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--------------------------------------------------------------------------- FARGO IBM PC NEWSLETTER CONTENTS -- MARCH, 1986 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- February Meeting Notes----------------------------------------------------1 Shareware: PC-OUTLINE-----------------------------------------------------2 Software: More WINDOWS ---------------------------------------------------2 Software: Norton Utilities------------------------------------------------3 Editor's Screen-----------------------------------------------------------4 User Group Officers-------------------------------------------------------4 President's Corner--------------------------------------------------------4 RBBS Highlights-----------------------------------------------------------4 Fargo RBBS & Library Files (Uploads 2/8/86--3/11/86) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FEBRUARY MEETING NOTES --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Around the Table. Some new public domain programs were discussed. The user group has available one called VTREE.COM, which gives you a visual picture of the directories on a disk. Another program useful for Turbo Pascal programmers is TDBUG. Both are available through the disk librarian or on the Fargo RBBS bulletin board for those with modems. Jim Button's PC-FILE (4.0) was briefly mentioned. Enhancements include the ability to find records on multiple fields, word wrap, and a faster binary search option. Feature. Loren demonstrated Lightning, Borland's latest software bombshell. What is it? Lightning is another in a series of programs that you load into your computer's RAM memory. Such programs are called memory resident, since they remain active, but allow you to work with your regular application software as you normally would. Lightning monitors your keystrokes and checks the spelling of words as you type them on the screen. With this feature enabled, you are greeted with a beep whenever an unrecognized word is entered through the keyboard. You then have the option of correcting the word yourself or typing a "hot key" which triggers a window display containing suggested corrections. If you prefer not to check your spelling "on the fly," you can disable this option and use Lightning to check your spelling a screen at a time. The screen mode is cumbersome with long documents. It also treats hyphenated words as incorrect. Another feature allows you to highlight a word and use another "hot key" to look for synonyms. The procedure is the same. A window opens and you can toggle through the suggestions. Design. Lightning operates by loading a kernel of its dictionary into RAM. You pick from three sizes (16K, 29K and 38K). The program hunts for words in RAM first, then goes to the 180K dictionary (normally on a hard disk) if your entry doesn't match. The program itself consumes about 60K of RAM, so your RAM available for application software will shrink by about 100K with Lightning loaded. Lightning comes with three disks and a brief manual. The disks contain a 162K thesaurus and a 180K dictionary along with the related operating programs. It comes with key definition menus tailored to seven major word processors. You can modify these to suit your taste or customize one for any application you use. Summary. Lightning does a fine job of monitoring your keyboard input-- whether you're typing a letter or BASIC commands. It is a flexible, inexpensive way to correct mistakes at the point of entry--the keyboard. Upcoming Programs. March will focus on hardware maintenance and repairs. In April we're arranging for a company demonstration of the Paradox data base. In May we will host a "White Elephant Swap" in which you can bring hardware and software to buy, sell, trade, or whatever. If you have something that would interest others, bring it along to the May meeting and see what happens. [Plans subject to change.] --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FREEWARE: PC-OUTLINE --------------------------------------------------------------------------- On those occasions when you are not working with paragraphs, but with structured words and phrases, a word processor can be cumbersome. One new shareware program, PC-OUTLINE, offers an inexpensive approach to handling outlining tasks. The program is available either through the user group library or the bulletin board system. On the bulletin board the program is listed as a 119K PC-OUT102.ARC file. A 4K PCOMENU.ARC file contains supplemental material for users who wish to use the program with a mouse device. The main archive file contains 24 files which unsqueeze to 163K. In addition to the outline program and related files, the developers have included six handy utilities that do everything from checking your free memory to transferring files across subdirectories. Documentation. The shareware program comes with limited documentation. It includes a table of contents that is more than three pages long, but offers an explanation for only one-fourth of the material. The message is clear--unless you obtain a registered copy you'll grope about in the dark and miss some features. Display. The main screen offers a word processor type display. Line one displays the name of nine different pull-down menus. Depressing the ALT key and typing the first letter of each menu activates its listing, much like Superkey. Advantages. PC-OUTLINE automatically indents and numbers sections in your outline. Word wrap occurs when text exceeds the right margin. In such cases, your text is automatically left-indented to fit in your outline accordingly. You can select from a variety of numbering schemes and tailor each level of the outline to suit your needs. Operation. The program defaults to main entry marked A. (which you can alter if you wish. To begin the outline, you could type in something like "First Main Point". At the end of the line instead of typing RETURN, type CTRL-N. The cursor will drop down a line and display B. If you want a sub-point under A instead, simply hit the right arrow key. The cursor will move right the default tab setting and the B. will change to a 1. The division identifiers are incremented automatically. The left arrow moves you back to the parent division in a similar fashion. If you strike RETURN after entering a line, PC-OUTLINE drops the cursor down directly under the first character of text, keeping your text properly aligned. You can change, reset, or skip the numbering in your outline. The program also enables you to hide parts of the outline so you can view the structure better. Nested levels, called "children," can be hidden or displayed at your command. You can also choose to display only the first line of text under each category. The CTRL-D combination deletes a division and adjusts the renumbering in the outline accordingly. This is a real time-saver if you frequently edit your work. RAM Resident. PC-OUTLINE can operate as a RAM resident program. I have it active right now as I write this review. To switch to the program you type CTRL-backslash (\). This option will consume 128K of your RAM memory, though it can be customized to occupy less. PC-OUTLINE did not disturb Sidekick when both were loaded into RAM. Functions. PC-OUTLINE offers traditional word processing functions, allowing you to move by character, word, or page. You can also move, copy, and delete blocks. The logic of the block commands is somewhat inverted. Whereas in other applications you mark each end of the block and then operate on it, PC-OUTLINE forces you to mark the beginning of the block, define the task you will perform on the block, and then mark the end. Windows. The program allows you to open up to nine windows simultaneously. You can define the size of windows and move them around on the screen. I managed to place three horizontal windows on my screen with little effort. A more practical approach is to define each window as a full screen and switch (using ALT 1 - 9 Keys) to jump between them. One of the options in the Window Menu will show you the file assigned to each ALT key window in case you get confused. You can place the same file in two different windows, but only the window you edit will show the changes as they occur. Comparing. Microsoft's Word has spoiled my evaluation of PC-OUTLINE somewhat. Its text formatting already offers the simplicity of PC-OUTLINE. But unlike Word or Wordstar or PC-Write, PC-OUTLINE goes beyond formatting by remembering where you are in your outline and numbering each division automati- cally. With CTRL-M you can move a division anywhere! Your third sub-division can become your second main point. PC-OUTLINE automatically restructures every division after a move. The mouse software worked fine. Being a relatively new mouseketeer, I found the keyboard commands to be faster in most cases. User Friendly? I found the menu system effective, but frustrating to use without complete documentation. After a great deal of trial and error I managed to get a feel for most of the commands. Unless you have time to burn in learning the program, register and get the documentation. PC-OUTLINE appears to be a very well-designed, practical program. You can obtain a registered copy from Softworks Development, 750 Stierlin Rd., Suite 142, Mountain View, CA 94043 for $54.95, which includes shipping and handling. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOFTWARE: Microsoft Windows part 2 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- It seems like PC-Week cannot print an issue without developments in the world of Microsoft Windows. Last month the Newsletter gave you a quick overview of the product. After using it for several additional weeks, my enthusiasm is fading. Usefulness. The biggest advantage Windows offers the user is the chance to pseudo-multitask. That is, Windows makes your computer act as though it is running two separate applications at one time. In a practical sense, I use this feature perhaps twice a week. When I have my word processor on the screen and am designing an outline for my sermons, I can use windows to switch to PC-FILE III and search my magazine index database for relevant illustrations. Simply exiting from my word processor to PC-File and back took one minute and 29 seconds under DOS. When both programs are running under Windows, the time shrunk to 33 seconds--slicing the time by two- thirds. [In both cases I used 640K of RAM less 150K for RAMdisk.] The Windows desktop tools, though graphically attractive, are much slower than Sidekick. Shrinking space will probably induce me to banish the desktop files from my hard disk altogether. The DOS shell has awkward features. Switching between directories triggers a confirmation window, which makes movement cumbersome. Though Microsoft's marketing may well replace the A> with the Windows logo, the first incarnation of this program needs some refinement to satisfy old DOS users who chug along with 8088 microprocessors. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOFTWARE: Norton Utilities --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Files tend to accumulate in directories like unmatched socks in a drawer. One helpful utility that Norton has included in his package helps unscramble the mess by sorting and rewriting your directory. Norton's version of this utility, which appears appears in different forms as a stand-alone public domain program, is both fast and easy to use. The utility sorts your files in five different sequences. You select the sort order by rearranging the NEDTS parameters, which stand for N)ame, E)xtension, D)ate, T)ime, and S)ize. Directories are sorted alphabetically and appear at the top of your sorted list. A command sequence to sort the files on your root directory of drive B by filetype (extension) would be as follows: A> ds endts B:\ This would sort by filetype first, filename second, date third, time fourth, and size last. Your instructions do not have to be that complicated, since you can use only the parameters that are significant to you. To sort by extension only in the example above, enter: A> ds e B:\. The sort order can be inverted using the + and - keys in your command. The sort rewrites the directory to your disk in seconds, bringing order to cluttered directories. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITOR'S SCREEN --------------------------------------------------------------------------- At our last User Group meeting some of you swapped stories about the horrendous prices you paid for personal computer equipment in years gone by. As we watch the prices of hardware and peripherals plummet, we all wish that we could have purchased today's bargains yesterday. Unlike most business purchases, computers depreciate much faster in reality than they do on paper. Consequently, many of us are stuck with outmoded equipment which has resulted from upgrading our systems. Though your user group cannot turn back the clock, we are going to host our first annual White-Elephant-Swap meeting in May. Who knows? Maybe you would find someone who would buy your spare floppy disk at a bargain price. Or memory chips. This may be your best chance to trade your El-Grungo modem for something else. So join the battle against obsolescence and plan to bring your orphan hardware and software to the May meeting! Jim Levitt, Editor --------------------------------------------------------------------------- USER GROUP OFFICERS --------------------------------------------------------------------------- President & Sysop-----Loren Jones Vice-President------James Grettum Librarian----------Calvin Paulson Newsletter Ed.---------Jim Levitt Treasurer-------------Loren Jones Printing----------------TLC Press User Group Address: Box 9121, Fargo ND 58109 Newsletter Address & Correspondence: Box 97, Wolverton, MN 56594 User Group Phone: FARGO RBBS Phone: 1-701-280-2608 1-701-293-5973 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Fargo IBM-PC User Group publishes this newsletter for the benefit of users of the IBM-PC and all compatible computers. The user group is not connected with IBM in any way. IBM is a trademark of International Business Machine Corporation. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- WANT TO JOIN? --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Membership Dues. Prorated dues of $12 are now assessed on an annual basis with October 1 as the starting point. Checks should be made to: "Fargo IBM-PC User Group." --------------------------------------------------------------------------- PRESIDENT'S CORNER --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our valiant president, Loren D. Jones, was moving too fast to catch this month. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- RBBS HIGHLIGHTS --------------------------------------------------------------------------- QMODEM 2.00E. QMODEM fans will want to pick up the file labeled QMDM20E.ARC, which is the "bug free" version of QMODEM 2.0. First time users of QMODEM will need to download the INSTALL files from the earlier version of QMODEM, as these are not included in the QMDM20E.ARC file. John Friel corrected the timing error and modified the welcome screen slightly from the first release of 2.0. "File Not Found" Error. Those of you who use your modems to download programs from the User Group RBBS may occasionally encounter a "File Not Found" error during the download process. Loren is in the process of converting libraried files (with an LQR or LBR extension) into ARC files. These files will consume less space on the hard disk and be easier to disassemble, requiring only ARC51.EXE. If one of the directories lists a file with an LQR or LBR extension and you receive a "File Not Found" error, try to download the file using the same filename, but changing the extension to ARC. Some of the files may have been converted before our sysop has had a chance to edit their titles in the directory menu. Thanks --------------------------------------------------------------------------- RBBS UPLOADS 2/8/86 to 3/11/86 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 123.TXT 2176 03-03-86 Imbed Epson printer codes in 123 wks ANALYZ.ARC 32256 03-05-86 Slick Disk Space Analyzer from Marin ARC51.COM 58880 02-09-86 Run to create ARC ver. 5.1 and documentation ARCE-NEW.COM 3072 02-25-86 Fast UN-ARC program ARCV106.ARC 1792 02-15-86 Like .LBR's LDIR program for ARC files ASTR0106.ARC 13339 03-02-86 Planetary position/Equatorial Coord. prgms. CACHE.ARC 5376 02-16-86 Memory Cache speeds up hard disk access! CALLWT.ARC 26624 02-15-86 Fixes Call Waiting problem using modem CHERYL.ARC 7093 02-19-86 1986 Calendar with centerfold CHKDEV.COM 640 03-10-86 DOS 2.X+ DEVICE LISTER UTILITY COLOR2.ARC 2560 02-11-86 Set DOS colors. Includes Doc file. COREWAR.ARC 25088 03-02-86 Interestng game--uses assemb.-like cmds. CWEEP130.EXE 26496 02-24-86 Utility program for disk maintenance D-CUBE.ARC 111488 03-11-86 Different Communication Program...... DAYTIME.LQR 30720 02-08-86 Easy date/time entry w/o battery clock. DB3AR.ARC 56064 02-23-86 DB3 Accounts Receiveable DBEDIT10.ARC 4608 03-10-86 Command line editor for dBASE III DPATH.ARC 7936 02-12-86 Shows PATH on hard disk, w/Doc Ver. 3 EGAPAL.COM 1024 03-12-86 Demo of EGA colors. EGA w/128K required ERR-CODE.TXT 7808 02-08-86 For when your PC has problems FA.EXE 95232 02-08-86 VARIOUS USEFUL FINANCIAL ROUTINES FARGOFEB.ARC 12032 02-14-86 Fargo User Group Feb. Newsletter FSTBK503.UNP 768 03-06-86 Unprotect FastBack ver. 5.03 for hd FUNNELS.ARC 58042 02-28-86 Educational Math game (Very Good) GALAXY.ARC 67712 02-25-86 Greatest Word Processor By Omniverse tm GETROM.ARC 30336 03-12-86 Will read your roms and save to disk JAXTALK.ARC 2048 02-10-86 The World's Smallest IBM PC Comm Prog.? JETSET30.EXE 38656 03-12-86 Sets options on IBM Colorjet printer. KNEW300.ARC 6784 02-23-86 copy files by date stamp overwrite also LIST568.ARC 14208 03-01-86 New version of List -ver. 5.68 MCOM103.ARC 108110 03-10-86 Unique COMM Program, doc. included MLINK303.UNP 2176 02-25-86 MultiLink Unprotect Ver 3.03 MOCOST.LBR 23040 02-27-86 Find how much you pay for a morgage. MOVE11.COM 2432 03-10-86 A File Move Utility for MS-DOS NEWSROOM.UNP 1664 02-23-86 Unprotect The Newsroom OVERHEAD.UNP 3200 02-23-86 Unprotect Overhead Express Ver. 1.0 PAGE.EXE 7168 02-09-86 Like DOS "TYPE" but better PANSCR.ARC 38016 03-12-86 EGA demo prog. Excellent. EGA w/256k REQ PC-BANK.ARC 16128 03-02-86 A nice checking acct. manager in basic PCOMENU.ARC 3968 03-06-86 Mouse support for PC-OUTLINE PCONOTE1.ARC 7296 03-07-86 Hints & Aids for PCOUTLINE PCOUT102.ARC 119168 03-08-86 Version 1.02 of PC OUTLINE (Improved!). PKXARC23.ARC 9728 02-16-86 30% faster way to unARC ARC5 files!! PLABEL.ARC 18432 03-02-86 Prints disk labels - IBM/Eps 3.5x15/16 PRCMUTIL.ARC 33792 03-02-86 Utilities for procomm 2.2 PRNTSHOP.UNP 640 02-23-86 Unprotect The PrintShop PROBASIC.UNP 2048 02-23-86 Unprotect Professional Basic Ver. 2 PROCOM22.ARC 101376 03-02-86 Version 2.2 of procomm PROPRIN4.ARC 37504 02-22-86 Setup IBM Proprinter from menu Ver 4.0 PS.UNP 896 03-09-86 PRINT SHOP UNPROTECT PUPPY.BAS 2304 02-21-86 puppy wagging tail QFONED20.ARC 73600 03-07-86 THE Qmodem 2.00 directory utility! QFONED20.TXT 2816 03-07-86 Qfonedit 2.00: What it is (dl this ASCII QFONEDFX.ARC 12544 03-11-86 for Qfonedit 2.0X QFONEDOK.ARC 22016 03-07-86 Qfonedit 2.00 docs QMDM20E.ARC 97280 03-08-86 March 7, '86 Revision of QMODEM 2.0. QMODEM20.ARC 202240 02-22-86 Qmodem 2.0 w/ Script files for autologin! QUICKEYS.ARC 4352 02-15-86 Speed up cursor movement...PC Mag, GREAT! SIDEPC.ARC 20224 02-24-86 Print pages sideways SIREN.ARC 1152 02-11-86 Source code for sounds and noises. SOUND.PAS 2560 02-15-86 A game of sound SPLIT.COM 256 02-14-86 The Classy way to clear your screen. STARS.ARC 55808 03-02-86 Locate constellations and stars>3.5 mag. STARSHIP.ARC 4053 02-19-86 Poster of starchip Enterprise TAXAUDIT.ARC 4096 02-16-86 How tax returns get picked for audit !!! TRACKER.ARC 118528 03-05-86 Sales Prospect file with tickle TURBOIO.ARC 24576 02-08-86 Improved Turbo I/O from PCTech Journal VPS.ARC 40320 03-09-86 BEST prntr setup. Works with any printer XWING.ARC 19328 03-03-86 Good Battelship game in color ZSCORE.WRK 12288 02-20-86 Bankrupt analizer for lawyers & accts.