home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
The World of Computer Software
/
World_Of_Computer_Software-02-385-Vol-1of3.iso
/
h
/
hd_acc.zip
/
HD_ACC.DOC
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1992-07-29
|
23KB
|
595 lines
The HardDisk Accomplice
Version 1.0
Copyright July 1992
All Rights Reserved
The HardDisk Accomplice is distributed under the
Shareware concept and it is not free. The program(s) may be
used for a Trial Period of thirty days. At the end of this
trial period you must do one of the following:
■ Send in the required registration fee OR
■ Delete all programs from your use.
Copying of this program in welcomed and encouraged provided
the following guide lines are followed:
■ All of the files contained in this package remain
intact and unaltered.
■ None of the files are altered or modified without
prior written permission of the Author(s).
■ No fees are charged to anyone except for the
following:
1. Disk Duplication/Costs.
2. Shipping.
3. Downloading fees.
4. Membership fees
These fees MUST NOT exceed 10.00 U.S. Dollars.
This program package may be placed on ANY BBS granted the
above conditions are met.
DISCLAIMER: "The HardDisk Accomplice" is offered to the
Public without warranty and is offered as-is. The author
takes no responsibility implied or otherwise to the
loss/damage of data or information. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This program package contains another Shareware package that
is separate and not included in the registration fees.
Registering for this package does not mean that you have
registered YOUR copy of explosiv junior. Explosiv JR is
included here by permission from Reidar Gresseth and Chris
Hook. Please refer to the file EXPLOSJR.DOC in EXPLOSJR.ZIP
for information about registering the explosiv junior screen
saver.
What is "The HardDisk Accomplice"?
The HardDisk Accomplice is a menu program to aid the
user in executing his/her programs without using ANY of the
computer's memory. The program is very flexible and easy to
use because it was designed initially to be this way!
The program supports many of today's advanced features. The
menu will automatically detect and setup the following
features:
■ 43/50 line text modes for the EGA/VGA cards of today.
■ Mouse Control.
■ 4 pages of 26 executable programs.
■ An online Help facility.
■ Uses no memory when not in the menu.
■ Features a configurable Screen Blanker that by default
uses Explosiv Junior.
■ Takes advantage of CALL and @ commands in batch files.
■ A simple easy to use Editing feature.
The Accomplice was designed for a hard drive but it can be
used on systems without a hard drive. The program must,
however, be placed in a directory in which the PATH
environment variable points to. The minimum requirements for
the Accomplice are:
■ MS-DOS 2.0 or Higher.
■ 150k of free memory.
■ 80 column graphics card: Hercules, CGA, EGA mono, EGA,
VGA or higher.
■ At least 220k of free disk space.
The Recommended requirements are:
■ MS-DOS 3.31 or higher.
■ EGA or higher graphics card.
■ A MicroSoft (TM) Compatible mouse.
■ +150k of free RAM.
■ A REGISTERED version of Explosiv JR.
What is in "The HardDisk Accomplice" package?
The package should contain the following files:
MENU.BAT - The batch file needed to run the Accomplice.
HD_ACC.EXE - The main menu program.
HD_ACC.HLP - The menu's online help data.
SCRCHECK.EXE - 43/50 line changer program.
EXPLOSJR.ZIP - The Explosiv archive that contains:
EXPLOSJR.COM - Explosiv junior for DOS executable
WXJ.EXE - Explosiv junior for Windows executable
WXJ.DLL - Windows dynamic link library
WXJ.INI - Configuration file for wxj.exe
EXPLOSJR.DOC - Documentation for explosiv junior
REGISTER.FRM - Registration/Order form for the Accomplice.
How do I use "The HardDisk Accomplice"?
First, To successfully run this program you MUST use the
batch file: MENU.BAT. This is done by typing MENU at the DOS
prompt. Certain information contained below is duplicated in
the online help facility under the F1 key. An example of the
regular 25 line mode text is given on the next page as Figure
1. This also includes some suggestions of how to separate
your applications into groups.
╔═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ ║
║ The HardDisk Accomplice ║
║ Version 1.0 ║
║ Copyright June 1992 by John David Zitterkopf ║
║ All Rights Reserved ║
║ ║
╟─────────────────────────-=≡ Unregistered Copy ≡=-────────╢ 6/28/92 09:49:56p║
║ ║
║ «A» ---> Languages «N» ║
║ «B» «O» ║
║ «C» «P» ║
║ «D» «Q» ║
║ «E» «R» ║
║ «F» «S» ║
║ «G» «T» --> HardDisk Accomplice ║
║ «H» «U» ║
║ «I» «V» ║
║ «J» ----> Communications «W» ║
║ «K» «X» ║
║ «L» «Y» ║
║ «M» «Z» ║
║ ║
╙─────────╢Esc Exit╟──────────╢F1 Help ╟──────────╢F2 Edit ╟──────────╢Page 2 ╜
Figure 1. An Example of the 25 line Main Menu Screen.
The list of keys below show the available keys used in the
main screen of the menu.
Keyboard:
A-Z : Automatically selects and executes the
specified menu item.
Enter : Executes the highlighted item.
Escape : Exits program and returns to DOS.
Home : Resets highlighted item to «A».
End : Sets highlighted item to «Z».
PageUp : Jump to previous page.
PageDown : Jump to next page.
UpArrow : Highlight previous menu item.
DownArrow : Highlight next menu item.
RightArrow : Jump to previous column.
LeftArrow : Jump to next column.
F1 : Online Help System.
F2 : Edit the highlighted item.
F3 : Setup for 'The HardDisk Accomplice'.
The mouse is also available if the appropriate driver is
loaded upon starting the program. See below.
Mouse:
LeftButton : Select an item.
RightButton : Goto next page.
BothButtons : Executes the highlighted item.
BothButtons means that both the left and right buttons are
used simultaneously. For best results, position the mouse
cursor over the desired menu item and press the left button.
Once the item is highlighted, press and hold the left button
again and then press the right button. Then release both
buttons at the same time to make the item execute. This is
difficult to do at this time, but I hope one day to change it
to a double-click of the left mouse button. If you have a
three button mouse with the proper driver, you can use the
middle button to run the highlighted menu item.
The mouse can be used to run the bottom menu, too. If
you use the left button to select Exit, Help, or Edit the
appropriate action will be taken. If a mouse is detected the
mouse cursor position is saved when exiting the menu, whether
by ESC, exit, or running the appropriate application/menu
item. This was done to save your position in the menu
program.
The Edit screen is provided to configure the menu to run
your applications. This part of the screen is shown below as
Figure 2 and it is brought up by the F2 key.
╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗╗
║ ║▒
║ «K» ║▒
║ Label : Your Application Title Here! ║▒
║ ║▒
║ Drive : C: Mode 43/50 [Y] ║▒
║ ║▒
║ Directory : Your Path here! ║▒
║ ║▒
║ Command Line : Executable and command line parameters go here. ║▒
║ ║▒
╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝▒
▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
║ ║
Figure 2. The Edit Screen for 43/50 line Text Modes
The keys available on this screen are:
Escape : Aborts editing the menu item without saving
the changes.
Backspace : Deletes the previous character.
CTRL-Y : Clears the current field.
Tab : Accepts the current field.
Enter : Accepts the current field.
DownArrow : Accepts the current field.
LeftArrow : Moves the cursor to the previous character.
RightArrow : Moves the cursor to the next character.
Home : Resets the cursor to the first character.
End : Sets the cursor to the last character.
Insert : Toggles between insert and overstrike modes.
Delete : Deletes the next character.
F1 : Brings up the Edit Help Screen.
The mouse is Disabled for this screen. The Label section is
provided for the title of the application. It can be a string
of 29 printable characters. The Label defaults to an empty
string. Next is the Drive on which this application resides.
This area only responds to one character, F1, ESC, or Enter.
The Drive defaults to C:. The Directory is the next
configurable area in the edit section. It is used to tell the
program where this application resides on the disk. The
Directory specification defaults to an empty string and is
limited to 79 printable characters. Command Line is the
application's filename with only the name, extension, and
parameters needed for the application. If arguments can
change, you can place a % in the command line area. This will
cause an argument window to pop up requesting the necessary
arguments when the item is executed. NOTE: If you have a DOS
version above 3.31 the CALL directive will be used to execute
batch files with the extension .BAT. The last section Mode
43/50 [ ] will only appear if you have an EGA or VGA card in
your system. This section only accepts a 'y', 'n', ESC, or
Enter. Mode 43/50 [ ] defaults to No.
Figure 3 shows the Setup Screen used for the screen
blanker option. The default values are shown there.
╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗╗
║ ║▒
║ Screen Saver ║▒
║ ║▒
║ Time (Min) : 5 ║▒
║ Filename : C:\EXPLOSJR.COM ║▒
║ Command line : fonts ║▒
║ ║▒
║ ║▒
║ ║▒
║ ║▒
╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝▒
▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
║ ║
Figure 3. Setup Screen for the Screen Blanker
Time is used to determine how long Accomplice should wait
after the last key or mouse button action before executing
the NON-TSR screen saver program shown in the Filename area.
Time is accepted in whole minutes from 1 minute to 59
minutes. To disable the screen saver altogether, set Time to
0. Filename is the full pathname of the non-TSR screen saver
you wish to use. Command line is included to send in
parameters to the program listed in Filename.
NOTE: Accomplice attempts to find the file you list in
Filename. If it cannot find the filename where you specify
it, You will have to enter the correct name or an empty
string to be allowed to go on. The same keys used here are
the same used in the Edit section.
TroubleShooting "The HardDisk Accomplice"
The command line options for HD_ACC.EXE are:
HD_ACC [25lines|43lines] [Mouse=ON|OFF] [sXXXX,YYY] [/?]
First, Keep these files accessible by not making them
Read-Only, Hidden, or System:
HD_ACC.CFG - Created after the program runs.
HD_ACC.HLP - The help screen data.
BATCH_1.BAT - Created when the application is run.
All Files contained in this package should be located in the
same directory as HD_ACC.EXE.
"The program runs correctly. But when I try to run my
application from HD_ACC.EXE, I get the DOS prompt without
running the application. What is wrong here?"
In order for the Accomplice to run correctly, the batch
file MENU.BAT must be used; Therefore, use MENU at the DOS
prompt to run the Accomplice.
If you know that you have a video card that supports at
least 80x43 text and for some reason the program does not
catch this you can force the program to run in this mode by
first testing HD_ACC.EXE to see if it "likes" your card. To
do this type at the DOS prompt: "HD_ACC 43lines" without the
quotes. If the program runs in 80x43 or 80x50 line text you
can edit MENU.BAT to run this mode by locating the second
line in the batch that should read:
HD_ACC %1
to HD_ACC 43lines %1
If for some reason you would like to force the program
to run in an 80x25 mode, you can change the same line to read
"HD_ACC 25LINES %1".
"For some reason my mouse cursor will not travel the
entire screen. Is there a way to fix this?"
Yes, there is a command line parameter set up to force
your mouse driver to successfully traverse the screen. To
test to see if this works, you need to determine the normal
resolution of your video card. For example, an EGA card has a
maximum resolution of 640x350 scan lines. Next, at the DOS
prompt type: HD_ACC sXXXX,YYY where XXXX is the maximum
resolution in the X direction and YYY is the resolution in
the y direction. An example for the EGA video card would be:
HD_ACC s640,350
If this solves your problem then you will need to edit
MENU.BAT to include the modified command. This is done by
editing the second line of text that reads,
HD_ACC %1
to HD_ACC sXXXX,YYY %1
This resolution option can be used in combination with any of
the __LINES commands described above. No particular order is
required. In some cases it might be necessary to upgrade your
mouse driver the newest version.
You may also have the need to enable or disable the
mouse. If for some unknown reason the Accomplice does not
detect your mouse, you may include a command line option as
described above that reads MOUSE=ON. Use this option with
care! If you would like to disable the mouse totally, the
option is MOUSE=OFF.
If after some natural disaster like a disk crash you
find HD_ACC.CFG damaged and you get Runtime errors, you will
need to start a new .CFG file. This is done be deleting
HD_ACC.CFG and re-starting the Accomplice by MENU.BAT.
Miscellaneous Information and Contacting Me
As a Full-Time College Student, I hope one day to
graduate and move to a good Electrical Engineering job.
Unfortunately, I see no way around it. My expected graduation
date is December of 1993. Since this is copyrighted material,
I do not want it to become "Abandoned ShareWare". If after
November 1993, you read this Document just after downloading
the package, please contact me for a replacement and ask the
SYSOP of the site or BBS to remove the package. If you
contact me I will attempt to get the SYSOP a new version of
the package with my new address. If all else fails, I plan to
keep an America OnLine account for a very long while. You can
contact me there for sure. See REGISTRATION for more
information on how to contact me.
REGISTRATION
As stated above this is a ShareWare Package. To continue
to use it after the trial period you MUST send me a
registration fee of $20US. A invoice form is included in this
package as REGISTER.FRM. Remember, EXPLOSJR.ZIP is a separate
ShareWare package and you must register it separately if you
plan to use it past the trial period. See EXPLOSJR.DOC for
more information. Site and Network Licences are available,
contact the address below for more information. The current
U.S. address to send this fee is:
ZittWare
c/o John Zitterkopf
940 North Jackson Street
7D RoseHill Place
Starkville, MS 39759
If you have any questions, comments, problems, or just want
to talk, I presently have numerous Electronic Mail, E-Mail,
addresses. If you have access to INTERNET try the following
addresses in the order they appear:
jdz1@Ra.MsState.Edu
jdz1@Isis.MsState.Edu
jdz1@MsState.Bitnet
zitt@aol.com
bo262@freenet-in-a.cwru.edu
If you have an America Online account my USERID is ZITT. If
you have another E-mail accounts like CompuServe, MCImail,
FidoNet, ect. there should be a way to mail out to INTERNET
addresses. I will do my best to answer any mail I get.
Acknowledgments
MicroSoft Mouse and MS-DOS are of course trademarks of
MicroSoft.
Reidar Gresseth and Chris Hook for their help and Software
package.
Melissa Zitterkopf for her help and patience. {You know I
can't leave the wife out 8-)}
Shane Zhender as one of my better/older friends.
David Calhoun, Rich Holland, Ted Mittelstaedt for their help
and code.
And last but not least, All the Beta Testers:
Tim Emmerich Andy Hakim
Kevin Heering Anthony Nardo
Steven Poulsen Neal Rauhauser
Rob Ward