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1992-09-07
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CAT2DIR.EXE
CATDISK to PCBOARD File Directory Converter
Version 2.00, September 7, 1992
By K. Scott Johnson
WHAT THE HELL IS IT?
CAT2DIR is a very simple program designed to fill a very simple need.
Rey Barry, maintainer of the Freeware Hall of Fame and SYSOP of a BBS
supporting that project, expressed the need for a program to help him
keep track of offline files. Files maintained offline weren't listed
in the PCBoard directories of his BBS, and therefore were being sent
up again by unknowing users.
Since the offline directories were maintained by the shareware program
CATDISK, all that was needed was a way to convert these databases to the
text format required by PCBoard, and to create the zero-byte file
directory entries needed to block uploads. CAT2DIR does this, and does
it quickly and elegantly.
Since PCBoard file directories generally should contain archive files
only, CAT2DIR will filter any non-archive entries from the output
stream. This means that you can continue to maintain complete CATDISK
databases, with 'look into archives' turned on, without worrying about
the individual file entries polluting the converted PCBoard directory.
HOW DO I USE IT?
Using CAT2DIR is extremely simple. First, PLEASE make sure you're
using a current version of CATDISK! The current version as of this
writing is V6.31. If your version is earlier than this, you'll need
to download CDISK631.ZIP from your friendly neighborhood BBS (see
the end of this file for the number of a GREAT one!) Upgrading your
databases is very simple and very necessary, since earlier versions
of CATDISK used a different file structure. Be sure to carefully
follow the upgrading instructions in file "READ.ME!".
Assuming you have current files, you should next decide whether you
want CAT2DIR to create the zero-byte files for you. If so, you need
to decide where they'll be written, and make sure that subdirectory
exists and is empty.
With those two conditions met, simply invoke CAT2DIR as follows:
CAT2DIR InFileName OutFileName [/FILES FileDirectory]
where InFileName is the name (including path, if needed) of a
CATDISK archive (.DTA) file, and
OutFileName is the name (including path, if needed) of a
file to which you'd like the PCBoard-format
directory written.
FileDirectory is the optional name of a directory to which
zero-byte dummy files for PCBoard should be
written. If you don't wish to write dummy
files, omit this.
Note that it's perfectly OK if the output file already exists. If it
does, CAT2DIR will ask you whether you'd like to append to the file,
overwrite it, or simply change your mind and do nothing. Since it's a
good possibility that a SYSOP might want to copy several CATDISK
databases into a single PCBoard directory, the append function should
prove especially useful.
Note also that if asked to create dummy files, CAT2DIR will run
considerably more slowly. Just how much more slowly it runs will
depend largely on your disk drive (and cache, if any).
As it runs, CAT2DIR will keep you posted on its progress. For each
CATDISK record it encounters in the input file, it will display a small
marker character on the screen. These have the following meanings:
+ means "Record copied, no problem."
- means "Record skipped because it wasn't an archive file."
? means "Record skipped because one or more fields is bogus."
At the completion of each run. CAT2DIR will also give you counts of
records copied and skipped, as well as how many bogus records it was
unable to process.
Should a serious error occur during the run, CAT2DIR will terminate
and inform you of the problem. However, all records converted prior
to the error will have been converted successfully, and the program
will close all files and exit gracefully to the best of its ability.
You may also abort CAT2DIR at any time using CTRL-BREAK, with complete
confidence that all records up to the break point have been dealt with
correctly.
REVISION HISTORY
Version Date Description
------- -------- --------------------------------------------------
1.00ß 09/01/92 First beta release.
1.10 09/03/92 First production release. Input record validation
code improved & tightened. Documentation revised
to reflect changes.
1.15 09/03/92 CATDISK database record structure changed from
V6.15 to V6.31. No other changes this version.
2.00 09/07/92 Added capability to create zero-byte dummy files
automatically for each entry. Documentation was
revised slightly.
WHO'S RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS OUTRAGE?
CAT2DIR was written by K. Scott Johnson, and is copyrighted material. It
is released as freeware. This means that you owe the author nothing in
exchange for the use of the program. You may distribute it freely by
any means so long as the author's name and copyright notice remain intact,
and so long as this documentation is distributed with each copy.
If you have any comments or suggestions on how to improve this program,
I'd love to hear from you. I can be contacted at any of these addresses:
Scott Johnson
4205 Long Key Lane #1526
Winter Park, FL 32792
e-mail: ksj7i@virginia.edu
bbs-ksj@jwt.UUCP
BBS: The Freeware Hall Of Fame (Rey Barry, SYSOP)
(804) 293-4710 (USR DS, 2400-14.4K bps)