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C A T S C A N Version 3.1 - Users Guide By Don Strenczewilk CIS 72617,132 ┌─────────┐ ┌─────┴───┐ │ (R) ──│ │o │────────────────── │ ┌─────┴╨──┐ │ Association of │ │ │─┘ Shareware └───│ o │ Professionals ──────│ ║ │──────────────────── └────╨────┘ MEMBER Contents Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 2 1.1 Operating Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1.2 System Requirements and Capacity . . . . . . . 3 1.3 Communication program compatibility . . . . . . 3 1.4 Disk files included with and created by CatScan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 1.5 Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Chapter 2 REGISTRATION - Why and How 5 Chapter 3 CATALYST.EXE 7 3.1 Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 3.1.1 Video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 3.1.2 Snow on Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 3.2 Printer Initialization . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.3 TAPCIS Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.4 Ordering CatScan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.5 Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 3.6 Quit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Chapter 4 INTERACTIVE MODE 11 4.1 Selecting Options - Using Menus . . . . . . . . 11 4.1.1 Getting Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 4.1.2 Line Editing Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 4.1.3 The Search Word Screen . . . . . . . . . . 13 4.1.4 The Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 4.2 The Main Menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 4.3 The File Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 4.3.1 Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 4.3.2 Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 4.3.3 Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 4.3.4 Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 4.3.5 Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 4.3.6 Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 4.3.7 Compression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 4.4 Viewing Files - General . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 4.5 Viewing Catalog Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 4.5.1 Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 4.5.2 Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 4.5.3 Goto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 4.5.4 Mark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 4.5.4.1 Writing Download Scripts . . . . . . 23 4.5.4.2 Deleting Marked Descriptions . . . . 24 4.5.5 Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 4.5.6 Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 4.5.7 Viewpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 i 4.6 Viewing ASCII Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 4.6.1 Print . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 4.6.2 Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 4.6.3 Download . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 4.6.4 Quit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Chapter 5 BATCH MODE 28 5.1 Starting CatScan in Batch mode . . . . . . . . 28 5.2 Command Line Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 5.2.1 Help - ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 5.2.2 Age Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 5.2.3 FileMask . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 5.2.4 Combining files . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 5.2.5 -x . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 5.2.6 -s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 5.2.7 -d, -dl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 5.2.8 -d#, -dl# . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 5.2.9 -p . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 5.2.10 -r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 5.2.11 -z# [n n n ...] . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 5.2.12 -o . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 5.2.13 -u . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 5.2.14 -(xxx) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 5.2.15 -NOEMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Appendix A CATALOG FILE FORMATS 35 Appendix B CATSCAN.LOG FILE FORMAT 36 Appendix C USING COMPRESSION 37 Appendix D OTHER USEFUL UTILITIES 39 Index 41 Tables Table 4.1: Line Editing Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Table 4.2: File Screen Scroll Bar . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Table 4.3: View Navigation Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Table 4.4: ASCII File Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . 26 ii C H A P T E R 1 INTRODUCTION Thank you for trying CatScan. It will help you maintain CompuServe data library catalogs. Since 1987, I have invested much effort to make CatScan laborsaving, fast, and reliable, and I want you to enjoy it. CatScan is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle works for you. If you are unable to resolve a shareware- related problem with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to help. The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members' products. Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon, MI 49442-9427 or send a CompuServe message via Cmail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536. 1.1 Operating Modes_________________________________________________ CatScan has two operating modes: Interactive and Batch. In Interactive mode, you interact with CatScan through menus and prompts to perform tasks. In Batch mode, you specify all the tasks you want to perform at the DOS prompt. Interactive Mode - Invoke this interactive mode by typing CATSCAN at the DOS prompt. You can do all the things you can in Batch mode listed below, and: o View and search catalog files and ASCII text files. o Search descriptions, keywords, and headers for up to 10 strings simultaneously. o Selectively erase unwanted descriptions from your catalogs. o Review age reports, discovering how old the latest description is in each library. o Generate TAPCIS scripts to download files. Batch mode - Typing a file specification and series of criteria, you invoke this mode from the DOS prompt. After processing the catalog(s), CatScan returns to the DOS prompt. Depending on the criteria used, you can: o Delete duplicate descriptions. o Find outdated descriptions. o Sort by library number, file name, date, and UserID; any combination and order. o Combine a catalog with another. o Review a report of the age of the latest description in each library. o Strip non-ascii characters from the file. o Delete descriptions any number of days old, and write the aged descriptions to another file. o Creates TAPCIS scripts to update catalog files. INTRODUCTION 2 1.2 System Requirements and Capacity________________________________ CatScan requires an IBM compatible computer with approximately 200k bytes of memory. It swaps information to and from disk when memory is low, so, the more ram available, the more efficiently it operates. A Monochrome, CGA, EGA or VGA adapter/monitor is also required. CatScan can process up to 10,000 long catalog descriptions, and about 180,000 lines of standard ASCII text. 1.3 Communication program compatibility_____________________________ CatScan is compatible with TAPCIS '*.CAT' files. It writes scripts to download files and update catalogs. Although it will not create scripts for other communication programs, it processes, views, and search CompuServe data library catalogs captured with any program. See "Appendix A" for a description of the catalog file format CatScan expects. 1.4 Disk files included with and created by CatScan_________________ CATSCAN.EXE CatScan Program file. CATSCAN.OVR CatScan's overlay file. CATALYST.EXE CatScan's installation program. CATSCAN.HLP CatScan's help file. CATSCAN.DOC This file. CATFILES.CFG Created when you run CatScan or Catalyst the first time. It contains a list of file names and preferences. CATSCAN.LOG Contains information about files downloaded with CatScan. CatScan uses this file to store information about files you've downloaded so it can warn you if you try to download the same file more than once. CATSCAN.DUP A list of files you don't want to be asked about when searching for similar descriptions. CATSCAN.WRK A temporary file created in the logged directory and erased when processing has completed. 1.5 Acknowledgments_________________________________________________ I coded CatScan in Borland's Turbo Pascal and assembly language. I also used TurboPower Software's Turbo Professional. I wrote this documentation with Borland's Sprint word processor. An earnest thanks to the creators of these fine products. Special thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and reported bugs, especially: o Sally Ryce for single-handedly beta testing one version. o Chip Rabinowitz for suggesting command line options. o Howard Benner for help adapting the TAPCIS LIB numbers and UserID file. 3 Chapter 1 o Richard Wilkes for keeping me informed about impending changes. o Neil Rubenking, Brian Foley, and everyone else in the BProgA forum for programming guidance. o Kim Kokkonen for his EXECSWAP routines, Turbo Professional, MAPMEM, and so on. o Orest Skrypuch for help interfacing with single line descriptions. o Jim Korenthal for many helpful suggestions. o Valerie Zen for bug reports, suggestions, and press releases. o Glynn Brooks for many ideas. o Wick Smith for excellent suggestions. o Robert Funk for very detailed bug reports. o Paul Bradshaw for explaining specifications of the library software. o Of course, all the beta testers and registered users. The list could go on and on. Sorry, if I've overlooked you. INTRODUCTION 4 C H A P T E R 2 REGISTRATION - Why and How DEFINITION OF SHAREWARE Shareware distribution gives users a chance to try software before buying it. If you try a Shareware program and continue using it, you are expected to register. Individual programs differ on details -- some request registration while others require it, some specify a maximum trial period. With registration, you get anything from the simple right to continue using the software to an updated program with printed manual. Copyright laws apply to both Shareware and commercial software, and the copyright holder retains all rights, with a few specific exceptions as stated below. Shareware authors are accomplished programmers, just like commercial authors, and the programs are of comparable quality. (In both cases, there are good programs and bad ones!) The main difference is in the method of distribution. The author specifically grants the right to copy and distribute the software, either to all and sundry or to a specific group. For example, some authors require written permission before a commercial disk vendor may copy their Shareware. Shareware is a distribution method, not a type of software. You should find software that suits your needs and pocketbook, whether it's commercial or Shareware. The Shareware system makes fitting your needs easier, because you can try before you buy. And because the overhead is low, prices are low also. Shareware has the ultimate money-back guarantee -- if you don't use the product, you don't pay for it. DISCLAIMER - AGREEMENT Users of CatScan must accept this disclaimer of warranty: "CatScan is supplied as is. The author disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of merchantability and of fitness for any purpose. The author assumes no liability for damages, direct or conse- quential, which may result from the use of CatScan." CatScan is a "shareware program" and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system. The essence of "user-supported" software is to provide personal computer users with quality software without high prices, and yet to provide incentive for programmers to continue to develop new products. If you find this program useful and find that you are using CatScan and continue to use CatScan after a reasonable trial period, you must make a reg-istration payment of $30 to Rochester Heritage. The $30 registration fee will license one copy for use on any one computer at any one time. You must treat this software just like a book. An example is that this software may be used by any number of people and 5 Chapter 2 may be freely moved from one computer location to another, so long as there is no possibility of it being used at one location while it's being used at another. Just as a book cannot be read by two different persons at the same time. Commercial users of CatScan must register and pay for their copies of CatScan within 30 days of first use or their license is withdrawn. Site-License arrangements may be made by contacting Rochester Heritage. Anyone distributing CatScan for any kind of remuneration must first contact Rochester Heritage at the address below for authorization. This authorization will be automatically granted to distributors recognized by the (ASP) as adhering to its guidelines for shareware distributors, and such distributors may begin offering CatScan immediately (However Rochester Heritage must still be advised so that the distributor can be kept up-to-date with the latest version of CatScan.). You are encouraged to pass a copy of CatScan along to your friends for evaluation. Please encourage them to register their copy if they find that they can use it. All registered users receive a copy of the latest version of the CatScan system. WHAT YOU GET The registration fee is paid once, and gives you the right to use all future versions. You get a disk and laser-printed user guide, and are notified whenever a major revision is released. I will send CIS Mail explaining how to disable the introductory screen. Upgrades are free for the download, but I'll ship a new disk and printed documentation for $10 at your request. Just send a message via CompuServe Mail, and I'll ship the order and invoice. The file CATSCAN.REG is an order form. The Catalyst program can also print order forms. Please send the form and payment to: Rochester Heritage 72 Knapp Ave. Rochester, NY 14609 If you have any enhancements, problems, suggestions, comments, or complaints, please send them to me via CIS Mail, a message in IBMCOM or TAPCIS forums, or a written letter to the above address. Even if you haven't decided to keep CatScan, feel free to get in touch with me. I'll reply within 48 hours. Send to Don Strenczewilk 72617,132 REGISTRATION - Why and How 6 C H A P T E R 3 CATALYST.EXE Catalyst lets you change some of CatScan's procedures to your liking. It stores your preferences in CATFILES.CFG, which CatScan reads when invoked. It also prints an order form that you should mail if you decide to continue using the package after a reasonable trial period. To invoke Catalyst, type "CATALYST" at the DOS prompt. If you have a Color Graphics Adapter and black and white monitor, start Catalyst with the "-b" switch to enable the black and white color set: "CATALYST -b" Each Catalyst screen guides you with instructions and menus. A number enclosed in parentheses precedes each menu option. To select an option, simply type the number. 3.1 Main Menu_______________________________________________________ The Catalyst main menu: (1) Video (2) Printer (3) TAPCIS installation (4) Registration (5) Miscellaneous (6) Quit program / save changes 3.1.1 Video_________________________________________________________ Type [1] from the Main Installation Menu to change the video attributes CatScan uses. This menu appears: (0) Back (1) Selection Line colors (2) Indicator colors (3) View Display colors (4) File Screen colors (5) User Input color (6) Remove Snow on Screen Option (0) returns you to the Main Installation Menu. If you don't like CatScan's default colors, use options (1) through (5) to change them. 7 Chapter 3 As you select an option to change ┌────────────────────────────┐ a color, this box appears. It │F>Black DarkGray │ contains the names of selectable │B>Blue LightBlue │ color combinations. "B>" and "F>" │ Green LightGreen │ are in the box to point out the │ Cyan LightCyan │ current Background and Foreground │ Red LightRed │ colors. As you move the pointers, │ Magenta LightMagenta │ the color at the top of the box │ Brown Yellow │ reflects the colors pointed to. │ LightGray White │ └────────────────────────────┘ A line at the bottom of the screen briefly describes how to alter the color. Use the [Up] and [Down] arrow keys to move the "F>" and alter the Foreground color. Use [PgUp] and [PgDn] to move the "B>" and alter the Background color. Press [Enter] to make the new colors stick. The screen underlying the box will be redrawn using the new colors. Press [Escape] to restore the color in effect before you entered the box. Selection Line Colors - This item sets the colors of the Selection Line; the string of options at the top of each CatScan screen. The Normal and Highlighted attributes can be changed. Highlighted letters on the Selection Line show the keys to press to execute each option. All other characters on the Selection Line have the Normal attribute. Indicator Colors - Select this option to set the colors of the Status Section. The Text Color is the color of most of the Indicator section. The Info Color is the color of the information displayed in the Indicator section. The Info Color is also used to display the header info for long descriptions. View Display Colors - Use this option to alter the colors of the View Displays. The Normal Text Color is the main color of each description and the primary Batch mode color. The Matched Word Color is the color of words that meet search criteria. The Cursor Bar Color is the color of the cursor bar, which is visible while viewing only ASCII files (not catalogs). File Screen Colors - Use this option to change the colors on the File Screen. You can alter the Path, File Name, and Cursor Bar Colors. User Input Color - Use this option to alter the color used for input fields, such as file names. 3.1.2 Snow on Screen________________________________________________ Some older CGA systems produce a [snowy] effect when CatScan is writing to them. If you notice this, turn Snow Checking on. Writing to the screen is slower when Snow Checking is on. CATALYST.EXE 8 3.2 Printer Initialization__________________________________________ CatScan sends a string to the printer every time it begins printing. It assumes your printer can print lines 80 characters wide (10 characters per inch on 8.5 inch wide paper). You can change the way CatScan's printed output appears by specifying special codes to send to the printer. For example, set the printer to write in Elite pitch (96 characters per line) and set the left margin to column 8. You'll need to refer to your printer manual to find the codes that do what you want. Most printers read control character codes to set their options. To enter a control character in the setup string, type in a [#] followed by the control character's ASCII number. For example, to enter the Escape character, enter: '#27'. 3.3 TAPCIS Installation_____________________________________________ CatScan generates TAPCIS script files so it can download files and update catalogs. It requires some information from you to find associated files and make accurate calculations. Entering the path to TAPCIS - CatScan needs to know where to write scripts so TAPCIS can find them. TAPCIS writes its scripts in the drive/directory designated as the <S>torage path. PARAMS.CIS is the file CatScan needs to find because it holds the <S>torage path. Usually, PARAMS.CIS is located in the same drive and directory as TAPCIS.EXE. For example, if PARAMS.CIS is located in C:\COMM\, then enter "C:\COMM\" here. CatScan also searches this directory for TAPCIS' *.SEC files to display library names. Enter Your File Transfer Rate - Enter the approximate number of bytes per second you get while downloading files. I suggest that you estimate conservatively, entering a number slightly lower than that reported by TAPCIS while it's downloading a file. CatScan uses this information to calculate the time and cost to download files and shows you the results on the download screen. Entering Your Hourly CompuServe Cost - Enter your total cost per hour, including long distance charges and other applicable surcharges. CatScan needs to know how much your CompuServe time costs to make download cost calculations. 3.4 Ordering CatScan________________________________________________ Choose this option to print an order form to register your copy of CatScan. When the order form screen appears, you have three choices: Print - Press [P] to print the form. My address will be printed at the bottom. File - If you'd rather be billed, press [F] to write the form to a file named "CATSCAN.REG" and import into your communication program. Fill it out and send to me via CIS electronic Mail. My UserID is 9 Chapter 3 [72617,132]. I'll mail an invoice via US Mail. Use CIS Mail if you would like to send a check with "CheckFree" also. Escape - Press [Escape] to return to the Main Menu. 3.5 Miscellaneous___________________________________________________ Select option (5) to modify the items described below. Alter Index Character - When CatScan reads a file, it creates an index file with the same name as the original file, with an altered file extension. It replaces the first character of the extension with [@] by default, but you can change that here. For example, if the catalog file name is 'IBMCOM.CAT', the index file is named 'IBMCOM.@AT'. Choose a character that won't conflict with other file names in your catalog directory. Using Escape to eXit CatScan - Choose this option if you want to be able to leave Interactive mode by pressing the [Escape] key. If disabled, you'll need to press [X] to quit CatScan. The advantage of the requirement to press [X] is, from anywhere in the program, you'll return to the Main Menu by holding down the [Escape] key. Otherwise, you're returned to DOS. Log Downloads - This option lets you disable or enable the CatScan download log. By default, the log is enabled. If you don't want to keep a log of your downloads, disable it here and feel free to erase CATSCAN.LOG from your disk. When the log is enabled, CatScan will warn you if you try to download the same file more than once. Use EMS for shell - CatScan swaps most of itself to disk or expanded memory (EMS) to free enough system memory to run other programs. By default, it swaps to EMS if enough is available. This option lets you disable EMS usage, so swapping is always to disk. 3.6 Quit____________________________________________________________ Returns you to the DOS prompt. Before doing so, you're asked if you want to save the changes you've made. Answer [Y] record the changes, or [N] to discard them. Catalyst doesn't save any of your modifications until you quit and answer [Y]es when asked if you want to save them. CATALYST.EXE 10 C H A P T E R 4 INTERACTIVE MODE There are two ways to start CatScan in Interactive mode: 1. Type CATSCAN at the DOS prompt. Shortly, the main menu screen will appear. 2. Type CATSCAN -v[FileMask] [-fxxxxxx] at the DOS prompt. -v Use the [-v] parameter to load and view a file. FileMask may be any valid DOS FileMask, such as '*.CAT', 'TAPCIS.CAT', or 'BPA02.*'. CatScan looks for the first disk file that matches the FileMask. If the file is not already in the file list, CatScan inserts it. CatScan then loads and displays the file. -f After successfully loading the FileMask, CatScan automatically searches forward through the file for the word following [-f]. Ten [-f] words may be entered. -b Use this switch to enable the black and white color set. If you're using a black and white monitor with a color video card, you might try this. You can install the black and white color set permanently with CATALYST. (xxx) Use this switch if you want CatScan to use a different PARAMS.* file, other than TAPCIS' default, PARAMS.CIS. CatScan uses the <S>torage disk path in the designated PARAMS file to write its scripts. -NOEMS Use this switch to prevent CatScan from copying the overlay file to expanded memory. If you are running CatScan from MS-Windows in enhanced mode, and have used the /NOEMS switch for EMS386.SYS, you must use this switch. To leave CatScan, press [X] from the Main Menu. You can configure the [Escape] key with Catalyst to perform this function if you want 4.1 Selecting Options - Using Menus_________________________________ Horizontally across the top of each principal screen is a list of words that show available commands. I call this the Selection Line. Each command has a highlighted, capitalized letter. Often, an entire command word is highlighted. Often, selecting one command will pop up a vertical menu of more commands that contain other menus, and so on. 11 Chapter 4 NOTE: Type Function Key 1 [F1] to see a help screen that describes each command in detail. There are several ways to invoke a command: * Type the highlighted letter. If preceded by a caret:[^], then hold down the [Ctrl] key while pressing the highlighted character. The highlighted letter [F] followed by a highlighted number indicates a function key, such as [F1]. * Press [Enter] to execute the fully highlited command. Move the highlight bar by pressing the arrow keys. * Many commands in the vertical menus have [hot keys]. The commands with hot keys may be invoked by typing a single keystroke, even when their menus are not displayed; The items that have hot keys display them to their right. For example, the "Search" menu on the description viewing screen contains: find Next N. While viewing descriptions, you can type [N] to find the next match for a search, without invoking the Search menu. 4.1.1 Getting Help__________________________________________________ Several CatScan screens offer help screens; brief explanations of available options. Function key [F1] displays them. When a help screen information overflows the screen, press the [Up] and [Down] arrow, [PgUp], and [PgDn] keys to browse through the remainder. [Escape] removes the help screen. 4.1.2 Line Editing Keys_____________________________________________ Table 4.1: Line Editing Keys ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ Often, CatScan needs your input. ▒ Done/Save Enter ▒ Its line editor works somewhat ▒ Done/Don't Save Escape ▒ like the WordStar editor. The ▒ Start of line Home ^A ▒ table at the right lists the keys ▒ End of line End ^F ▒ you can use to edit lines. ▒ Delete to end of line ^End ^T ▒ ▒ Delete entire line ^Y ▒ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ Notice the 'Ovr'/'Ins' indicator at the lower right region of the screen. It shows whether the line editor is in Overwrite or Insert mode. In Overwrite mode, the characters you type overwrite characters on the line. In Insert Mode, the characters are inserted into the line at the position of the cursor. Press the [Ins] key to toggle. INTERACTIVE MODE 12 4.1.3 The Search Word Screen________________________________________ CatScan has thorough search facilities. Up to 10 words may be searched for. For each word, four options may be applied: M The word Must appear in the description. If it doesn't, there is no match, even if the description contains another search word. W The Whole word must appear in the description. For example, 'then' will not be counted as a match for 'the'. C The Case of each character in the word must match exactly. For example: 'then' will not match 'Then'. N The word must Not appear in the description. By default, a word is matched if it appears anywhere in a description. Case is ignored. The Search Word Screen: Up/Dn and Tab move ^Clean slate [Return] when done ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════ ╒═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ │ # Word To Search Options │ │───────────────────────────────────────────────────────│ │ 1 │ │ 2 │ │ 3 │ │ 4 │ │ 5 │ │ 6 │ │ 7 │ │ 8 │ │ 9 │ │10 │ ╘═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╛ ╒════════════════════════════════╕ │ Options: │ │ Must appear in description. │ │ Whole words only. │ │ Case sensitive. │ │ Not, should not appear │ ╘════════════════════════════════╛ - Press [^C] (Ctrl-C) to clear all the words and options on the screen. - After entering words and options, press [Enter] to start searching. - Press [Escape] to abort the search. CatScan recalls the words the next time the search word screen appears. 13 Chapter 4 - To move from the Word to the Option column or to the next word, press the [Tab] or Up/Down Arrow keys. For example, to search a description file for descriptions that have anything to do with an Epson Equity computer, specify: ╒═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ │ # Word To Search Options │ │───────────────────────────────────────────────────────│ │ 1 Epson │ │ 2 Equity │ If many matches of descriptions of Epson printers are showing up, make it so "Equity" must appear in the description by specifying the [M]ust option for "Equity": ╒═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════╕ │ # Word To Search Options │ │───────────────────────────────────────────────────────│ │ 1 Epson │ │ 2 Equity M │ If CatScan flags dozens of matches of 'equity' relating to finance, put a [M]ust option after 'Epson'. Only descriptions that contain both 'Epson' and 'Equity' will be displayed: │ 1 Epson M │ │ 2 Equity M │ Suppose you're getting dozens of matches of the Equity III, but you want information only about the Equity II. Add the line: │ 3 II MWC │ Only 'II' matches. Because of the [W]hole word option, 'III' will not match. 'ii' won't match because the [C]ase sensitive option causes the case of the word to be considered. If you want to match all Equitys except III, then this line would do it: │ 3 III NWC │ The [N]ot option stipulates that the word must not be in the description. Combined with the [W]hole word option, the options specify to match anything except "III". The [N]ot option is most effective when used in combination with other words that use the [M]ust option. Alone, the [N]ot option is pretty useless. Notice that if a description contains "II" and "III", CatScan will not stop to display it because [N]ot takes precedence over [M]ust. 4.1.4 The Indicators________________________________________________ On most screens, the lowest lines contain a list of indicators: INTERACTIVE MODE 14 File : # Des's : 0 Memory: 212582 # Indexed: 0 [library number] View # : 0 [uploader's name] File - The name of the file currently loaded. # Des's - The number of descriptions contained in the file. # Indexed - The number of descriptions indexed for viewing. View # - The index number viewed. Memory - The amount of ram currently available. Library Number - The library number of the current description. If the library name is available (from the SEC file with TAPCIS, CatScan displays it. Uploader's Name - The name of the person who uploaded the current description. It appears when the name and UserID are present in your USERID.CIS file. 4.2 The Main Menu.__________________________________________________ Most CatScan screens have Menus. The first screen you see after starting CatScan is the Main Menu. Its Selection Line: File View UserIDs Run eXit NOTE: The capitalized letters should be highlighted. If not, use Catalyst to alter the Selection Line colors. Pressing the highlighted letter executes the command. File - Press [F] or [F3] (Function Key 3) to go to the File screen where you can load a file to view, search, process, update, and so on. View - Pressing [V] or [F4] displays the View Menu if a file is already loaded, or the File Menu if not. Options to view, search, print, and delete individual descriptions can be accessed from the View Menu. UserID - Press [U] to pop up the UserID menu. Here is where you enter the name of the file of Names and UserIDs CatScan loads every time you run it. The purpose is to display uploaders' names while viewing descriptions. TAPCIS maintain a UserID file that can be read by CatScan. The contents of the current UserID file may be displayed from this menu also. 15 Chapter 4 Run - Press [R] to pop up the Run menu. It lets you run TAPCIS or Catalyst, or shell to DOS. Simply move the scroll bar to your choice and hit [Enter]. If a file is loaded, CatScan unloads it to free memory. After shelling to DOS, type "exit" to return to CatScan. eXit - Press [X] from the Main Menu to return DOS. If enabled with Catalyst, the [Escape] key serves the same purpose. 4.3 The File Menu___________________________________________________ Select [F] or [F3] from the main menu to present the File Menu. The File Menu's Selection Line: Load Name Mark Process Update Search A list of file names appears. The first time you run CatScan, the only file name in the list is CATSCAN.DOC (The file you are reading now). A cursor bar appears on the screen at file number 1. Table 4.2: File Screen Scroll Bar ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ ▒ Action Keys to press ▒ ▒──────────────────────────▒ Use the keystrokes described in ▒ Move Up Up arrow ^E ▒ the table at the right to point to ▒ Move Down Down arrow ^X ▒ a file with the cursor bar. ▒ Page Up PgUp ^R ▒ ▒ Page Down PgDn ^C ▒ ▒ Scroll Up Space Bar ^Z ▒ ▒ Scroll Down ^W ▒ ▒ First File Home ^A ▒ ▒ Last File End ^F ▒ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ 4.3.1 Load__________________________________________________________ Move the cursor bar to a file name and select [L]oad. CatScan detects whether the file is a catalog, and if it's not, loads it as a standard ASCII text file. The distinction affects the amount of processing that can be performed with the file. Catalog files - can be sorted, processed, updated, compressed, and analyzed. CatScan's primary functionality lies in processing catalog file. You can treat CatScan's compressed files exactly like catalog files; CatScan recognizes them and acts accordingly. ASCII files - can be viewed and searched on a line by line basis. Download scripts can be written, but CatScan needs to ask for additional information. INTERACTIVE MODE 16 4.3.2 Name__________________________________________________________ Select [N] to pop up the Name Menu that has commands to manipulate the names in the file list: CAT file auto add - Automatically adds all your *.CAT files to the file list, searching your TAPCIS <S>torage disk path for them. Edit file name - Lets you edit the file name highlighted by the cursor bar. A file name can be added to the list by simply placing the cursor bar on a blank line and editing it. Press [Enter] to insert the file name into the list, or [Escape] to restore whatever was there before you started editing. CatScan evaluates a file's full path before inserting it into the list. CatScan doesn't verify that the file exists, so you can freely enter names of files on floppy disks without inserting them into the drive. If you enter a file name that contains either "[?]" or "[*]", a DOS file directory pops up with a cursor bar. For example, type "c:\comm\*.cat". A window pops up displaying all the "*.CAT" files in the c:\comm\ directory. These are the same files that would appear if you type, ""DIR c:\comm\*.cat" at the DOS prompt. Move the cursor bar to the file you want to load and press [Enter] to insert the file in the list. Press [A] to insert all the file names listed in the box. If you press [Enter] with the cursor bar on a subdirectory name, the window will display the files in that subdirectory. To remove the window without selecting a file, press [Escape]. Add new file name - Lets you easily add new files to the list. Position the cursor bar on a file and press "A". The cursor bar moves to the first blank line in the list. Edit mode is immediately invoked with a default file mask matching the path and extension of the original file. Press [Enter] to pick from a list of files matching the mask. For example, to enter a file name that contains the same path as C:\COMM\CATSCAN.DOC, move the cursor bar to it and press [A]. Catscan moves the cursor bar to the first blank line and puts you in edit mode with C:\COMM\*.DOC as the file name. Delete file name - Select this item to remove the highlighted file from the list. If the file exists on disk, the selection line will prompt whether you want to delete the file from the list, the disk, or both. Search list for partial name - This is a quick way to find a file name in the File List. A line asking "Name of file to go to:" appears at the top of the screen. Type in any part of a file name in the list and hit [Enter]. The cursor bar will move to the next item in the list whose file name contains the string you typed. It searches forward from the one the cursor bar is on. If a match 17 Chapter 4 doesn't occur before the end of the list, the search continues from the first file. Extension sort / Name sort - Lets you sort the file list by either file name or extension. 4.3.3 Mark__________________________________________________________ The 'Mark' menu contains two choices: Mark file - Select this to mark a file for group processing or updating (Described later under the Process and Update sections). An asterisk will appear to the left of the file name. Press [*] again to unmark the file. Mark as many files as you want. Unmark all files - Removes the [*] marks from every file in the list. mark All files - Marks all the files in the list. 4.3.4 Process_______________________________________________________ The Process menu has four selections: Current file - Processes the file the cursor bar is on. Marked file - Processes all files marked with an *asterisk. Append - Appends a file to the one the cursor bar is on. Compressed files can be appended to catalog files, and vice versa. CatScan automatically detects the file type and compresses or decompresses accordingly. Options - Pops up a form to set processing options. As you move to each field in the form, you'll see help displayed at the bottom of the screen. To change an option, place the cursor bar on it and press [Enter]. The processing options that may be set are: Sort Order: Delete exact duplicates? # chars in filename to check: Echo results to: Remove older than: Press [Escape] when finished. CatScan saves the options and restores them next time you run it. INTERACTIVE MODE 18 4.3.5 Update________________________________________________________ Use this option to create scripts to update your catalogs. TAPCIS executes the scripts, logging on to CompuServe and collecting new file descriptions. CatScan calculates the age of the latest file description is in each library in the catalog. Then it writes a script that TAPCIS uses to capture descriptions newer than that age. It updates only libraries already present in the catalog. To capture a new library, use Update/Current/Manual. A menu pops up with four items: Current file - Choose this to update the file the cursor bar is on. A menu pops up with two choices: Automatic - Calculates age of the latest description in each library, adds the number of days you specified under [O]ptions, and writes the script. Manual - Calculates the age of the latest description in each library, adds number of days specified under [O]ptions, and pops up a form with those figures for you to edit. You can capture a new library by entering "-1" next to the desired library number. Marked files - Automatically calculates latest days in each library, adds number of days you've entered under Options, and writes update scripts for every file marked with a [*]. CatScan writes scripts on your TAPCIS <S>torage disk path which CatScan finds in PARAMS.CIS or an alternative PARAMS.* file you specified on the command line. The script can be executed with the <O>nline command from TAPCIS' Main Menu. Auto append - This handy feature automatically compresses CAT files that have been captured by TAPCIS, and appends them to your compressed files. For each compressed (*.CMP) file in the file list, CatScan searches your <S>torage disk path for a matching *.CAT file. If found, the *.CAT file is compressed, appended to the *.CMP file, and erased. Options - A potential problem with updating by using the number of days that CatScan reports is that files may be present in a library that were uploaded earlier than the newest one in you catalog, but were not yet merged into the library. For example, if someone uploads a file that sets the time on your computer, and another that manipulates a hard disk's file allocation table, the sysop will probably merge the first one immediately, but the one that manipulates the hard disk would need careful testing and, therefore, might not be merged for days. When the second file is merged, it bears the upload date, not the date it was merged in the library. So the second file description may not be captured to your catalog file using the AGE of the latest file in the catalog. Therefore, CatScan provides this option to add more days to its age calculations. 19 Chapter 4 Normally, adding 3 to 4 days is enough to maintain an up-to-date catalog. When set to 0, the latest day's descriptions are recaptured. The logic is that more files may have been uploaded later in the day you last updated. To ignore that possibility, enter "-1", and only descriptions newer than the latest day will be captured. 4.3.6 Search________________________________________________________ The file screen search lets you globally search files in the list for up to 10 words. The menu has two items. All files - Searches all files in the list. Specify extension - Lets you search only files that have a particular file extension, such as CMP or CAT. Regardless of which item you choose, CatScan begins searching from the file the cursor bar is on. (NOTE: See the section entitled "The Search Word Screen" for details on how to specify the words to search for) 4.3.7 Compression___________________________________________________ This menu contains functions to compress CAT files and decompress CMP files. To compress a CAT file, position the cursor bar on the CAT file you want to compress and select [C]ompress from this menu. CatScan will ask the name of the file you want to compress to, defaulting to the name of the file you selected with the *.CMP file extension. Simply press [Enter] to use the default. The procedure to decompress a compressed file is similar; point to the CMP file and select [D]ecompress. 4.4 Viewing Files - General_________________________________________ After loading a file, CatScan displays the first item and presents the appropriate View Menu. There are two View Menu's, one works with catalog files, and one for any other ASCII text file. CatScan decides what view to use while reading the files. To return to the Main Menu from a View Menu, simply press [Escape]. 4.5 Viewing Catalog Files___________________________________________ As you enter the View Description Menu, the first description appears in the center of the screen. Press [F1] to see a help screen that maps the menu tree and briefly explains each item. INTERACTIVE MODE 20 If a UserID file is loaded, and the current description's UserID is present in the file, CatScan displays the name at the bottom right corner of your screen. Table 4.3: View Navigation Keys ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ Use these keystrokes to navigate ▒ Next description PgDn ^C ▒ through the descriptions. ▒ Prev description PgUp ^R ▒ ▒ First description Home ^A ▒ ▒ Last description End ^F ▒ ▒ Scroll Down + ^X ▒ ▒ Scroll Up - ^E ▒ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ These choices appear at the top of the screen: Print Search Goto Mark Library Other Viewpoint 4.5.1 Print_________________________________________________________ Printer - Prints the current description on the printer. File - Prints the current description to a file. You're asked for the name of the file. If it already exists, the current description is appended to it. Formfeed - Sends a form feed to the printer. 4.5.2 Search________________________________________________________ Press [S] to display the Search menu. (See page 13, 'Search Word Screen' for an explanation.) CatScan begins searching at the description following the current description for matches. If found, CatScan stops searching and displays the description, highlighting the matched words so you can easily identify them. If CatScan doesn't find a match, it beeps. Find Fwd - Initializes a forward search by presenting the Search Word Screen and searching forward through the file. Find Next - Searches forward for the next match. Find Back - Searches backward for the next match. Next file - Searches forward for next occurrence as Find Fwd does. If no match occurs, the next file in the list is loaded and searched. Entire File - Searches the entire file, and displays only the descriptions that match the search criteria. This differs from the normal forward search in that every description in the file is searched before the matches are displayed, and only descriptions that 21 Chapter 4 match the search words can be viewed. The "# Indexed:" indicator shows how many descriptions match. When the search executes, for every word match, a score increments for that description. After the search, any descriptions scoring greater than zero are indexed and sorted according to the score and the age of the descriptions. The descriptions with the most matches and most recent dates appear first. Use <Options/Other/Restore original order> to restore the original order. 4.5.3 Goto__________________________________________________________ Contains commands to move through the file. Forward and backward movement is in index order, just as if you were cursoring through the descriptions. The [Next/Prev Library] and [Next/Prev UserID] options are most effective after you sort the file or index in Library and UserID order respectively. Next Library - Moves forward from the current description until the library number differs. Prev Library - Moves backward from the current description until the library differs, or the first description is reached. Pick Library - Lets you pick a library to move to. If the library names are available (in the *.SEC files in TAPCIS, then a box pops up with a list of the library names and a scroll bar. Otherwise, you're asked to type in the number of the library. Press [Escape] when the box is on screen, and you're asked to type in the library number. This feature is convenient when you know that the SEC file is not up-to-date. Press [Escape] again to cancel the request. Next UserID - Moves forward to next UserID that differs from the current description. Prev UserID - Moves backward until the UserID differs from the one displayed, or the first description is reached. 4.5.4 Mark__________________________________________________________ Options on this menu let you mark files for downloading or erasure. Download scripts are not written, and erasing is not performed until you quit viewing descriptions. At that time, CatScan reports what descriptions are marked and lets you review them, write them to a file, or simply exit. toggle Erase - Press [E] to delete the current description. A line appears above the description: "MARKED for deletion". The description is not physically deleted from the file yet. See the section labeled "Deleting Individual Descriptions" below to learn how to physically delete the marked descriptions. INTERACTIVE MODE 22 toggle Download - Select this option if you want to download the displayed file. "MARKED for: downloading" is displayed above the description. Toggle download again to unmark the file. See section "Writing Download Scripts" below to see how to write the download script file for the marked files. CATSCAN.LOG is searched for the name of the file you attempt to download. If found, CatScan reminds you and asks if you want to change your mind. Unerase all - Unmarks all descriptions marked for erasure. uNdownload all - Unmarks all descriptions marked for downloading. 4.5.4.1 Writing Download Scripts As you leave the View Description Screen, if you've marked files for downloading, the following is displayed: write Download script View marked Write marked to a file Quit There are 5 files marked to download Cost Time Size ────────────────────────────── Files currently marked to download $ 1.87 8:45 115697 Total for all scripts written during this session $ .00 0: 0 115697 Totals $ 1.87 8:45 115697 ═════════ ═══════ ════════════ min:sec bytes The approximations ─────────── Installed Values ───────────── above are based $12.50 is your hourly CompuServe rate. on the values you entered in Catalyst. 220 is the number of file bytes transferred per second _____________________________________________________________________ download time and cost is based on the number of bytes per second you get while downloading as described in section 3.3. write Download script - Physically writes the download script. As each file is written to the script, it is also recorded in CATSCAN.LOG so you'll be reminded if you ever try to mark it for downloading again. After you select this option, CatScan unmarks the marked descriptions. Therefore, it should be the last item selected on this screen. If the ".DOW" file already exists, CatScan automatically appends to the end of it. 23 Chapter 4 View marked - Select this option to review or unmark the marked descriptions. While viewing descriptions, you can wildly mark any that interest you, quit viewing to deliberate the cost, and then review and unmark your choices. Write marked to a file - Press [W] to write the marked descriptions to a file. You're asked for the name of the file, and if it exists, you're given the choices of overwriting it, appending it, or not writing to it at all. Quit - Select this option (or [Escape]) to go to the Main or File Screen. The descriptions remain marked until you load another file, run an external program, or quit CatScan. 4.5.4.2 Deleting Marked Descriptions As you leave View mode, if there are any descriptions marked for deletion, the display contains: Erase descriptions from file View marked Write to file Quit _____________________________________________________________________ There are 8 descriptions marked for deletion. Erase descriptions from file - Press [E] to rewrite the file, minus the marked descriptions. The descriptions are rewritten in the order they were read, disregarding the order of the internal index. This should be the last option selected from this screen because the file is unloaded afterward. View marked - Press [V] to review and unmark the marked descriptions. Write marked to file - Press [W] to write all the marked descriptions to a file. You're asked for the name of the file. If it exists, you can choose whether you want to overwrite it, append to it, or not write to it at all. Quit - Select this option (or [Escape]) to go to the Main or File Screens. 4.5.5 Library_______________________________________________________ Choose Library to pop up a menu with options to manipulate the libraries in a catalog file. Change current LIB number - Use this option to change the displayed description's library number. The legal range of numbers is 0 to 20. The library number is changed only in memory. When you leave the INTERACTIVE MODE 24 view screen, you're asked if you want to write the changes to the file. Erase a library - Use this option to mark an entire library for erasure. (See Section 4.5.4.2.) Unerase a library - This option unmarks all descriptions in a library that are marked for erasure. capture a New library - Asks for a library number, and immediately writes a script to capture the entire library. 4.5.6 Other_________________________________________________________ This menu contains some items that don't neatly fit into the other categories. Sort index - Sorts the internal index to rearrange the order the descriptions display. The catalog file is not physically altered. A box pops up listing the fields ┌────────────────────────────┐ and order that the index can be │Lib# Userid Date Filename│ sorted, and waits for you to │+ =Ascend - =Descend │ specify the sort order. │Escape =Cancel │ │________ │ └────────────────────────────┘ You can sort on any number of F = File name fields in ascending or descending L = Library number order. For each field to sort, D = Date enter the appropriate character U = UserID followed by either [+] or [-] for ascending or descending order. For example, enter "l+d-" to sort in Library ascending, Date descending order. Use 'Restore original order' to restore the index to its original state. Restore original order - Choose this to restore the index to its neutral state. It negates the effects of index sort and extensive search. Get the same effect by pressing [Escape] and choosing View to view the file again. Age report - Displays the age in days of the newest description in each library in the catalog file. 4.5.7 Viewpoint_____________________________________________________ This menu has three items. Each item changes the way the descriptions are displayed and searched. A single description is displayed per line and a cursor bar is used to navigate. Press 25 Chapter 4 [Escape] to restore the broad view. The menu choices available in the full description view remain unchanged except the 'Viewpoint' menu itself. When you select it, the full description pointed to by the cursor bar is displayed. CatScan only searches the information displayed on each line for your criteria. The single exception is the [Search/Entire file] choice, which executes identically to the way it does when viewing full descriptions, searching entire descriptions for matches. The library name/number of the description pointed to by the cursor bar is displayed at the bottom right of the screen. The download and erasure status is coded into single characters that are inserted at the beginning of each line. If a description is marked for downloading or erasure, a triangle is first inserted and displayed in inverse video. That makes marked descriptions easily identifiable on the screen. If the file is marked for downloading, a "$" dollar sign is inserted. If marked for erasure, the Greek symbol 'theta' is inserted. Headers - The uploader's UserID is displayed, followed by the CIS description header. The header contains information about the file: the name, type, upload date, and size. Titles - The file's name is displayed, followed by its Title. Keywords - Displays only the keywords. 4.6 Viewing ASCII Files_____________________________________________ Table 4.4: ASCII File Navigation ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ ▒ Action Keys to press ▒ The [V]iew ASCII Menu appears ▒───────────────────────────▒ when CatScan loads a file that is ▒ Move Up Up arrow ^E ▒ not a standard catalog file. The ▒ Move Down Down arrow ^X ▒ file is displayed on a line-by- ▒ Page Up PgUp ^R ▒ line basis, each screen ▒ Page Down PgDn ^C ▒ displaying 18 lines of the file. ▒ Scroll Up Space Bar ^Z ▒ You use a cursor bar to navigate ▒ Scroll Down ^W ▒ the file, described in this ▒ First Line Home ^A ▒ table. ▒ Last Line End ^F ▒ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ Three choices appear: Print Search Download 4.6.1 Print_________________________________________________________ Printer - Prints the line that the cursor bar is on to the printer. INTERACTIVE MODE 26 File - Prints the line that the cursor bar is on to a file. You're asked for the name of the file to write. If it already exists, the line is appended to the end of it. Formfeed - Sends a form feed to the printer. 4.6.2 Search________________________________________________________ Press [S] to display the Search menu. (See page 13) CatScan searches forward from the cursor bar line. If a match occurs, CatScan stops searching, centers the matched line on the screen, and places the cursor bar on it. Matched words are displayed in a contrasting color so they're easy to identify. Find Fwd - Initializes a forward search by displaying the Search Word Screen and searching forward for a match. Find Next - Searches forward for the next match. Find Back - Search backward for previous match. Next file - Searches forward for next occurrence. If no match occurs, the next file in the file list is loaded and searched. 4.6.3 Download______________________________________________________ This option lets you write download scripts on the fly. You're asked for the file name, forum name, and library number. Press [Escape] while CatScan is waiting for input to cancel the operation. After you've entered the required information, CatScan searches CATSCAN.LOG for the name of the file. If matched, CatScan reminds you about the previous download and asks if you really want to download the file again. Finally, CatScan writes the script and appends the appropriate information to CATSCAN.LOG Name of file to download - Enter the name of the file you want to download. Forum Name - Enter the name of the forum the file resides in. Assuming you use TAPCIS, 'Forum Name' also denotes the name of the script file. For example, if the file is located in the BorApp forum, you would enter "BORAPP". CatScan will write the script to "BORAPP.DOW". Library number - Enter the number of the Data Library where the file is located. The valid range of numbers is 0 to 20. 4.6.4 Quit__________________________________________________________ Press [Q] or [Escape] to quit View mode. 27 Chapter 4 C H A P T E R 5 BATCH MODE Use Batch mode to process catalog or compressed catalog files. CatScan runs unattended, and is suitable to use in DOS batch files. 5.1 Starting CatScan in Batch mode__________________________________ To start CatScan in Batch mode, from the DOS prompt, type a command line of this format: CATSCAN FILEMASK [FILE TO COMBINE] [-switches] Bracketed items "[]" are optional While CatScan runs in batch mode, it periodically checks to see if you've pressed the [Escape] key. If so, CatScan asks if you want to abort. Simply type [Y], and it will stop whatever it is doing and return to the DOS prompt. Press any other key to let CatScan continue. 5.2 Command Line Reference__________________________________________ You type options and switches at the DOS prompt (command line) to tell CatScan what you want it to do. Separate each item with the space bar. Most options are preceded by a switch character: [-] or [/]. If you type an illegal option, CatScan aborts, displaying the illegal option and a brief summary describing the available options. Unless specifically stated below, all the options can be used simultaneously. The only order that must be adhered to when entering options is that FileMask must be first. 5.2.1 Help - ?______________________________________________________ Function Displays a a brief description of available command line parameters. Syntax CATSCAN ? Notes Press [Escape] to return to the DOS prompt. 5.2.2 Age Report____________________________________________________ Function Reports the age (in days) of the latest description in each library. Syntax none BATCH MODE 28 Notes If the only command line option used is a FileMask, CatScan simply generates reports for each file. Regardless of which options are specified, the report automatically executes after all other processing is completed. 5.2.3 FileMask______________________________________________________ Function Describes the files to process. Syntax FileMask should always be the first parameter specified on the command line. DOS wild-card characters are acceptable. Notes When using a "*.*" filemask, CatScan always ignores its index files and any files which have the extension EXE, COM, OBJ, OVL, OVR, ARC, SAV, CFG, WRK, MSG or ATO. Example CATSCAN *.CAT CatScan reads all files that match the *.CAT mask. Since no other parameters are specified, the only processing CatScan does is generate an Age Of Description Report for every file that matches the *.CAT mask. 5.2.4 Combining files_______________________________________________ Function Combines one file of descriptions with another. Syntax Enter the name of the file you want to combine after the FileMask. Notes This option cannot be used with wild-cards in FileMask. Use only on files of descriptions captured from the same forum. The FileMask (the name of the resulting file), should be the oldest of the two. The order which the catalog names are typed is important because of the way CatScan deletes duplicate descriptions. The first of two exact duplicates found will be deleted. CatScan defines "exact duplicates" as descriptions that have the same name, date, and UserID. Example CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT IBMCOM.NEW CatScan reads IBMCOM.CAT and IBMCOM.NEW, and writes all of the descriptions to IBMCOM.CAT. 5.2.5 -x____________________________________________________________ Function Erases the file combined with FileMask after it has been successfully combined. Syntax -x 29 Chapter 5 Notes [-x] is meaningless unless you've specified a File to Add to Main. Example CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT IBMCOM.NEW -x CatScan reads IBMCOM.CAT and IBMCOM.NEW, and writes all descriptions to IBMCOM.CAT. If no errors occur, IBMCOM.NEW is erased. 5.2.6 -s____________________________________________________________ Function Defines the order that you want CatScan to sort the file(s). Syntax -s, followed by a string denoting the sort order. Specify fields and order by entering the first character in the field name, followed by a plus or minus sign to designate ascending or descending order. F = FileName L = Library number D = Date U = UserID Notes The file(s) may be sorted in any order by any or all fields. Examples CATSCAN *.CAT -sl+d- Sorts the files matching FileMask by Library in ascending order, and by Date in descending order. CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT IBMCOM.NEW -sd-u+f+ CatScan reads IBMCOM.CAT and IBMCOM.NEW, sorts in date descending, UserID ascending, FileName ascending order, and writes the results to IBMCOM.CAT. 5.2.7 -d, -dl_______________________________________________________ Function Removes duplicate descriptions. Syntax -d or -dl Notes CatScan searches for duplicate descriptions in several ways. When a duplicate is found, the description which appears first in the file is deleted. Because new descriptions are always appended to the end of the catalog files by your communication program, this method always works correctly until the file is sorted. In an attempt to avoid potential problems, CatScan automatically enables the [-d] parameter when the file is sorted. -d - Use "-d" to search for and delete descriptions of files that have the same names, dates, and UserIDs. This eliminates all duplicates throughout the file. BATCH MODE 30 -dl - Use "-dl" to search for and delete descriptions of files that have the same names, dates, UserIDs, and Library numbers. This eliminates the possibility of deleting descriptions files which have the same name and are uploaded by the same person, but are located in different Data Libraries. If a file named CAT.PIC was moved from Library 0 to Library 3, the [-d] option will find and delete the one in Library 0. The [-dl] option would not find the duplicate because it looks for duplicates in separate libraries. Wonder what the advantage of using [-dl] is? Since CIS allows duplicate file names in the same forum, the files in each library might differ and you might want neither one deleted. For instance, the CAT.PIC file in Library 0 might be for IBM machines and the one in Library 3 for the Macintosh. Examples CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -d Reads IBMCOM.CAT, searches for descriptions having the same file name, date, and UserID, and removes them from the file. CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -dl Reads IBMCOM.CAT, searches for descriptions having the same file name, date, UserID, and Library number, and removes them from the file. 5.2.8 -d#, -dl#_____________________________________________________ Function Assists in pinpointing updated descriptions. Syntax -d# or -dl#, where "#" is a number from 1 to 9. Notes Adding a number to either [-d] or [-dl], such as [-d3], further assists pinpointing duplicates. It helps find files that were updated and re-uploaded with a different file name. For example, if someone uploaded 'FILE01.ARC' and later updated the file and uploaded it as 'FILE02.ARC', this option can be used to find and erase the old 'FILE01.ARC'. [#] indicates a number ranging from 0 to 9 and represents the number of characters in two description's filenames that need to match before you are prompted to delete it. In the FILE01.ARC/FILE02.ARC example above, using the number 4 ([#]) will flag the descriptions as possible updates because the first 4 characters in each filename match. First, the file is searched for duplicates according to the [-d] or [-dl] specification as described above. Then, the file is searched for any two descriptions which have the same UserIDs, same file extensions, same first [#] characters in their file names, upload dates that differ, and do not appear in the duplicate file (CATSCAN.DUP). When 31 Chapter 5 the criteria is met, CatScan displays a few lines of the two descriptions, and asks what action you'd like to take. This line appears at the top of the screen: Delete 1 2 0 Both Never ask again about these two 1 Deletes the first description 2 Deletes the second description 0 Deletes neither description Both Deletes both descriptions Never Writes the names of both files to CATSCAN.DUP. CatScan searches CATSCAN.DUP for each description name. If found, processing continues uninterrupted. Example CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -d3 CatScan reads IBMCOM.CAT, removes descriptions that have the same file names, dates, and UserIDs, and then search for any descriptions that have the same UserID, same file extensions, same first 3 ([#]) characters in their filename, and don't appear in CATSCAN.DUP. 5.2.9 -p____________________________________________________________ Function Echo output to the printer. Syntax -p 5.2.10 -r___________________________________________________________ Function Echo output to a file named CATSCAN.SAV. Syntax -r 5.2.11 -z# [n n n ...]______________________________________________ Function Removes descriptions that are older than a specified number of days. Syntax -z# n n n n... "#" denotes the number of days. The optional numbers "n" specify which libraries to delete from. Notes Use with caution! This option deletes all descriptions older than [#] from every file specified in FileMask. CatScan calculates the date to delete by using the DOS system date as a reference point. It must be set correctly. It can be verified by typing "DATE" at the DOS prompt. You can also specify which libraries the [-z] parameter will act upon by typing the list of LIB numbers separated by spaces immediately after the [-z#]. If you don't enter any BATCH MODE 32 LIB numbers, descriptions from ALL libraries will be deleted. If the -z parameter specification results in erasing all the descriptions in a library, CatScan undeletes the newest description. The reason for this is so the automatic update function will have a basis for its age calculations next time you update the catalog. Example CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -z30 CatScans removes all descriptions older than 30 days from IBMCOM.CAT. CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -z30 0 1 CatScan removes descriptions older than 30 days from libraries 0 and 1. 5.2.12 -o___________________________________________________________ Function Use this option with the [-z] option if you want to write the aged descriptions to another file. Syntax -oFILE, where FILE is the name of the file to write the aged descriptions to. Notes Cannot be used if FileMask contains wildcards. If FILE already exists, the descriptions are added to it. Do not use the same age file to output descriptions from different source files/forums because CatScan cannont determine which forum the descriptions belong to. Example CATSCAN IBMCOM.CAT -z30 -oIBMCOM.OLD CatScan removes descriptions older than 30 days from IBMCOM.CAT, and writes the old descriptions to IBMCOM.OLD. 5.2.13 -u___________________________________________________________ Function Generates update scripts for file(s) matching FileMask to be used by TAPCIS program to update catalogs. Syntax -u Notes The number of days captured for each library is based on how old the latest description is in each library. Only libraries present in the file are updated. 33 Chapter 5 5.2.14 -(xxx)_______________________________________________________ Function Use this option if you want CatScan to use a TAPCIS PARAMS.* file other than PARAMS.CIS. CatScan will use the <S>torage disk path in the specified PARAMS.* to write update scripts. Syntax (XXX), where XXX is the file extension of the PARAMS.* file to use. Notes The PARAMS.* file should be a valid file located in the TAPCIS.EXE path, as entered with CATALYST. By default, CatScan uses PARAMS.CIS. Example CATSCAN (CAT) CatScan uses the <S>torage path in PARAMS.CAT to write update scripts. 5.2.15 -NOEMS_______________________________________________________ Function Prevents CatScan from copying the overlay file to expanded memory. Syntax -NOEMS Notes If you are running CatScan from MS-Windows in enhanced mode, and are using the /NOEMS switch for EMS386.SYS in CONFIG.SYS, you must use this switch or CatScan will not run. Example CATSCAN -NOEMS CatScan uses the disk rather than EMS to swap its overlays to and from memory. BATCH MODE 34 Appendix A CATALOG FILE FORMATS CatScan expects the format of catalog files to be of captured long descriptions from CompuServe Forum Data Libraries. It recognizes and works correctly with catalogs captured in both the old and new formats, and with files that have a mixture of those formats. It reads TAPCIS CAT files correctly. Anything read from the start of the file to the first library number or description identifier is considered garbage and thrown away. CatScan identifies a library number when it sees a LineFeed character followed immediately by either "DL " or "LIB ". Everything following the number, to the next Description or LIB identifier is considered garbage, and thrown away. A library identifier also marks the end of the previous description read. All descriptions read after a LIB number is found are assigned that library number. CatScan identifies a description when it sees a LineFeed character (^J / 0Ah) followed immediately by the character "[". This also marks the end of the previous description read. If the description is in the new CompuServe format and contains a library number after the UserID, CatScan recognizes it. If no library numbers are found in the file, CatScan will stop reading the file and ask for one to assign. CatScan always writes descriptions in CompuServe's new format, no matter which format they were when read. 35 Chapter 5 Appendix B CATSCAN.LOG FILE FORMAT If you haven't disabled the CatScan logging option, you might want to add some files to it that you've previously downloaded, or downloaded with another program. Or you might just want to view the log to see when or where you downloaded a file. The log file, CATSCAN.LOG, is a normal ASCII text file that can be edited with any text editor. Simply append/insert additional entries. This is the format: FILNAM.ARC [72617,132] IBMCOM 14 02-Feb-87 17-Feb-89 IBMCOM.CAT ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ | | | | | | | File Name | | | | | | Uploader User ID | | | | | Forum download from | | | | Library downloaded from | | | Date the file was uploaded | | The date the download script was written | The file being viewed when the download script was written Some entries in the log may have a blank UserID or Upload date. These are files you downloaded from the One-Liner view screen where that information isn't available. CatScan examines the first 10 characters on a line (the File Name) to see if it matches the one you are trying to download. Make sure that the entries are one per line, and that the File Name starts at the left column, and is padded with spaces to 10 characters. The information following the File Name is irrelevant and can be modified. CATSCAN.LOG FILE FORMAT 36 Appendix C USING COMPRESSION CatScan can compress catalog files by approximately 45%. Whether you decide to use the compression feature is entirely up to you. The disadvantages of CatScan's compression scheme are: 1. The compressed files cannot be viewed with a text file viewer like LIST.COM, or DOS's TYPE command. 2. The compression format is not compatible with ZIP, ARC, LZH, or any other format. 3. The compression ratio is not as good as the standalone compression programs. The advantages of CatScan's compression scheme are: 1. CatScan can add new descriptions directly to existing compressed files. With standalone compression programs, the entire file would need to be decompressed, appended, and recompressed. 2. Working with compressed files is transparent. You simply treat them as standard CAT files. CatScan detects the type of file and reads and writes the descriptions accordingly. 3. There is very little difference in speed. You probably won't notice CatScan taking any more time to process a compressed file than a normal catalog file. Some operations are actually faster. 4. When you mark files for Erasure or Downloading and don't actually erase or download the descriptions, the marks are retained in the CMP file and restored the next time you view the file. NOTE: If you've edited a catalog file, you might loose some data when CatScan compresses it. Therefore, I suggest you make backups of your catalogs and experiment with CatScan's compression abilities before you decide whether you want to use the feature. Using The New Compression Feature The procedures to process compressed files can best be described by example. Let's use BORAPP.CAT as the catalog file, and assume you've set your TAPCIS <S>torage disk path to "C:\COMM\". Assume that the file extension for the compressed file will be ".CMP". To compress the catalog, highlight BORAPP.CAT on the file screen and select [C]ompression/[C]ompress. When CatScan finishes compressing 37 Appendix C it to the file named BORAPP.CMP, you can erase BORAPP.CAT, saving approximately 45% of the disk space it originally required. To erase BORAPP.CAT within CatScan, highlight it, and press the [Del] key. To decompress a compressed catalog, highlight it, and choose [C]ompress/[D]ecompress. Updating a Compressed File To update BORAPP.CMP, highlight it, and select [U]pdate from the file screen. Follow the procedures you would use to update a normal catalog file. Run TAPCIS to capture the new descriptions. The new descriptions will be written to C:\COMM\BORAPP.CAT Run CatScan again. At this point, you might want to view the new descriptions in BORAPP.CAT, and possibly download some. To add BORAPP.CAT to BORAPP.CMP, highlight BORAPP.CMP on the file screen and select [P]rocess/[A]ppend. A prompt appears at the top of the screen, asking for the name of the file to append to the compressed file. The default will be C:\COMM\BORAPP.CAT. Press [Enter] and CatScan will automatically compress BORAPP.CAT, append the descriptions to BORAPP.CMP, and ask if you want to erase BORAPP.CAT. The [A]ppend command on the [P]rocess menu is smart in that it will detect each type of file and automatically append correctly. A CAT file can be appended to a CMP file, or a CMP file can be appended to a CAT file. NOTE: Descriptions from different forums should not be combined because CatScan will have no way of knowing what forum a description originated from. Updating Multiple Compressed Files To update multiple compressed files, mark them on the File screen with '*', and select [U]pdate/[M]arked. Exit CatScan and run TAPCIS to get the new descriptions. Run CatScan again, and select [U]pdate/[A]utoappend. CatScan will automatically append any new CAT files to their matching CMP files, and then erase the CAT files. USING COMPRESSION 38 Appendix D OTHER USEFUL UTILITIES CNVDES.ARC Found in the TAPCIS forum, Library 2. Converts 'summary' files, such as those found in the IBMNET forums, to a normal CompuServe format which is compatible with CatScan. NEUTER.COM Found in TAPCIS and IBMCOM forums, Library 2. Searches catalog files for format errors and lets you edit them to conform to the format expected by CatScan. SUMUPD.ZIP IBMCOM, Library 2. Designed for use with IBMNET 'SUMMARY' files. Updates an old Library (DL) summary file (e.g., COMDESUM.MAY) with a change file (e.g., COMCHG.MAY) to create an updated summary file. BP2TAP.COM TAPCIS, Library 2. Converts Borland Forum summary files to CatScan compatible CAT files. CATICO.ZIP TAPCIS, Library 2. Windows 3.0 icons for Catscan. FINDID.ARC TAPCIS, Library 2. Searches your catalog files for files uploaded by 10 User ID's. Outputs 1 line per description found, and can be sorted by SORT.EXE KWORDSX.EXE TAPCIS, Library 2. Reports the frequency of keywords found in your catalogs. PARMSX.EXE TAPCIS, Library 2. A TAPCIS specific utility that lets you choose forums to visit from a list of all of your PARAMS.* files. Batch files Various batch files to automate the use of CatScan and TAPCIS can also be found in TAPCIS, Library 2. 39 Appendix D 40 Index A Expanded Memory ASP 2, 6 disabling for overlay 11, Ombudsman 2 34 Author disabling for shell 10 contacting 6 registering program 9 F Files B program 3 Batch mode 2, 28 colors 8 H Black and White monitors Help screens CATALYST 7 Batch mode 28 CATSCAN 11 Interactive mode 12 hot keys 12 C How to Catalogs use CatScan's Menu Trees combining 29 11 CATFILES.CFG 3, 7 CATSCAN.DUP 3 I CATSCAN.LOG 3, 10, 23, 27, Index File 10 36 character modifying 10 changing 10 CATSCAN.WRK 3 how it's named 10 command line options 28 Ins 12 interactive mode 11 Internal index restoring 25 D sorting 25 Delete Descriptions L by age 32 Libraries duplicates 18, 29, 30 browsing 22 individually 22, 24 capturing new 19, 25 updated 31 changing numbers 24 Files displaying names 15 from disk 17 erasing 25 from file list 17 menu 24 Download updating 19, See: Updating cost calculation 9, 23 license See: Registering logging See: Logging Logging downloads 23, 27 downloads CATSCAN.LOG 36, See Also: marking descriptions 23 CATSCAN.LOG writing scripts 23, 27 enabling 10 E M Exit 11 Menus hot keys 12 Using 11 41 O options 13 Ordering 9 Selection Line 11 Billing 10 Shareware 2 Ovr 12 T P TAPCIS See Also: Download Problems 2, 6 and Updating installation 9 Q library names 22 Quitting 11 running 16 CATALYST 10 Escape key 10 U Updating Catalogs 19, 33 R AGE calculations 19 Registering 6, 9 from command line 33 libraries 19 S manually 19 Scripts See: Updating and marked files 18 Download UserID 15 Searching criteria 13-14 42