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│ │ │ ▀▀▀▀▀█▀▀▀█ │ █ █ │ ▄▀█ █ │ ▄▀ █ █ │ ▀ ▀▀▀ ────────────────────────── │ FONT MANIA USER MANUAL │ █▀▀▀▀█▀▀▀█ ────────────────────────── │ █ █ █ │ █ █ █ │ █ █ │ │ █ █ │ ▀▄ ▄▀ │ ▀▄▄▀ │ ▄▀▀▄ │ ▄▀ ▀▄ │ █ █ │ │ █ █ │ ▀▄ ▄▀ │ ▀▄▄▀ │ ▄▀▀▄ │ ▄▀ ▀▄ │ █ █ │ │ ▄▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▄ │ █ █ │ █ █ │ █ █ │ ▀▄ ▄▀ │ │ ▄▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▄ │ █ █ │ █ █ │ █ █ │ ▀▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▀ FONT MANIA │ Unregistered Version 2.2 │ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀█ EGA/VGA TEXT FONT EDITOR │ ▄▀ BY Ut... │ ▄▀ COPYRIGHT (C) 1992 REXXCOM SYSTEMS │ ▀▄ │ ▀▄ │ ▀▄ │ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ │ │ ─────────────────────────────────── T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ─────────────────────────────────── Requirements..................................................1 Overview......................................................1 Quick Tour....................................................2 Using FONT MANIA..............................................3 Editing commands..............................................4 Using menus...................................................6 Saving Fonts..................................................9 Loading Fonts................................................10 Using COM Font Files.........................................11 Installing a Memory Resident Font............................11 Using Other File Formats.....................................12 Creating Special Effects.....................................13 Letters "Running Together"...................................17 Automatic Mode Reset.........................................18 Creating Tall, Small and Wide Fonts..........................18 Restoring the Default Font...................................19 Copying, Distribution and Registration.......................19 Illustrations...............................6,13,14,15,16,17,18 ────────── * ───────── Note: If this document is printed on a printer which does not fully support the extended character set, portions of the document will not print correctly. These portions include the name REXXCOM which appears on the right of the title page, plus the illustrations. i Requirements: IBM computer or 100% compatible "clone" DOS 2.0 or higher EGA, VGA, or 100% compatible video system At least 80k of free memory Overview: Are you tired of the letter style of your computer? Are you looking for a change? Maybe you simply would like to have some fun? FONT MANIA might just be the answer. FONT MANIA is designed for editing EGA and VGA fonts with ease. It incorporates a user-friendly menu-driven sytem which makes using FONT MANIA incredibly easy. It is also packed with powerful tools for easy editing of fonts. Here are just a few examples of applications and uses for FONT MANIA: - Edit your computer's default text font, or create a completely new font-set. - Save the font in a COM file which you can easily activate from the DOS prompt or from any BATCH file, including your AUTOEXEC.BAT - If you are a programmer, you can incorporate your redesigned fonts into your programs. - Use custom fonts to create special effects and more DEMO.EXE included with this package demonstrates several incredible uses of FONT MANIA. To run the DEMO, type the following: DEMO and press <ENTER>. The demo will run and you can print this manual, or the registration form at the end of the DEMO. 1 QUICK TOUR: Type the following at DOS prompt: FM then press <ENTER>. FONT MANIA's editing screen should appear on the monitor. If not, check to make sure you are in the right drive and path, and the program file is there, then try again. You will see a giant yellow 'A' in a black area on left side of the screen. This is the editing area. To the right of the editing area are two boxes, one labeled STATUS, and the other labeled KEY. The STATUS box shows the current status of FONT MANIA. The KEY box shows the listing of the valid keys or key-combinations you may use. Try moving the cursor by pressing right arrow key. You will observe the cursor moving one space to the right. Try pressing other arrow keys. The cursor will move according to the arrows. Try pressing PgDn (Page Down), and you will see a huge 'B'. Press PgUp (Page Up) to return 'A' to the screen. Now press space bar once. The pixel un- der the cursor will toggle on or off. Notice the change in the 'A' in the status box. Now press the tab key (that's the key with right and left arrows on it). The entire character set will appear in place of the editing area. Move the cursor in various directions. Press the Enter key to return to the editing area ... it will now contain a large image of the character your cursor was on when you pressed the Enter key. Now, let's try loading a font. Press F3 and FONT MANIA will prompt you for a filename. Type the following: COM_DEMO then press <ENTER>. FONT MANIA will load the font. If there is an error, make sure you have the file COM_DEMO.COM in your current di- rectory. After FONT MANIA finishes loading the font, you will notice a change in the pattern of the huge 'A'. Let's try some other tools. Press and hold the ALT key; then press I. The whole character will be in- verted! Again, notice the change in the 'A' in the status box. You are encuraged to try all the commands listed in the KEY box. Now Press and hold ALT-A to save the font in COM file format. You will be prompted for a filename. Type: MYFONT Press <ENTER>. The font is saved with the name MYFONT.COM. (The COM extension is automatically added to your filename.) Press ESC to exit the program. Press 'Y' when asked if you really want to exit. That's it!!!, you just learned how to use FONT MANIA!!! Pretty painless, wasn't it?! 2 USING FONT MANIA: To run FONT MANIA from DOS, just type the following: FM [filename] and press <ENTER>. Where [filename] is the optional file name of a font file previously made with FONT MANIA. If the filename is inclu- ded, the font will load. If you do not specify a font filename FONT MANIA will use whichever font is already active, usually your computer's default ROM BIOS font. For more information on loading a font, see LOADING FONTS. FONT MANIA's editing screen will appear. There are many different area of this screen which serve different functions. It really is not confusing - just extremely comprehensive! Menu Bar: Across the top of the screen locate the menu bar. This menu bar shows menu titles. To "pull down" a menu, hold down the ALT key while pressing a key corresponding to one of the highlighted char- acters in the menu titles. (Functions when editing area is visible; does not function when character set is visible.) Status Box: The box labeled STATUS provides the current status of FONT MANIA. LINES shows how many lines of text will fit into the current screen. The number of lines which may be displayed on the screen at one time varies depending on the number of scanlines and the height of the font. VDO shows the current video adapter in use in your system. SCANLINE shows how many horizontal scanlines are currently active. On EGA systems, this SCANLINE is always 35O. On VGA, the scanline may be set to one of the following values: 2OO, 35O, or 4OO. FILENAME shows the current font filename. If FILENAME shows NONE, that means the font has not yet been given a filename or that Font Mania has not been provided with the name of the font during the current session. At the top of the box may be seen 2 smaller boxes. The first will display the current character being edited, and the second box will show the ASCII decimal value of that character. At the bottom of the box you will find 2 numbers separated by a colon (:). This is the current X:Y position of the cursor in the editing area. 3 Key Box: This is the large box labeled KEY. This always shows the valid keyboard commands. It will show the key combination which per- form each function. Status Line: This line is located at the bottom of the screen. It will report what is currently happening. Editing Area: This is the middle left hand side of the screen. When the program is first excuted it will display a huge 'A' in a black rectangle area with blinking cursor (yellow on red.) This is the area in which each character of the font-set will be edited. EDITING COMMANDS: All editing commands are displayed in the KEY box. Press F1 for the "second page." This is the list of commands and their functions: Up, Down, Left and Right arrow keys will move the cursor. Hold either Shift key in combination with one of the arrow keys to "drag" the pixel. (Some computers need the Num Lock key pressed first. If so, be certain to press Num Lock again when finished.) PgUp, PgDn - Change the editing character to the previous character or the next one. Space - The Space Bar toggles the pixel at the current cursor position on or off. CTRL-H, V - Blank the Horizontal line or Vertical line. ALT-H, V - Fill (turn all pixels on) the Horizontal or Vertical line. TAB - Select from the character set. The large yellow- on-black font disappears to be replaced by the char- acter table. Use arrow keys to move the cursor to the character you want; then press <ENTER>. CTRL-D - Copy the default character, i.e.: If you have begun to edit a character you may cancel your editing with this command. 4 CTRL-B - Mark the beggining of block CTRL-E - Mark the ending of block ALT-X, Y - Insert a blank column or a row. CTRL-X, Y - Delete a column or a row. CTRL-A, S - Rotate the whole character Left or Right. CTRL-W, Z - Scroll the whole character Up or Down. ALT-A - Save as... (Permits entering a [new] filename) CTRL-C - Clear the current character. (Blank the character) ALT-C - Copy a character to another location. You must start with the character which occupies your TARGET location in the editing area. When you press ALT-C the character table will appear. Use arrow keys to move the red cursor to the SOURCE character (which you want copied to the TARGET location). Press <EN- TER> to copy that character to your TARGET location. ALT-I - Invert the character. All of the pixels are reversed. Pixels which are on will turn off, and the pixels which are off will turn on. Insert - Insert a blank pixel at the current cursor position. All pixels to the right are shifted to the right one column-space. Delete - Delete pixel at the current cursor position. All pixels to the right are shifted to the left. F2 - Save font. See SAVING FONTS F3 - Load font. See LOADING FONT. F5 - Flip vertical. Directly inverts character, but does not reverse it horizontally. F6 - Flip Horizontal. Creates a "mirror image." F7 - Copy row. All pixels below the cursor are shifted down one row. F8 - Copy column. All pixels to the right of the cursor are shifted to the right once. 5 ESC - Exit FONT MANIA. The font you edited will be left active. Type, and text will appear onscreen in its altered (custom) form. To restore the compu- ter's default font, type the following DOS command: MODE CO80 (Note: 2nd character is letter O, last is zero.) then press <ENTER>. You are encouraged to try all these commands. After all, it is the best way to learn to use FONT MANIA. Notice that CTRL commands will usually delete something, and ALT commands usually add something to the editing character. CTRL-A, S, W, and Z are easy to remember. Notice where A, S, W, and Z are placed on the keyboard. ILLUSTRATION SHOWING HOW FONTS MAY BE EDITED TO ALTER THEIR STYLE: ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ┌────────┐ ┌───────┐ ┌────────┐ ┌───────┐ │ORIGINAL│ │ALTERED│ │ORIGINAL│ │ALTERED│ └────────┘ └───────┘ └────────┘ └───────┘ Create a new font style by altering your default font to a taller, thinner font by deleting some pixels and adding others. Do the same to each letter of the alphabet. Save, and you have a brand new letterstyle! Once you are "in the swing of it" each letter takes less than 1 minute to revise. USING MENUS: FONT MANIA has been written as a menu-driven program to make it easier to learn and use. FONT MANIA has 5 different menus: FILE, SCAN LINE, FONT, HEIGHT, and BLOCK. To activate a menu, make sure the editing area is visible rather than the character set. Press and hold the ALT key, then press a key corresponding to the highlighted letter in a menu title. Use arrow keys to select the items in the menu or to change to another menu once you have accessed one of them. 6 FILE menu: Contains 8 items: Save, Save As..., Save ASM, Save PAS, Save C, Save BIN, Load, About, and Exit. Selecting from among these items will permit the use of the following functions: Save: Selecting this item is the same as using F2 command. Font Mania will save the font in COM format. See SAVING FONTS for more information. If 'FILE NAME' shows a name, that name will be used and you will NOT be warned that the file already exists. Save As...: Selecting this item is the same as using ALT-A. Font Mania will prompt you to enter a filename for the font. See SAVING FONTS for more information. If you enter the name of an existing file you will be warned of that fact. Save ASM: Save the font in ASSEMBLY text file format. See SAVING FONTS for more information. Save PAS: Save the font in PASCAL format. See SAVING FONTS for more information. Save C: Save the font in C header file format. See SAVING FONTS for more information. Save BIN: Save the font in raw BINARY format. See SAVING FONTS for more information. Load: Selecting this item is identical to using F3. FONT MANIA loads the saved font file (COM format only) and reinitializes itself. See LOADING FONT for more information. About...: Displays information about FONT MANIA. Exit: Selecting this item is the same as pressing ESC. FONT MANIA will ask if you really want to exit the program. If the font has been modified after the last saving of the font in COM file format, FONT MANIA then ask if you want to save the font. SCAN LINE menu: Contains 3 items: 200, 350, and 400. Each of the numbers cor- responds to the number of scan lines on your monitor screen. This scan line changing feature is operable only on VGA systems. If you have EGA and try to change the scan line, FONT MANIA will display an ERROR message. EGA always has 35O scan lines. 7 FONT menu: Contains 3 items: 8, 14, and 16 points. Each of the items cor- responds to your computer's ROM BIOS font. EGA systems have only 8 or 14 point fonts. 16 point font is available on VGA systems. Once you select a font, FONT MANIA loads the corresponding font into the edit- ting buffer and resets itself. WARNING: When a font is selected from the FONT menu, if you have been editing another font your changes will be lost unless you first save your revised font for future use. HEIGHT menu: Contains 16 numbers which correspond to the height to which a font may be changed. The font being edited is NOT lost when this option is used. If the height selected from this menu is greater than the height of the current font, the current font will "STRETCH" to the height selected. If the height selected is shorter than the current height, one or more lines at the bottom of the block will be lost. If this occurs there is no command which will restore the missing part. If characters are moved up (block 'Move up') leaving blank lines at the bottom of the font block, a lesser height may be selected without causing deletion of the lowermost pixels of the characters. WARNING: Selection of a short height may cause characters to be so truncated that the program's menu will be il- legible! Should this occur, you must immediately press <ESC> followed by 'Y' and then type MODE CO80 and <ENTER>. If done with care rebooting is not needed. It is a good idea to write this on a "Post- it" note and stick it on your wall! IMPORTANT: SCANLINE and FONT HEIGHT must "match" in order to make a perfect 25-line display when the font is used. The following chart indicates the corre- sponding values for SCANLINE and FONT HEIGHT: SCANLINE FONT HEIGHT 200 8 350 14 400 16 By using different combinations of HEIGHT, FONT and SCAN LINES, you can create a screen which can display, almost anywhere, between 12 and 400 lines on a VGA system!!! BLOCK menu: This menu contains some of the editing commands which are likely to be used for all characters or for a block of characters simultaneously. Each of the functions listed in the BLOCK menu perform the same function as the editing commands, but on the set (block) of characters rather than only one character. 8 One unique function in this BLOCK menu is the BLOCK LOAD* function. This option is similar to LOAD in the FILE menu, but in- stead of replacing the current font by loading another entire font file, BLOCK loads only the character(s) in the current block. Thus it is easy to combine different portions (one or more characters) of more than one font COM file. The uses of this feature are many. Just as an example, if for some reason you wanted lowercase text to appear in one style and uppercase in another style, you could "block copy" lowercase from one font COM to another. To set your block, press the Tab key to bring the entire character set to the screen. Place the cursor on the first character of the desired block and press B (for "Begin"). Then move the cursor to the last character of the block and press E ("End"). Now Tab again and select BLOCK LOAD. Type the name of the font COM from which you want to load the characters of the block. In an instant the job will be done! Similarly, you may combine 2 sets of uppercase characters, one style to appear when caps lock is "on" and the other when it is "off." First copy "A" to the "a" location within one COM file; continue through the alphabet and save the file as TEMP.COM. Load a COM file of a different font style and mark the lowercase characters as a block. Then BLOCK LOAD that block from TEMP.COM and you will have a new font COM file with two sets of uppercase characters. Another use for the block load/block copy option is to move special characters from one font COM file to another, as when you have a file containing a nicely shaped star or skull or special logo, and you want to copy it into a different font COM file. How would you like to have a text appear on the screen with your signature in script at the bottom? Load a script font COM (you'll get one with the registered version) and copy the letters of your name to characters not used in your text. If you are Tom Pane, copy T to !, o to @, m to # and so forth. Save the file as TEMP.COM and then block load !@#$%^& to the COM you'll use for your text. When you type !@# $%^& Tom Pane will appear in "handwriting!" SAVING FONTS: FONT MANIA offers many saving formats: COM, ASSEMBLY, PASCAL, C, and BINARY. The standard format is COM file. This is also the only format which FONT MANIA can load. COM: Saving in COM format is very simple. You can press ALT-S, ALT- A, or F2 while the editing screen is visible. If you use ALT-S or F2, and the font file already has a name, FONT MANIA will save the file using that name and overwrite the old file. If the font has not yet been named, or if you use ALT-A, FONT MANIA will ask if you want to save it in 4O column mode. If you press 'Y', the resultant COM file will change the screen mode to 4O columns when executed, rather than 8O columns. Then FONT MANIA will prompt you for a file name. Enter a name, including path if desired, with no extension. If there is an existing file of the same name you will be alerted to avoid overwriting it. The extension COM will be added automat- ically. After saving you will be returned to the editing screen. *The block load and block copy options are available in the registered version of Font Mania. 9 ASSEMBLY: To save in ASSEMBLY format, you must select Save ASM from the FILE menu. You will be asked for the filename. Again, no extension is needed. The extension ASM will be automatically added to the end of the file name. After the name is entered you will be prompted for a reference to be used. This is the name used as the label for the font data. You will be returned to the editing screen after FONT MANIA has completed these two saves. PASCAL: To save in PASCAL format, select Save PAS from the FILE menu. You will be asked for the filename. Again, no extension is needed. The extension PAS will be automatically added. When prompted for a reference, enter a name to be used as the label for the font data. You will be returned to the editing screen after the save. C: To save in C Header format, select Save C from the FILE menu. You will be asked for the filename. Again, no extension is needed. Extension H will be automatically added to the end of the file name. After the file name is entered, you will be prompted for a reference. This is the name to be used as the label for the responding values for SCANLINE and FONT HEIGHT: SCANLINE FONT HEIGHT 200 8 350 14 400 16 BINARY: To save in raw BINARY format, select Save BIN. No extension is needed; extension BIN is automatically added to the end of the file name. After entering the file name, you will be asked for a reference. This is the name to be used as the label for the font data. You will be returned to the editing screen after FONT MANIA saves the files. This format is for use with languages other than the languages above. LOADING A FONT: There are 3 ways to load a font for editing. Because FONT MANIA will use whichever font is active at the time the program is loaded, you may first load a font (COM file) and then run FONT MANIA. This method is somewhat unreliable, especially if the cur- rent screen mode is 4O columns. It is preferable to use the com- mand line method to effect loading of the font and FONT MANIA together. To load a font using the command line method, type the following at the DOS prompt and then press <ENTER>. FM [filename] 10 In the above command "filename" is the name of a FONT MANIA COM file. The file will be loaded automatically. To load a different font while FONT MANIA is in operation, use ALT-L or choose "Load" from the filemenu which is accessed with ALT-F. You will be prompted for a filename. After entering the filename FONT MANIA will load the font and reinitialize itself. USING COM FONT FILES: COM files are easiest to use. Just type the name of the COM file at the DOS prompt; font will be loaded and the SCAN LINE will be set (on VGA systems). For example, to load the font file named COM_DEMO.COM type the following command and press <ENTER>: COM_DEMO As the file is loaded the scan line will be set to the correct scan line setting (VGA systems only). The font will be active as long as there is no change in video mode and no other font is loaded. INSTALLING A MEMORY RESIDENT FONT: If it is desired to have a particular font remain active during the running of various programs, it may be loaded as a memory-resident program with the use of the R or I options. For example, type this at the DOS prompt followed by <ENTER>: COM_DEMO I The font will be loaded and remain resident in memory until the compu- ter is reset or turned off. Such a memory-resident font will reload whenever a change occurs in video mode, but graphics will not be af- fected. To see how much memory is used by a font file, run ZMEM.EXE (Comes with the REGISTERED VERSION of FONT MANIA). The command line options which are available are: <filename> [B#] [H|?] [I|R|U] <filename> - name of the COM file B# - specify character generator block to use (should be set to 0) H - display help ? - same as above I - install font in memory R - permanently install font in memory U - uninstall font from memory. One a font is installed in memory, the following three keyboard com- mands will be available: 11 CTRL+ALT+E - enables automatic font loading CTRL+ALT+D - disables automatic font loading CTRL+ALT+F - user-requested unconditional font loading For example, suppose you want to load the font into the character generator block 0 and install the font in the memory. You would use the command: AMB b0 i then press enter. Notice the use of the 'I' option. This option enables you to uninstall the font from memory at any time with the 'U' option. For example, to uninstall AMB.COM type the fol- lowing: AMB u If you ever encounter software compatibility problems when using the I option, try the R option instead. But be aware of the fact that when the R option is employed the font COM may not be removed from memory without restarting or resetting the computer. It may, however, be temporarily disabled with keyboard commands mentioned above. USING OTHER FONT FILE FORMATS: In general a program must use the ROM BIOS interrupt 10H (16), the screen control interrupt, function 11H sub-function 10H to load the font. The following are the parameters needed to call the interrupt: AH = 11H AL = 10H BH = points (bytes per character) BL = block (use 0) CX = number of character defined by table (256) DX = first character code in table (use 0) ES = segment of the table BP = offset of the table For ASSEMBLY, C, and PASCAL, see the following files for examples of the above. These may be typed to the screen or printed: PAS_DEMO.PAS ASM_DEMO.ASM C_DEMO.C For other languages, a programmer might use the COM file format by shelling out to DOS to load the COM file. For example, in Quick Basic the following command may be utilized: 12 SHELL "AMB.COM" Alternately, the BINARY format may be used by loading the content of the file into a memory buffer, putting the memory address of that buffer into ES:BP, filling in the parameters, and then calling inter- rupt 1OH. Do not use the R command line when shelling out to run a font COM file. This action will generate a "fatal error" which will halt the system. CREATING SPECIAL EFFECTS The spceial effects used in the DEMO program are quite easy to make with FONT MANIA. Some effects are done by combining two or more characters. Here are several examples showing how you may create special effects with FONT MANIA: INITIALS: In this effect, once the COM file is loaded, typing one key will produce a word, name or initials in miniature letters. It is quite easy to alter a character (or more than one, if you like) to achieve this effect. Pick any character you want to convert to its new use. You might select characters such as < and > for example, and totally change each of them: "<" ">" ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ Whenever the font containing these 2 designs is active, typing "<" will create a small "UT" initial, and typing ">" will create "LOU". These are just sample letters and designs. You may use any letter, numeral or design you wish. 13 BUTTONS: One way to create "buttons" is to modify any 4 characters to the following designs: "{" "|" "}" "*" ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ For the example, use the characters shown above the designs to create the buttons. The above is just a sample design for 14- point fonts. You are not limited to this design, of course. It is not difficult to see how these redesigned characters may be put together to make buttons. When the font COM file contain- ing these designs is active, typing "{|}" will create an unselect button, and "{*}" will create a select button, Just as in the DEMO. 14 GUIDED MISSILE: The missile used in the demonstration was constructed of four characters strung together. Below are the designs and the char- acters used to make a guided missile: "=" "]" "-" ">" ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓ ▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ █ █ █▓▓ ▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓ ▓▓ █ █ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ In the preceding example the equals sign (=) has been rede- signed to be the flame, the bracket (]) becomes the tail piece, the minus sign (-) is the body of the missile, and the greater- than symbol (>) the head of the missile. When the font contain- ing this design is active, typing (or having a program "print") this string: "=]--->" will create a missile pointing to the right. Notice the use of more than one minus sign in the string. By in- cluding more than 1 body character the missile becomes as long as desired. To create left-to-right movement, your program must print the missile with a leading space: " =]--->". First print the string at the far left edge of the screen, beginning in column 1. Then re- print the same string 1 character to the right of the first string so it overlaps the original. The leading space will automatically erase the unwanted part of the first missile-image on the screen. 15 AN ANIMATED CHARACTER: As in other simulated animations, the secret behind creating an animated character is the display of a sequence of slightly differ- ent characters at one location. For example, you may create these hourglass designs with the 1-through-5 numeral characters: "1" "2" "3" ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ "4" "5" ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ Because each character differs just slightly from the first one, simply create the first one "pixel by pixel" in Font Mania. Then use the ALT-C "copy" command to create 4 copies; modify the copies as shown here. By displaying these five characters in sequence at one location on the screen, the illusion of an hourglass with fall- ing sand is created. With a time-delay after each character's dis- play, plus a loop, the animation of a character which is no larger than one uppercase letter is easily created! 16 These few examples of special effects which may be made with FONT MANIA provide a mere hint of possibilities. There is no limit to effects which may be created with altered fonts made by FONT MANIA. LETTERS "RUNNING TOGETHER": Characters which are the full width of the block will be correct when used with a VGA monitor, but the letters will "run together" on an EGA monitor. The enclosed samples, JULIE.COM and POOTER.COM are in this category. Wide fonts may be made narrower for use on EGA systems by reducing their width, as we did by narrowing the POOTER font and saving it as POOTER2.COM. To make the letters and numerals narrower, we used Font Mania to remove one vertical column from each character with CTRL-X. In some cases we added a pixel or two to improve a let- ter's appearance. If we made an error, we restored the original font with CTRL-D and tried again. The conversion of POOTER to POOTER2 was accomplished in less than 1O minutes. Try not to lose sight of the possibility of your fonts being used on an EGA system. ILLUSTRATION SHOWING HOW THE POOTER FONT WAS EDITED TO MAKE POOTER2: ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓xx▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ xx ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ xx▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ xx▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ xx▓▓▓ █ █▓▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓ ▓▓▓▓▓ █ █▓▓ xx▓▓▓ █ █▓▓ ▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ █ █ xx █ █ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ ▓xx▓▓▓ █ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ ▓xx▓▓▓ █ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ ▓xx▓▓▓ █ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ ▓xx▓▓▓ █ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █ ▓▓▓▓▓▓ █ █ ▓xx▓▓▓ █ █ ▓▓▓▓ ▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓xx▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓xx▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓xx▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓xx▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ █▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ORIGINAL "A" EDITED "A" FILLS WIDTH OF BLOCK ONE COLUMN REMOVED PIXELS AUTOMATICALLY (TOO WIDE FOR EGA) RELOCATE LEFT AS SHOWN 17 AUTOMATIC MODE RESET: In saving a font, selecting "automatic mode reset" will cause the scanline of a VGA system to reset to an EGA scanline if you you have chosen a scanline of 350 (font height should also be set at 14). The included file CHUNKY.COM is in this category. There are often advan- tages to using the EGA scanline. For example, this row of extended characters appears as a solid bar of dots when the EGA scanline is used: ░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ The same row will appear as 50 dotted rectangles if the VGA scanline is in effect. NOTE: An EGA system can not be reset to a VGA scanline. A font which is not saved with automatic mode reset may produce a small problem when it is installed on a system other than the one on which it was created. For example, a font created on a VGA system will be slightly "taller" if used with EGA, and the listing of a long file directory will result in the apparent "disappearance" of the DOS prompt and cursor below the bottom line of the screen. If this occurs do not panic. Simply clear the screen with the CLS command and your DOS prompt and cursor will reappear in the top left corner. The re- verse effect will occur if a font made on an EGA system is displayed on a VGA monitor. 25 lines of text will not extend to the bottom of the screen, because each line will be vertically "stunted." To pre- vent these minor annoyances when you anticipate that your font may be used on both systems, save it as a 14-point font with a scanline of 350 and select automatic mode reset. If this is done, the font height will not vary regardless of whether it is used with VGA or EGA. There are times when it is advantageous not to use the automatic mode reset. For example, if you want the text on the screen to "magically" change to a different font, you must have the 2nd font saved without automatic mode reset. Otherwise the screen will blank during the mode set and the change will not appear as magical. CREATING TALL, SMALL, AND WIDE FONTS: Use ALT-N and ALT-O to select various combinations of scanline and point size before saving a font. Then exit the program and check the results. Also try saving a font in 40 column mode rather than the usual 80 column mode. When this is done, you must reload the font after exiting Font Mania. Experimentation will teach you more than we can provide here, and you will enjoy discovering the combinations which will provide the tallest and widest fonts as well as the tiniest ones. 18 RESTORING THE DEFAULT FONT: The default font style is that which appears on your screen when you start your computer. Your computer has one particular font or lettering style stored in its read-only memory or ROM. When a COM file created in Font Mania is put into use, at a later time you may wish to return to the default font. This will happen automatically each time your computer is started or reset, unless your AUTOEXEC.BAT file is set up to load a font COM. However, it is not necessary to reset the computer to return the default font to the screen. If neither the I nor R option has been used in loading the font COM file, typing the following DOS command will restore the default font after the Enter key is pressed: mode CO80 If the font COM file has been installed with the I option, it must be uninstalled with the U option. This will restore the default font. If the font COM is one which resets the video mode, restoring the default font will not restore the computer's default video mode (EGA or VGA scanline) if it has been changed. To restore the video mode or scanline run EGA.COM or VGA.COM (included with registered Font Mania). VGA.COM has no effect if you are using a system with an EGA monitor. If you write a batch file or program which resets the video mode, and you anticipate its use on both EGA and VGA systems, you may end the file with commands which run EGA.COM followed by VGA.COM. In this way you may be assured the system will be reset to both the default font and the default video mode or scanline. COPYING, DISTRIBUTION AND REGISTRATION: Shareware (unregistered) Font Mania may be freely posted on BBSs, listed in shareware catalogs and copied for friends, as long as the complete package of files is kept together in unaltered form. You may use the unregistered edition of Font Mania for two weeks free of charge. After that time, if you decide you want to continue using it, you must become a registered user. When you register you will receive the following by return mail: 1. The registered version, with block-load/block copy functions 2. At least 24 ready-to-use custom fonts in the form of COM files 3. CGA.COM, EGA.COM, VGA.COM video mode/scanline utilities 4. The program ZMEM - the "memory walker" program 5. The program UFF - the file-finder program 6. User support to answer your questions 7. Other programs and utilities which you will enjoy using Please complete the registration form which follows, and mail with payment in full. Thank you. If you have questions regarding the use of Font Mania you may write to REXXCOM at the address on the registration form, or leave a message on CompuServe. Address Email to CompuServe ID 72656,2765. 19 ====================================================================== FONT MANIA Version 2.2 REGISTRATION FORM ====================================================================== NAME: ________________________________________________________ ADDRESS: ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________ (Include ZIP code or equivalent) PHONE: (______)- _______ - __________________ DISK SIZE (check one): [ ] 3.5" [ ] 5.25" ====================================================================== DESCRIPTION QTY. EACH Total Registered version of FONT MANIA _______ X $17.00 = __________ Includes block-load/block-copy functions The following will be included at no extra charge: - 24 or more ready-to-use custom fonts (COM files) - The program ZMEM - the "memory walker" program (take a walk through your memory!) - VGA.COM, EGA.COM, CGA.COM utilities to emulate or reset VGA, EGA, or CGA scanlines on VGA monitors - The program UFF - the file finder program - User support by mail or CompuServe EMail - Other programs which you will enjoy using Add $1.00 for each 3.5" diskette _______ X $1.00 = __________ Shipping & handling ($2.00 US & Canada; $5.00 elsewhere)= __________ New Jersey residents, please add 7% sale tax = __________ TOTAL = __________ Enclose cash, check or money order payable to: REXXCOM SYSTEMS Always send cash by certified mail. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Mail this form with payment in full to: REXXCOM SYSTEMS P.O. BOX 111 SCHOOLEY'S MTN., NJ 07870 THANK YOU.