home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Share Gallery 1
/
share_gal_1.zip
/
share_gal_1
/
WP
/
WP010D.ZIP
/
PCT4DOC.ZIP
/
APPENDIX
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1990-12-18
|
39KB
|
1,099 lines
Performance Hints Page A 349
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX A - Technical Information
Performance Hints
This section will provide you with some helpful hints
about PC-Type.
Pro-Key users: If you use Rosesoft's Pro-Key and you try any Alt
key+number pad keys within PC-Type, remember that you
have to press the Alt+Shift keys instead of just the
Alt key.
EDIT: You will find that when you read in a new file with
the edit command that the file will appear to load
faster. This is because PC-Type itself does not have
to be loaded again. It is usually faster to edit a
new file this way than to exit PC-Type and edit the
second file from scratch.
file size: PC-Type will respond more rapidly with smaller files
than with large files. It is generally better to
segment your work than to work with very large files.
macros: Try to learn how to use the keystroke macro
capability. It will save you hours of work.
block Be sure to read the manual carefully about MOVE,
move/copy: COPY, PASTE, and OVERLAY with CtrlB marking. These
are extremely powerful and useful commands and will
save you a great deal of effort if you use them.
mail-merge: When you run Mail-Merge, the .IF and .INCLUDE commands
can be very powerful, for the included files may
contain additional Mail-Merge codes and instructions.
You can even have .INCLUDE commands in .INCLUDE files.
This can be extremely useful if you organize your
material.
The .<KEYIN*> feature is also very useful when you
just want to print two or three letters.
Read the Mail-Merge section of this manual carefully.
You will find the flexibility and capability of this
PC-Type facility very beneficial to your operations.
print markers: We recommend that you enter your text first and then
go back to insert special print markers and index
markers. These markers require some overhead and your
overall performance should be improved using this
approach.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX A - Technical Information Performance Hints
Page A 350 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
saving files: It is always good practice to save files occasionally
in case of power outages, etc. Use Shift F9 liberally
when editing your files.
profile files: Just as you can save printer escape code files for
different printers, you can save different profile
files containing different PC-Type defaults. This is
extremely useful if you use PC-Type for many different
purposes.
For example, you could save a default file which
contains your setup for letters, another for
documents, and another for editing source code.
Then you could set up a small batch file for each of
these and use the /P=filespec parameter as shown
below.
LETTER.BAT contains the line:
PCT %1 /P=c:\pctype\letter
This batch file would load the defaults contained in
the profile file LETTER.PRO located in subdirectory
PCTYPE on the C drive before beginning to edit the
file "%1".
You could then edit a letter as:
C>letter mom.ltr
DOCU.BAT contains the line:
PCT %1.pct /P=c:\pctype\docs
You could then edit a document file as:
C>docu sales
PC-Type would then load the files sales.doc with all
the default documentation options set appropriately.
CODE.BAT contains the line:
PCT %1 /P=c:\pctype\code
You could then edit your source code as:
C>code print.c
NOTE: the three examples above assume you saved the
profile files LETTER.PRO, DOCS.PRO, and
CODE.PRO in the subdirectory PCTYPE
on your C drive.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Performance Hints APPENDIX A - Technical Information
File Structure Page A 351
----------------------------------------------------------------------
PC-Type File Structure
It is not necessary to read the information in this
section to understand or to use PC-Type. It has been
included in case someone wants to write a filter or
program which uses PC-Type files.
PC-Type is written in Microsoft C.
ASCII format: A file saved to disk from PC-Type without a file
extension of PCT is a pure ASCII file.
Each line in a PC-Type file in this format ends with a
carriage return and linefeed character combination,
(0Dh 0Ah).
If Tab markers exist in the file, they will be saved
when the file is saved. All Tab fill characters,
however, are removed.
Any page markers will be reduced to simple formfeed
characters when the file is saved to disk.
At the very end of the file there will be one end of
file marker, (1Ah).
Any such file produced by PC-Type should be totally
usable by any program expecting a pure ASCII file.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX A - Technical Information PC-Type File Structure
Page A 352 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
document A preamble exists at the beginning of all files saved
format: to disk from within PC-Type with a file extension of
.PCT. This preamble is short and consists of the
following data:
(1) PC-Type identification string = PC-Type+
This is an ASCIIZ string used to insure the file
being loaded is a true PC-Type document file.
(2) File-ID string
This is also an ASCIIZ string of variable length.
Its maximum length is 81 characters including the
trailing zero. The string is created by the
person saving the file as a reminder of the
contents of the file.
(3) Bookmark data
This data consists of ten integers (20 bytes)
defining the status of the bookmark information
created. The first integer is the number of
active bookmarks. The second integer defines
which bookmarks are active. Four pairs of
integers then follow containing the line number of
the bookmark within the file and the offset on
that line from its beginning.
(4) Default file Tabs
The next entry is also an integer (2 bytes)
defining the number of integers which follow to
define the default file Tab setting. (Remember
that each of the following integers is two bytes
in length.)
(5) End of preamble marker
This marker is simply a marker to denote the end
of the preamble and consists of 8 FFh characters.
To skip the preamble and get to the beginning of
the text information, search for these eight
characters. Text begins at the first byte after
these characters.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
PC-Type File Structure APPENDIX A - Technical Information
Document Format Page A 353
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Aside from the exceptions noted below, the remainder
of the file is the same as the ASCII format described
above.
(1) User-Page line
A User-Page line will show up in the file as a
4-byte sequence of characters. The first byte will
be the formfeed character, (0Ch). The second byte
will be the character (0Ah) if the User-Page line
has been given an Absolute number, or the character
(07h) if the User-Page line refers to the number of
page numbers to skip. The final two characters
will be the binary representation of the absolute
page number or the number of pages to skip,
respectively.
Odd page breaks are noted as 0Ch 0Fh 00h 00h and
even page breaks are 0Ch 0Eh 00h 00h.
(2) Special Lines
Special lines will appear as 2-byte codes. The
first byte will be the flag character FFh. The
second byte will be the identifying character 11h
through 22h depending upon the type of Special
Line.
(3) Heading Lines
Heading lines begin with the special two character
code FFh 64h. Following this code are 4 numeric
characters and then the heading text. The text
ends with a standard carriage return and line
feed.
(4) Print Markers
Any print markers in the text will also appear as
2-byte codes. Again the first byte will be the
flag character FFh. The second byte will be the
character 01h through 0Ah or 81h through
88h depending upon which of the 18 print markers
was used.
(5) Index Markers
Index markers are flagged with the two byte code
FFh E1h. The text for the index marker will
appear on the next line after the carriage return
and line feed. The index text is preceded by the
three character code "¿I¿" and ends with a
standard carriage return and line feed.
(6) Tab definition lines
Tab definition lines are flagged with the two byte
code FFh 63h. Following that is a two-byte
integer describing the number of bytes in the
definition to follow. If the value of this
integer is zero, the special Tab definition line
is a "reset default Tab" line. Otherwise, as many
two-byte integers as indicated will follow.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX A - Technical Information PC-Type File Structure
Page A 354 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
PC-Type in Memory
In memory, each line of text is defined by a structure
consisting of references to the next and previous
lines in the file, a pointer to the text in the line,
and an integer designating that the line contains
print markers, or is a Special Line, or a page marker.
The program contains numerous overlays. Since it is
written in C, additional memory is allocated when
needed but is not released when freed. For this
reason, if memory is ever filled, the drop to DOS
command will not work even if the size of the resident
files is reduced. You must use the ALLDOS command
which first saves the memory contents to disk.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
PC-Type in Memory APPENDIX A - Technical Information
Characters not Allowed Page A 355
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Characters not Allowed
Because of the special role they play within PC-Type,
the following characters are not allowed in any text
area:
(1) 0 - or (00h)
(1) 7 - or (0Ah)
(1) 9 - or (09h) allowed only as a Tab character
(1) 10 - or (0Ah)
(2) 12 - or (0Ch)
(3) 13 - or (0Dh)
(3) 26 - or (1Ah)
(3) 127 - or (7Fh)
(4) 255 - or (FFh)
All other characters are permitted.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX A - Technical Information Characters not Allowed
Page A 356 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Glossary Page B 357
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX B - Glossary
Many terms have been used in this manual which are
specific to PC-Type. In addition, other terms which
have been used are defined differently depending upon
the source which you read. This glossary has been
included in the manual to assist you in knowing the
meaning of these terms as they are used within this
manual.
ASCII One of 256 characters with values 0-255. Each
character: character takes one byte of memory.
ASCII file: A file consisting of non-zero ASCII characters where
each line ends with a carriage return, line feed.
ASCIIZ string: A group of ASCII characters terminated by the zero
character.
aspect ratio: The relationship between the density of horizontal and
vertical pixels on a screen or dots on a dot matrix
printer.
attribute: (color) The number representing a screen color. A
foreground color will have a value of 0-15, while a
background color will have a value of 0-7.
case insensitive: No distinction is made between an upper case and a
lower case letter. They are considered identical.
case sensitive: An upper case and lower case letter are considered to
be different characters.
command: In PC-Type, a valid syntax entered on the Command
Line, such as "Print", "CALC 2+2", etc.
default tabs: Equivalent to "profile tabs".
DOS path: Those directories defined with the PATH= DOS command
which describes to DOS where to look to find .BAT,
.EXE, and .COM files.
drag toggle: A switch in PC-Type, which when on, will cause the
default fill character to be placed in the location
just vacated by the cursor when an arrow key is
pressed.
escape code: A set of one or more ASCII characters which instruct a
printer to modify its status, such as turning italics
on or off.
Fault Finder: The name of PC-Type's spelling checker.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX B Glossary
Page B 358 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(to) file: Save a file to disk and remove it from memory.
file extension: Given the complete filespec: D:\PATH\NAME.EXT,
the file extension is .EXT.
file reminder: A PC-Type document file (a file saved with a .PCT
extension), may have a "file reminder", a text line
which describes the contents of the file.
filename: Given the complete filespec: D:\PATH\NAME.EXT,
the filename is either NAME.EXT or NAME. In the
manual it will usually state if the extension is
necessary.
filepath: Given the complete filespec: D:\PATH\NAME.EXT,
in this manual filepath includes the disk and path,
i.e., D:\PATH.
filespec: In this manual, filespec is the complete file
specification including drive, path, filename and file
extension.
fill character: A selectable character which can be used with the
"Fill" command, Drag, and the Put Character keystroke
Ctrl ^.
footer: The bottom margin of a printed page in which various
information may be specified and modified from page to
page.
gif file: A file containing a pixel by pixel image of a screen
image in a highly condensed format.
graphic In text mode, those characters which define boxes,
characters: double lines, etc.
header: The top margin of a printed page in which various
information may be specified and modified from page to
page.
heading: (Section heading) A title line for the text which
follows with an optional number.
help: Context sensitive information pertaining to the
operation at hand which is displayed in a window on
your PC-Type screen when you press F1.
highlight: The definition of an area of interest within your text
which appears in a different color and is defined by
pressing successive Ctrl L's, Ctrl B's, or Ctrl S's.
import: The process of bringing data from external sources
into the text you are editing.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Glossary APPENDIX B
Glossary Page B 359
----------------------------------------------------------------------
interlace: In a GIF file, each eighth row of pixels is displayed
first, then each 4th row, etc. until the entire image
is displayed. (Normally each row would be displayed
in turn.)
lower case: Those characters defined in the top line of the
"Upper/Lower Case definition" table reached by
pressing the U key in the Configuration menu. Used to
distinguish characters from "upper" case characters in
sorting, searching, etc.
macros: A set of keystrokes which may be saved and recalled
normally used for operations requiring a repetition of
similar operations.
mail-merge: The process of printing data where information from
different records of a defined data source is brought
into the text which acts as a template.
number pad: The set of 10 number keys at the right of most
keyboards.
paragraph: A set of non-empty lines in your text bounded at the
top and bottom either by empty lines, Special Lines,
Tab definition lines, or Page breaks.
PostScript: A printer language which provides some independence
from the multitude of different printer escape codes.
PostScript will handle vector graphic displays and
supports variable and well-formed fonts.
print marker: A flag inside your text which defines to PC-Type that
a predefined printer escape code should be sent to the
printer when encountered.
profile tabs: The definition of margins, indent, spacing, wrapping,
and Tab character insertion, which is automatically
set when a profile file is loaded. New files or
non-document type files are initialized to this
setting.
quit: Removing the data of a file from memory without saving
it to disk.
recursive: A type of macro which loops around to itself and keeps
repeating until stopped by the user or an ending
condition is reached.
reformat: Reorganizing the text in a defined area to a specific
type of justification.
running header: A feature in a header or footer that determines which
section heading should be displayed in the header or
footer itself.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX B Glossary
Page B 360 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
save: The process of copying the contents of a file in
memory to disk and then returning to the same file in
memory for further editing.
sort order: The hierarchy of characters defined in the "Define
Character Sort Order" table reached by pressing the O
key from the Configuration menu. This hierarchy
determines the ordering of data when a sort is
performed.
special lines: In general, special markers in a file which tell
PC-Type how to behave relative to printing a file,
such as not printing an area, turning headers or
footers on or off, etc.
status area: The upper-left corner of your PC-Type screen which
shows toggle settings, active highlight modes, and the
current fill character.
tab character: ASCII 9. When the Tab character insert toggle is ON,
this character is inserted in your text so that the
character immediately to the right will appear over
the next Tab stop.
tab fill: The dead space between where a Tab character is
inserted in the text and the next Tab stop.
translation: When printing a file, the Translation Table definition
reached by pressing the 1 key from the Configuration
Menu. Used to convert the character in the text to
the corresponding character defined in the table.
upper case: Those characters defined in the second line of the
"Upper/Lower Case definition" table reached by
pressing the U key in the Configuration menu. Used to
distinguish characters from "lower" case characters in
sorting, searching, etc.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Glossary APPENDIX B
Page 361
----------------------------------------------------------------------
When You Need Technical Support
If you are unable to find the answers to your
questions in the manual or help screens, we invite you
to give us a call.
In order to provide you with the excellent product
support you have come to expect from ButtonWare, we
have implemented the following product support policy:
Your product support is provided on a pay-as-you-need
basis. There are no support contract fees and no
limit to the number of calls you can make.
The product support number is 1-900-454-8000, and is
answered from 8:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. (Monday
through Friday), excluding holidays. There is no
charge for the first minute of your call. After the
first minute, there is a $1.00 per minute charge.
This $1.00 per minute charge includes both your long
distance and 900 line charges.
If you are unable to dial 900 numbers, you can
purchase a support plan. Contact our business office
at 206-454-0479 for more information on the support plan.
If you have a modem, you can call ButtonNet, our BBS.
ButtonNet operates 24 hours a day. ButtonNet's phone
numbers is 206-454-7875. There is no charge to use
ButtonNet, other than your long distrance charge.
Product support is also available on CompuServe in the
PCVENA forum, section 1. Questions left on ButtonNet
and CompuServe are normally answered within two
business days.
Providing phone support is much more efficient and
effective than answering letters. Therefore, we no
longer respond to written requests for support. You
benefit by calling us because you receive an answer
that same business day, rather than waiting several
weeks for a written reply.
We support only current versions of our products. To
find out the current product versions, or to upgrade
your product, call 1-800-JBUTTON or 206-454-0479.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
When You Need Technical Support
Page 362 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Request for Assistance with PC-Type
To help us help you, please write down the answers to
the following questions before calling. If possible,
be at your computer when you call, with your computer
on.
Briefly describe the problem:
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
List the exact steps to reproduce the problem:
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
Machine Information
Computer brand and model: __________________________
Printer brand and model: ___________________________
Monitor brand and model: ___________________________
Available RAM (as reported by DOS CHKDSK): _________
Version of DOS being used: _________________________
Memory resident programs installed:
_____________________________________________________
----------------------------------------------------------------------
When You Need Technical Support
Page 363
----------------------------------------------------------------------
User Response Form
We'd like to know more about you and your requirements.
This information helps us to make improvements as well as
add in the new features that are most needed. Please
help us by completing this questionnaire and mailing it to:
Jim Button User Survey
P.O. Box 96058
Bellevue, WA 98009
USA
User Profile
(1) Your computer brand and model: _____________________
(2) Amount of computer RAM memory: __________________
(3) Printer brand and model: ____________________________
(4) Compatibility problems running PC-Type on your machine?
__________________________________________________
(5) How do you rate PC-Type? (1=poor, 10=best)
Ease of Learning _____ Ease of Use _____
Overall speed _____ Flexibility _____
Documentation _____ Help screens _____
Product Support _____ Price _____
(6) What do you like best about PC-Type?
___________ _______________________________________
(7) What do you like least about PC-Type?
___________ _______________________________________
(8) Where did y ou hear about PC-Type?
___________ _______________________________________
(9) Where did y ou get this copy of PC-Type?
Store____ Club____ Classroom____ Friend____
Work_____ ButtonWare____ Bulletin board_____
Other______ _____________________________________
(10) What applic ations are you using PC-Type for?
___________ _______________________________________
(11) What indust ry do you work in? ____________________
(12) How many em ployees are there in your company? ____
(13) Do you use PC-Type at home ____ work ____ both ___
(14) Your name a nd address (optional)
___________ _______________________________________
___________ _______________________________________
___________ _______________________________________
___________ _______________________________________
----------------------------------------------------------------------
User Response Form
Page 364 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Improvements Wanted
Please list the improvements that you would like to
see made to PC-Type (new features, changes, etc):
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
----------------------------------------------------------------------
User Response Form
Page 365
----------------------------------------------------------------------
ButtonWare Product Line
PC-File PC-File is a flexible and powerful database program
that delivers full-featured functionality at an
affordable price. PC-File is menu driven and easy to
use, and includes context-sensitive help screens. It's
ideal for customer and address files, billing, custom
ized form letters, sales tracking and analysis,
itemized lists, inventory and much more. PC-File 5
works well with PC-Calc+ and PC-Type. PC-File 5
features a versatile report writer for fast and easy
custom reports, graphics for line, pie and bar charts,
relational capabilities to retrieve data from other
databases, multiple options to produce mailing labels,
a letter writer for mail merge letters, dBASE file
compatibility (reads and writes dBASE III PLUS files),
extensive import and export with many other popular
programs, macros which can be memorized, ability to
customize entry screens (5 per database), telephone
dialer to dial any phone number in your database,
mouse support, multiple indexes and sort options and
much more.
PC-Type A powerful, easy to use text editor and word
processing program. Because PC-Type reads PC-File and
PC-Calc+ data directly, it's perfect for PC-File and
PC-Calc+ users. Whether or not you use PC-File or
PC-Calc+, you can use PC-Type to tackle routine
correspondence and memos, monthly reports, form
letters, even novels. PC-Type's features include
powerful block copy, move and delete commands, mail
merge, split-screen editing (up to 4 windows), ability
to work with up to 10 files at a time, 100,000 word
spelling checker, macros, search and replace commands,
multiple file capabilities including table of contents
and index generation,program to print mailing labels,
and much more.
PC-Calc+ A fast, flexible, easy to learn spreadsheet, PC-Calc+
combines number-crunching power, graphing and flexible
report options for an ideal spreadsheet. Budgeting,
forecasting and "what if" analysis are a breeze with
PC-Calc+. PC-Calc+ features graphics for line, pie
and bar charts, split screens, DOS access, powerful
printing options, macros, powerful business,
financial, statistical, math and string functions,
date and time functions, trig functions, and much
more. PC-Calc+ reads PC-File and PC-Type files
directly, and can also read Lotus 1-2-3, DIF and
comma-delimited files.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
ButtonWare Product Line
Page 366 PC-Type Users' Manual
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Baker's Dozen A handy collection of 13 powerful utilities. Baker's
Dozen has something for everyone. Baker's Dozen
includes a pop-up calendar, sideways printing program,
file compare program, locate program to find files and
text within files, program to save screen snapshots to
disk, program to redirect printer output to a disk
file, program to switch COM1 and COM2, program to
switch LPT1 and LPT2, program to remove directories and
all files, a disk utility program to recover deleted
files, change file attributes, edit and browse File
Allocation Tables, and more.
NOTE: Each program can be ordered by calling your
local dealer, or by calling ButtonWare's
toll-free order line, 1-800-JBUTTON, or
206-454-0479.
Foreign language translations of ButtonWare
products are available. For more information,
please contact our business office at
206-454-0479.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
ButtonWare Product Line