerfect, ASCII or PC-Write file, you will be asked if
you want the edits that you made to be transferred back to
your original document.  Select modify to transfer your
edits.  If you are using WinProof for DOS, you will be able
to change the name of the new file that will contain your
changes.  If you do not change the name of the file, your
original unchanged file is renamed with a .BAK extension.
You can return to this backup file if you decide that you
don't want to keep your changes.  After you have modified
the file, you should load it back into your word processor
and check for formatting changes.  Formatting such as line
length, page breaks and margins are not preserved in the
edited sentences.  If you do not see the modify file dialog
after you have edited your sentences, then you must manually
transfer your changes to your original document by referring
to the report file.

                      Chapter 4
          Changing your options in WinProof

Turning grammar rules on/off

You can change WinProof's options by selecting "Options" in
the menubar.  You can switch on and off any of the program's
error messages under the "Turn grammar rules on/off"
command.  When you select this command, a screen will appear
with a list of grammar rules.  Beside each rule is a
checkbox.  If the checkbox is marked with an X, the rule is
active.  Use the mouse to change the checkbox or use the
arrow keys to move between the list of rules.  Pressing the
spacebar will change the state of the highlighted checkbox.
There are several pages of rules.  You can view the other
pages by selecting the 'Next' and 'Previous' buttons or you
can use the PG UP and PG DN keys.  If you turned off rules
while proofreading, you can turn them back on again in the
options' menu.  If you are uncertain about the meaning of a
rule, press the F1 key while the rule is highlighted.  A
help page will be displayed that will give you a better
explanation of the rule.

Program Options (Press F4)

There are several other options you can change by using the
'Program Options' command.

Default directory

The first option in the program options page allows you to
specify the default directory and wildcard filename that is
used when you select a file to proofread.  A wildcard
filename (the filename must contain either * or ?)  must be
specified in this option.  For example, if you wanted to
have all files with the extension .DOC displayed in the
C:\WP directory, you would type C:\WP\*.DOC in the default
directory and wildcard file type.  If you do not see your
document files displayed when you start to proofread, you
need to change the default directory to where you store your
document files.

Detect Style Errors

The second option allows you to change the error sensitivity
level.  If you want to detect style problems, select this
option.  Most of the style problems can be left in your
document without detracting from your writing.  If you want
to skip these types of problems and want to review the
fewest number of sentences, this option should be turned
off.

Using LCD screens

The third option allows you to optimize the display if you
are using a monochrome or LCD screen.  Some of the dialog
boxes and menus may not show up very well on LCD screens.
Use this option if you are using an LCD or monochrome
screen.

Using PC-Write or extended ASCII files

If you are using PC-Write files, you need to select this
option if you want to be able to transfer your edited
sentences to your original file.  Otherwise, your edited
sentences will only be written to the report file.  You can
also try this option if WinProof cannot read your word
processor's file format or if your document contains non-
standard characters.  These non-standard characters are
known as extended ASCII characters and they typically
represent foreign, line drawing, or math characters.

Do not create report files

If you normally proofread interactively, there is no need to
create a report file that clutters up your document
directory.  By selecting this option, you will not be
prompted for a report file name and no report file will be
created.  However, report files will always be created if
you do a "Report Only" proofreading session.

Report only one error per sentence

You can select this option to reduce the number of times
that the program stops to report errors.  The program will
only report the first error in the sentence and skip any
other errors that might be present in the rest of the
sentence.  By carefully reading the entire sentence from the
first error, you can probably detect and fix any other
problems that might be in the sentence.  Therefore, you
won't need the program to stop at a sentence more than once.

Maximums Allowed

You are allowed to specify when certain rules are triggered by
setting a maximum value. Enter a value for each of the rules.
When this maximum value is exceeded, the rule will activate.

Saving your options (Press F5)

You can permanently save your options by using the 'Save
Options' command.  When you select this command, a dialog
box will appear which contains the filename of the currently
selected configuration file and a list of available
configuration files.  To save your options under the
currently selected configuration file, press the Enter key.
If you want to save your options under a new configuration
file name, type a new name in the dialog box.  Please use
the extension .CFG for your configuration file name.  If you
want to save your configuration with one of the files in the
list, press the Tab key to move into the filelist area and
use the arrow keys to select a file.  The configuration
files are always saved in the same directory that WinProof
was started in.

Retrieving your options (Press F6)

After you save your options, the configuration file you
selected will be automatically used the next time you use
WinProof.  To use another configuration file, select the
'Retrieve Options' command.  A dialog box will be displayed
which contains all of the available configuration files.
Press the tab key to move into the filelist area and use the
arrow keys to select a configuration file.  Press the Enter
key to select the file.  WinProof comes with several sample
configuration files.  For example, the file ALLON.CFG has
all of the grammar and style rules turned on.  Use this
configuration file for maximum error detection.  However,
WinProof should rarely be used or evaluated with this
configuration.  Unless you are prepared to review many
flagged sentences, the ALLON configuration should not be
used.  For most users who are evaluating or using WinProof
for the first time, the normal configuration really does
provide the best level of grammar checking.  The default
configuration file NORMAL.CFG has some rules like 'passive
voice' turned off.  If you want WinProof to detect these
problems, you must turn them on in the options menu.
Experiment with the .CFG files to find the one that suits
you the best.  The configuration file which is being used is
noted at the top of the option page.  The following
configuration files are included with WinProof.

ALLON.CFG - Turns on all rules
READONLY.CFG - Turns off all rules
GRAMONLY.CFG - Turns off all style rules
NORMAL.CFG - Turns off selected style rules
PCPROOF.CFG - Default config (Same as NORMAL)
SPELL.CFG - Spell check only

Custom grammar rules

In addition to the rules found in the options dialog,
WinProof has a special class of rules that can be modified
to suit your own needs.  These rules belong to the custom
rule class and you can recognize these rules in the
explanation/advice window by the title "Custom rule number:
".  These rules are found in a special file called
PCPROOF.RUL in the WinProof installation directory.  By
modifing this file with a standard ASCII text editor like
EDIT.COM included with DOS, you can add or delete custom
rules.  The custom rule class can detect any error that is
signaled by particular sequence of words.  Each rule takes
one line in the file and can be up to 80 characters in
length.  The following are two examples of the rules that
are included with WinProof:

Corp \ ***This abbreviation requires a period.  | Corp.
a lot of \ *"a lot of" is informal.  Try to reword the sentence.

The first part of the rule contains up to four words to
trigger the rule.  This part of the rule is case sensitive,
so be sure to use the exact case you want to detect in the
rule.  A backslash "\" character separates the trigger words
from the error message.  This is the message that is
displayed in the explanation/advice window.  The message
begins with a sequence of up to three star "*" symbols to
indicate the seriousness of the problem.  If you want to
suggest a replacement for the trigger words, place a bar
character "|" (usually found on the same key as the
backslash) after the error message followed by the
replacement words.  Make sure that you separate the "\" and
"|" with spaces.

An example of a custom rule might be that you want to detect
when you use the word "manger" (a place where animals live)
instead of the word "manager" (your boss).  The line that
you would add to the custom rule file would be:

manger \ ***Check if you meant manager | manager

If you want to turn off some of the custom rules, you can
either delete the entire line that contains the rule or you
can put a semicolon ";" at the beginning of the rule.  All
lines that begin with a semicolon are treated as comments
and they are ignored.  To find a rule in the custom rule
file, refer to the custom rule number shown in the
explanation/advice window.  The number refers to the line
that contains the rule.  Lines that contain comments don't
count so the rule number might not correspond to the line
number in the rule file, but you can still use it as a
general guide to finding a rule.

                      Chapter 6
           Spell checking and the clipboard

Proofreading with the Windows clipboard

With WinProof, you can proofread the contents of the Windows
clipboard.  This will allow you to proofread a document
without needing to save your document or know the filename.
It is also useful for proofreading documents created by word
processors which are not file compatible with WinProof.
Transferring text to the clipboard removes formatting
commands which can confuse WinProof.  To proofread clipboard
text, select some or all of your text in your word processor
and use the "Copy" command to copy the text to the
clipboard.  Then switch to WinProof and select "Proofread
Clipboard" under the files menu or press CTRL-P.  A dialog
box will ask you if you want to proofread interactively or
only generate a report.  The report will be written to the
file CLIPBRD.RPT.  If you edited some of your sentences,
these changes can be written back to the clipboard.  You
will be asked to modify the clipboard after WinProof has
finished proofreading the clipboard contents.  You can paste
the modified contents of the clipboard back into your
original document.  Make sure that you do not unhighlight
your text in your word processor.  If you unhighlight your
text, you will end up with a duplicate copy of your document
when you use the "Paste" command to transfer your changes
back to your original document.  You should also proofread
your document before doing any complex formatting.  The
formatting commands are lost when they are copied to the
clipboard.

Spell checking

WinProof can check the spelling of your document as it
checks for grammar errors.  To turn on spell checking, make
sure that the "Turn on spell checking" option is turned on
in the Program Options dialog box.  Since many people do not
want to spell check proper names, you can choose to ignore
most of the names by leaving the "Spell check proper names"
option unchecked.  However, WinProof will not catch
misspelled words at the beginning of a sentence since it
thinks that the misspelled word is a name that should not be
spell checked.

Handling spell checking problems

When WinProof finds a spelling problem, it puts up a dialog
box with several buttons.  If the word is correctly spelled,
select "Find next problem".  This word will be temporarily
ignored.  If the highlighted word is not the correct
replacement, use the arrow keys to find the correct
replacement.  You can also directly type in a replacement
word.  Select "Replace word" to make your correction.  When
you select a replacement for a misspelled word, WinProof
will automatically fix any other occurences of the
misspelled word in the rest of the document.  If the word is
correct and you wish to add it to your spelling dictionary
so that it is never flagged again, use the "Add to User
Dict" option.  You may also quit proofreading by selecting
the "Quit checking" option.

                       Chapter 7
               Using your word processor

Supported word processors

WinProof has been designed to work with many popular word
processing formats.  WinProof can read and insert corrections
into the files created by the following word processors:

ASCII text
WordPerfect 5, 6
PC-Write 3
Microsoft Write 3

WinProof can directly read but cannot modify the files
created by the following word processors.

Microsoft Word for DOS, 5
Microsoft Word for Windows 2, 6
Microsoft Works 2, 3
Professional Write 2
Ami Pro 3
WordStar 5

If you are using a WordPerfect, PC-Write, Microsoft Write
or ASCII file, you will have the ability to transfer your
edited sentences to the original file.  When you modify
your original document with WinProof, you must check for
formatting changes since WinProof does not preserve the
formatting on the edited sentences.  Word spacing might
also be altered.  If you are using PC-Write, you must
select the "Use PC-Write" checkbox in the program options
dialog box (Press F4).

If you are using Microsoft Word for Windows 6.0, a special
version of WinProof is available that seamlessly replaces
the built-in grammar checker in Word. Please contact
Intellect Systems for more information on this version.

Unsupported word processors

If your word processor is not included in this list, you
should try WinProof with a file from your word processor to
check if it works.  WinProof will try to ignore formatting
information, but it may appear as random characters on the
screen during proofreading.  These random characters usually
will not interfere with proofreading.  However, it is
possible that the file format may cause WinProof to become
stuck or it may not correctly identify the text in the
document.  If the files from your word processor do not
work, you can try using the "Use PC-Write or extended ASCII
files" option in the program options dialog box.  (Press
F4).  If this doesn't work, you will need to create an ASCII
file from your word processor.  Refer to your word
processor's manual on how to create ASCII files.  You can
also use the Microsoft Windows clipboard to check your text.

                       Chapter 8
               Using WinProof on a network

WinProof can be used on a network.  If you registered for a
single user version of WinProof, only one user should use
WinProof at a time.  If you need to add more users on your
system, you can call Intellect Systems for a network
license.

Creating your own configuration files

If several people use the same copy of WinProof, each person
may want to use a different setup.  You need to provide a
different working directory for each user by activating the
"File Properties" command (Alt-F-P).  Modify the "Program
properties" dialog so that the working directory points to a
personal directory.

                    Chapter 7
                How WinProof works

WinProof uses a unique, "molecular" parsing approach which
represents a significant advance in language processing
technology.  The molecular parsing technique treats every
word in the language like an atom.  Like atoms, each word
has particular binding characteristics that allow it to
combine with only certain words in certain orders.  The best
way to explain this is with a short example.  Examine the
sentence "The car is blue."  The first word is "The".  What
does the word "the" need in order to be complete?  It needs
some kind of object or noun phrase.  The next word in the
sentence is "car".  This satisfies the object requirement
for the word "the".  So the phrase "the car" forms a bond
like two atoms might form a bond.  However the phrase "the
car" does not form a complete sentence because an action or
verb is required.  The next word "is" satisfies the verb
requirement for a sentence.  However, the word "is" cannot
stand by itself at the end of the sentence.  It also
requires something.  In this case, it requires a description
or adjective which is satisfied with the word "blue".  The
word blue doesn't require anything else and all of the other
requirements for the words in the sentence have been
satisfied, so this must be a legal English sentence.  If you
try to drop a word in this sentence, you can see that one of
the words won't be satisfied.  For example, if you drop the
word "blue" so the sentence reads "The is blue", this
sentence is ungrammatical because the requirements for the
word "the" cannot be filled by the word "is".  This is only
one simple example, but WinProof knows the requirements for
every single word in the English language.

                      Chapter 8
                    Troubleshooting

Contacting Intellect Systems

If you encounter a problem with WinProof, the problem can
usually be solved by carefully reading this manual.  If the
manual does not resolve the problem, consult other computer
users.  There are many computer user groups that can provide
you with assistance.  If you need assistance or would like
to provide a comment or suggestion about WinProof, please
write to the following address:

Intellect Systems
P.O. Box 58213
Renton, WA 98058

If you cannot wait for a written reply, you can call
Intellect Systems at [phone] from 10AM-4PM PST on
weekdays.  East coast users, please do not call before
1:00PM.  CompuServe users can send EMAIL to 72630,3457.
Internet users can send EMAIL to [e-mail].
Please do not hesitate to contact us about problems with the
program.  We will usually respond by fixing the problem
immediately and sending you an updated product.

                     Chapter 9
               Questions and answers

If you have a problem or a question, please read this
section before contacting Intellect Systems

I CAN'T INSTALL THE PROGRAM.  WHAT CAN I DO?

If you have difficulties installing the program, it could be
due to several problems.  Please check each of the
possibilities.

1.  Check if you have enough disk space.  WinProof requires
900K of disk space for installation.

2.  Check if you can write to the disk you are installing
to.  Try to copy files into the installation directory.  If
you cannot write to the directory, it may be protected or
your hard disk may be defective.

3.  Retry the installation process or try to install
WinProof on another machine.  If you cannot install WinProof
on any machine, then your WinProof disks may be defective.
Send defective disks and a description of the problem to
Intellect Systems for replacement.

4.  Copy the files from the distribution disks and run them.
WinProof is distributed in a self-extracting archive.
Running the files will create a copy of WinProof on your
hard disk.

WINPROOF SAYS IT CANNOT FIND OR ACCESS MY FILE.

Make sure that you have typed in the correct name and
location for the file.  To do this, you can first type in
the directory where you keep your word processing files in
the "File Open" dialog box.  This will switch you to the
directory and show you the files in the directory.  Use the
mouse or arrow keys to scroll through the list of files
until you find the one that you want.  If the program still
reports that the file does not exist, check if the file is
still being used by another program such as your word
processor.  If a network SHARE program is loaded, you will
need to close the file in your word proccessor before you
can open it up in WinProof.

WINPROOF DOESN'T CHECK ANY OF THE SENTENCES IN MY FILE.

Check if you are using one of the word processors supported
by WinProof.  If you have recently upgraded your word
processor, WinProof may not work with your new word
processor's file format.  You can try to select the "Use
PC-write or extended ASCII" option in the Program Options
dialog.  If this doesn't work, you will need to convert your
document to a plain ASCII file before you can check it.

I CANNOT RUN WINPROOF.  WHEN I TRY TO START WINPROOF, IT
HANGS MY MACHINE.

Check if you have a good copy of WinProof.  Try to load
WinProof on another machine.  Go to a computer store if you
don't have access to another computer.  If you can't get
WinProof to run on any machine, then your copy of WinProof
is defective.  Get another copy of WinProof and try again.
If WinProof won't work on just your machine, then you may be
using an incompatible utility or driver.  Try to detect
incompatible drivers by starting your machine from a plain
DOS disk (no autoexec.bat or config.sys file).  If WinProof
runs, then one of the programs in your startup files is
incompatible with WinProof.  Eliminate programs from your
autoexec.bat and config.sys files one at a time, until you
find the incompatible program.  Please report any
incompatible programs and drivers to Intellect Systems.


CAN THE SCREEN COLORS BE CHANGED?

If you are using an LCD or monochrome screen, you can use a
black and white screen color set by selecting 'Use LCD color
set' under the 'Options' menu.

MY WORD PROCESSOR IS NOT SUPPORTED BY WINPROOF.  CAN I STILL
USE WINPROOF?

WinProof has been designed to work with almost any word
processing format.  WinProof attempts to pull out only the
ASCII text contained in any type of document.  You must test
if WinProof will work with your word processor.  If it
doesn't, then you can still use WinProof by converting your
document into an ASCII format.

HOW COME THE CHANGES I MADE IN THE DOCUMENT DON'T SHOW UP
WHEN I LOOK AT THE FILE?

First, you can only modify your original file if you using
either a WordPerfect, PC-Write or a pure ASCII file.  If you
are using any other file format, your changes will not be
written to the original file.  If you are using a
WordPerfect or ASCII file, then you should check if there
are duplicate file names.  It is very easy to lose track of
which file you are working on if you have the same filename
in different directories.

THE FOREIGN CHARACTERS IN MY DOCUMENT DON'T SHOW UP.  WHAT
IS HAPPENING?

WinProof does not support the use of foreign characters.
WinProof will usually convert foreign characters into
spaces.  This usually does not affect the proofreading
process.  If you don't want WinProof to convert foreign
characters, use the "Use PC-Write or extended ASCII" option
in the "Program Options" command.

CAN I ADD WORDS TO WINPROOF SINCE I USE MANY TECHNICAL TERMS
THAT WOULDN'T BE IN ANY DICTIONARY?

This isn't necessary since WinProof can guess the definition
of a word based on the context.  The grammar of a sentence
also usually depends on the most common words in the
sentence.

WHERE ARE MY CONFIGURATION FILES BEING WRITTEN TO?  HOW DO I
USE THE SAMPLE CONFIGURATION FILES?

It is important to remember that when you use the "Save
Options" command, your new configuration file is normally
saved in the same directory that you started WinProof in.
For example, if you started WinProof from your C:\USR\MIKE
directory, your new configuration file will be stored in
this directory.  If you use "Retrieve Options", only the
configurations files in C:\USR\MIKE will be displayed.  If
you want to use the sample configuration files, you will
need to type in the directory where WinProof is installed.
For example, you could type C:\WINPROOF in the Retrieve
Options dialog box.  The configuration files found in
C:\WINPROOF will then be displayed.  If all else fails, you
can reset your configuration by deleting the file
PCPROOF.FIL from your personal directories.  You can also
install the program from the original disks.

WHEN I RUN WINPROOF, I GET A MESSAGE THAT SOME FILES ARE
MISSING.  WHAT HAPPENED?

If you get this message, it means that WinProof has not been
correctly installed or files have been accidentally erased.
Reinstall the program and retry WinProof.

I GET A DISK ACCESS ERROR WHILE USING WINPROOF.  WHAT DOES
THIS MEAN?

This usually means that you cannot write to the disk that
you are using.  Check if you have ample disk space.  Try
other programs.  If the problem persists, your hard disk may
be defective.


WINPROOF IS RANDOMLY CRASHING.  WHAT COULD BE HAPPENING?

First check if your other applications still work.  If they
also don't work then you may be experiencing a hardware
failure.  Another possibility is that the copy of WinProof
on your disk has faded or been corrupted.  Try to re-install
the program.

                   Chapter 10
               License Agreement

Carefully read the following terms and conditions.  Use of
WinProof constitutes your acceptance of these terms and
conditions and your agreement to abide by them.

Non-registered users are granted a limited license to use
WinProof for one month on a private non-commercial basis,
for the express purpose of determining whether WinProof is
suitable for your needs.  At the end of the one month
period, you must either register your copy of WinProof or
discontinue using WinProof.  Using WinProof beyond the one
month trial period is in violation of United States
copyright law.  The cost of registration is currently $45.
Prices are subject to change.

Registered users are granted a license to use WinProof on a
single computer.  A registered user may use the program on a
different computer, so long as the program is only being
used on one computer at a time.  If several people use the
software at the same time, you must pay a license fee for
each person using the software.  This includes network
installations.  This license only grants you the right to
use WinProof.  Intellect Systems retains the title to
WinProof.

Limited warranty:

Intellect Systems warrants that all disks and physical
documentation provided to registered users are free of
defects in materials and workmanship for a period of 90 days
after the date of your purchase.  If you discover a defect
within the warranty period, the diskette or documentation
will be replaced without any additional charge.

Copyright notice:

WinProof is protected by both United States copyright law
and international treaty provisions.  Unauthorized copying
is strictly forbidden.  In addition to copyright protection,
you agree to not modify WinProof in any way, including but
not limited to disassembling, decompiling, or otherwise
reverse engineering the program.

Limitation of liability:

EXCEPT AS PROVIDED ABOVE, THIS SOFTWARE AND MANUAL ARE SOLD
"AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES AS TO PERFORMANCE OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR ANY OTHER WARRANTIES WHETHER EXPRESSED OR
IMPLIED.  BECAUSE OF THE VARIOUS HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE
ENVIRONMENTS INTO WHICH THIS PROGRAM MAY BE PUT, NO WARRANTY
OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IS OFFERED.  GOOD DATA
PROCESSING PROCEDURES DICTATE THAT ANY PROGRAM BE THOROUGHLY
TESTED WITH NON-CRITICAL DATA BEFORE RELYING ON IT.  THE
USER MUST ASSUME THE ENTIRE RISK OF USING THE PROGRAM.
INTELLECT SYSTEMS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL,
INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT OR SIMILAR DAMAGES DUE
TO THE LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, BUSINESS
INTERRUPTION OR ANY OTHER REASON EVEN IF THE COMPANY HAS
BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.  ALL OF THE
AUTHOR'S RIGHT, TITLE AND INTEREST IN AND TO THE SOFTWARE
NOT EXPRESSLY GRANTED, ARE RESERVED EXCLUSIVELY BY THE
AUTHOR.  Some states do not allow the exclusion of implied
warranties so these exclusions may not apply to you.  You
may also have other rights which vary from state to state.

* ALWAYS BACKUP YOUR IMPORTANT FILES BEFORE USING WINPROOF *.

       To contact Intellect Systems, write to
  Intellect Systems, P.O. Box 58213, Renton, WA 98058.
        Send EMAIL to: CompuServe 72630,3457,
         Internet: [e-mail]
     If you cannot wait for a written reply, call
          [phone] M-F 10AM-4PM PST
    (East coast users, please call after 1:00 PM)

Copyright 1995 by Intellect Systems - all rights reserved.
All Intellect Systems products are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Intellect Systems.  WinProof is a trademark of
Intellect Systems.  Other brand and product names are
trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective
holders.

To review this information again, print or view the file
WINPROOF.TXT.