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FEATURES.NEW
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1992-07-31
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PCBFV (C) Copyright 1990-1991 Yandell Computer Services
This file describes the new features in recent PCBFV releases.
Please refer to PCBFV.DOC for a basic description of PCBFV.
-- [ PCBFV 3.0 New Features 7/31/92 ] -------------------------------
* The ability to PageUp while reading text files has been added. This new
command is "P" for PageUp and is available at the "More?" prompt while
reading text. When the Sysop is using PCBFV in any local mode, the actual
PgUp on the keyboard cursor pad may be used. Callers may also use their
PgUp key, but only if their communications program is in "Doorway" mode.
* The ability to scroll the screen left and right for text longer than 79
characters has been added. These commands are "<" and ">" and are
available at the "More?" prompt while reading text. When the Sysop is
using PCBFV in any local mode, the left and right arrow keys on their
cursor pad may be used. Callers may also use their left and right arrow
keys, but only if their communications program is using "Doorway" mode.
NOTE: This enhancement removes the need for the (T)runcate command from
earlier versions of PCBFV. All text is now truncated at column 79. If
text exists past column 79 the caller may scroll the screen to see it.
* When the Sysop is reading text with PCBFV in any local mode, the Home key
on the cursor pad may be used for the (T)op of file command. Also in this
mode the Sysop may use the PgDn key on their cursor pad to advance one
page (the same as pressing [Enter] at the More? prompt). Callers may also
use their Home and PgUp keys, but only if they have enabled the "Doorway"
mode of their communications program.
NOTE: It is up to the individual Sysop to educate their callers on the
advanced use of the cursor pad direction keys and "Doorway" mode
described in the above three paragraphs. Cursor pad direction keys
are NOT required for reading text files. They are only duplications
of other commands and have been added mainly for local Sysop use.
* The (Z)ip-AV command has been CHANGED. It is an all new command called
(Z)ip-extra, which will display extra technical information about a ZIP
file. This extra information includes whether or not member files contain
-AV authenticity stamps, the version of PKZip used to compress the member
file, whether each member file is text or binary, and the host operating
system the ZIP was created in (MS-DOS, Amiga, Unix, etc.). NOTE: Other
file types (non-ZIP) do not contain as readily available (or consistent)
enough) information to use in an "extra" report. As this changes, they
will be added to PCBFV's "Z" function or equivalent command.
* New command: (B)rief contents list. Entering (B) will display the file-
name, the uncompressed length, and the "Other Information" columns. This
is the same brief listing now used at the (R)ead and (F)lag input prompts
when "L" is entered for a list of file names to Read or Flag (see below).
* When requesting a Listing of files at the (R)ead or (F)lag input prompts,
the list of files displayed has been changed from a "5-up" to a "1-up"
format. Previous versions of PCBFV displayed 5 file names across each row
of the screen, in order to display as many file names to the caller as
quickly as possible. This however sacrificed information the caller
could use during file selection. This display is now the same as the one
used for the new (B)rief list command (described above).
* The (FLAG) command may now be entered at the "More?" prompt while reading
text files. This allows a caller to immediately FLAG a file for download
if they determine the file meets their needs. If a caller is viewing a
text file directly (not compressed i.e. F V FILENAME.TXT) they may FLAG
it for download at the "More?" prompt while reading it (FILENAME.TXT will
be flagged for download upon return to PCBoard). If FLAG is entered at
the "More?" prompt while reading a text file from a COMPRESSED file, the
entire compressed file will be flagged for download (this is the same as
entering FLAG at the PCBFV main command prompt). This will only work with
text files long enough to require a "More?" prompt to appear. The (FLAG)
command should not be confused with the "(F)lag individual file" command,
which is available only at the PCBFV main command prompt.
* Security specific PCBFV menu and help files are now permitted. To make
this feature possible, the names of these files had to be changed. You
may use the default files distributed in PCBFV30.ZIP. These contain the
new commands and features found in PCBFV 3.0. If you use your own menu
and help files, be sure to ADD THE NEW COMMANDS, and RENAME these files:
If using PCBFV 2.4 thru 2.5:
- Rename FVMENU to FVMNU
- Rename FVHELP to FVHLP
If using versions earlier than 2.4:
- Rename MENU to FVMNU
- Rename PCBFV.HLP to FVHLP
SUMMARY OF COMMAND CHANGES (if modifying existing text files):
"(T)runcate" is no longer a valid PCBFV command.
"(Z)ip-AV stamp display" is now "(Z)ip extra technical data".
"(B)rief contents listing" should be added.
* A Zero byte message may now be displayed if a caller tries to view a zero
byte file. Many Sysops use zero byte files to designate off-line files
on their systems, or to block certain file names from being uploaded. If
a zero byte file is found by PCBFV, a file called FVZRO is displayed.
Security designations (FVZRO25) and/or language extensions may be used.
* When a caller is in color and performs a text search in a text file, all
"finds" are now colorized on the initial screen displayed after the text
is found.
* Limited PKZIP 1.93a BETA support has been temporarily added. If a ZIP
file is encountered which has been created by this utility, the method of
compression will be displayed. The new (Z)ip-extra command will report
that it was created by PKZip 2.0. The PKUNZIP utility from this package
may be used with PCBFV, however there are no guarantees of compatibility.
If a caller attempts to read a file created with this version of ZIP and
PCBFV is using PKUNZIP ver. 1.1, the message "Error extracting file (2)"
will appear on the screen. The PKZIP from this utility should NOT be used
for compressing member files for the PCBFV (F)lag command.
* Added support for extended IRQ use (above IRQ 7). Previous versions of
PCBFV provided non-standard COM support with IRQ 1 through 7. The IRQ
value may now be 1 through 15. PCBFV reads this information from the
appropriate PCBoard system files. Use of PCBFV with non-standard COM
ports requires no additional installation by the Sysop.
* Some "byte-count", "bank", "file-ratio", etc. type doors require PCBoard
to be installed in different manners regarding how many bytes a caller
receives per day (usually zero). PCBFV makes some attempt to verify that
the caller has sufficient bytes to download a compressed file's member
before allowing it to be (F)lagged for separate download. Installation
requirements required by some of these utilities make it impossible for
other third party programs such as PCBFV to accurately determine this
information. If you are using one of the aforementioned utilities and
PCBFV seems to erroneously state the caller has insufficient daily bytes
to download the (F)lagged member file, add /NOBYTE to the end of the
PCBFV command line in PCBVIEW.BAT. This will allow callers to (F)lag the
individual files, then it will be up to PCBoard and the other process to
determine if they have sufficient bytes to download it.
* Added support for the PCBoard PCBDAT environment variable. This is only
used if PCBOARD.DAT is not found in the node's home directory where
PCBOARD.SYS is located.
* PCBFV will place "Activity not allowed" in the "Other Information" column
for any compressed file member which has a file name that is also a
reserved device name. The (R)ead and (F)lag functions will skip any
requests made on files with these names.
* PCBFV will now view (list only) ARC-7 files. When a file of this type is
encountered, the (R)ead and (F)lag commands will be unavailable.
* A question mark (?) is now valid at the "More?" prompt while reading text
files. This is the same as entering (H) for (H)elp at that prompt.
* In order to accommodate feature and performance enhancements, PCBFV will
no longer view GIF resolutions for GIF files STORED in ZIP files. PCBFV
will still display GIF resolutions for GIF files viewed directly, for
example F V FILENAME.GIF.
* While earlier versions of PCBFV were DESQview aware and behaved, some
performance degradation was discovered when using "virtualized" screens
with DESQview-386. PCBFV's performance is now improved in these cases.
* In PCBFV version 2.5, the ability to detect (while reading) if a text
file turned into a binary file was greatly enhanced. Unfortunately, this
inadvertently removed PCBFV's ability to read non-DOS text files such as
Unix, Amiga, and Mac (which contain line-feeds only, instead of carriage-
returns AND line-feeds like DOS text files). This has been corrected.
* The method used to echo events to a printer (if printer logging has been
turned on in PCBoard) has been made more "generic" in PCBFV.
* Three command line parameters have been added. These are not likely to be
needed by most Sysops, but if you need them, you REALLY need them. Adding
them to FVSETUP is not planned since they should rarely be used.
/NOLPT - PCBFV follows the printer toggle in PCBoard. If you wish only
for PCBoard to echo caller log activity to the printer, add
this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below.
/NOBEEP - PCBFV follows the F7 local alarm in PCBoard. If you wish only
for PCBoard to beep locally at caller input errors, etc. add
this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below.
/NOCALLER - PCBFV writes appropriate entries to the current node's caller
log file (see PCBFV.DOC for a complete list of entries). If you
wish only for PCBoard to place entries in caller log files, add
this to the end of the PCBFV.EXE command line as shown below.
To add any of these toggles, edit your PCBVIEW.BAT batch file as follows:
d:\pcbfv\pcbfv.exe pcbfv.cnf %1 /NOLPT /NOBEEP /NOCALLER
All three are shown in the example above for illustration purposes only.
You may enter one, two, or all three of them in any order desired. Again,
it is recommended to use these toggles only if they are REALLY needed.
FVMM (File View Maintenance Manager) Enhancements (in PCBFV 3.0):
-----------------------------------------------------------------
* In the FVMM selection screen, ESC is used to quit the session. The last
option on the menu was "Shell to DOS". Since this was the last option on
the menu, this was often mistaken for a way to quit the FVMM session. To
help prevent this from occurring, another option was added to the end of
the selection list, which is indeed "Quit". ESC is also still valid for
terminating the FVMM session. The "Shell to DOS" selection has also been
more clearly labeled as "Temporarily exit to DOS command prompt".
* Yandell Computer Services now offers Sysops a TOLL FREE voice order line
for obtaining an INSTANT PCBFV registration number with a major credit
card. See ORDER.FRM for details.
-- [ PCBFV 2.5 New Features 12/20/91 ] -------------------------------
* New FVMM (File View Maintenance Manager) utility. Designed for use as
PCBoard's PCBFiler ALT-V utility. Uses PCBFV for viewing, reading, etc.
Allows installation of a GIF (etc.) picture viewer. Allows installation of
a test facility (such as those used in PCBTEST). View, add, or delete ZIP
file comments. Quickly scans DOWNLOAD.TXT (or equivalent) and reports the
uploader's name, upload date, number of downloads, and the date of last
download. Swaps to EMS or disk for minimal memory consumption during shell
functions. Free when PCBFV is registered!
* New (Z)ip-AV display command. PCBFV will display "-AV found" in the "other
information" column when viewing a ZIP with files which contain an -AV
(Authenticity Verification) stamp. NOTE: PCBFV does not check the validity
of the -AV stamps, it simply displays the files which contain them when a
(Z) command is entered. *See PKZIP NOTE below.
* New FLAG (or FL) command will cause the entire file being viewed to be
flagged for download upon return to PCBoard. (FLAG) is fully compatible
between files while selecting other compressed files to view with PCBFV's
"(S)elect new file" feature. If a file is viewed from PCBoard's F V, and
four additional compressed files are (S)elected while using PCBFV and FLAG
is entered while viewing each of these five files, each will be flagged
for download upon return to PCBoard! If individual (F)lagging is performed
on some files, and other files are (FLAG)'ed completely, the FLAG files
plus the file containing individual files (FLAGGED.ZIP) are all flagged
for download upon return to PCBoard!
* Added a new Sysop local (only) maintenance command which may be used by
the Sysop in PCBFV's /L local maintenance mode. It is the (D)elete file in
a ZIP (only) file command. The (D) command can only be entered when PCBFV
is in a LOCAL /L mode (such as in PCBFiler, FVMM, or local utility). This
command is completely disabled when PCBFV is being used remotely. The (D)
cannot be entered at the PCBFV prompt while PCBFV is running with PCBoard.
When a filename is entered for (D)elete, PCBFV will prompt the Sysop to
make sure that everything is correct.
If the Sysop enters a (D) command while viewing a ZIP file which contains
ANY files with an -AV stamp, PCBFV will warn the Sysop that the ZIP file
MIGHT be an -AV file and prompt the Sysop if to continue or not. *See the
PKZIP NOTE below.
* Local Sysop text reading capability has been enhanced so that the top line
of text does not scroll of the screen while being used locally (this did
not happen to on-line callers). PCBFV will now compensate for the "two-
line" status line at the bottom of the screen so that the top line of text
will not scroll off of the screen while the Sysop is reading text files in
any of PCBFV's local modes (Sysop on locally, PCBFiler, etc.).
* PCBFV will now accept uncompressed text file names with no extensions when
a period has been added to the file name at the PCBoard F V prompt. PCBFV
will also allow the caller to (S)elect an uncompressed text file without
an extension by adding a period to the filename in PCBFV's (S)elect prompt
(as in PCBoard's F V prompt).
-- [ PCBFV 2.45 New Features 8/24/91 ] -------------------------------
* Added a Sysop configuration toggle to always display FVMENU, or follow the
caller's menu (expert) mode as last set in the USERS file. In PCBFV 2.3,
PCBFV was changed so that it followed the caller's men on/off (expert)
toggle from PCBoard. Many Sysops then said they wanted the menu to display
all of the time. So, in 2.4 it was changed it back. Now it seems a few
Sysops want it to follow the caller's mode. PCBFV 2.45 allows the Sysop to
choose between the two types of behavior.
* Callers will now be warned when viewing compressed files which contain
paths in them. These files will now have "Contains a path!" displayed in
the "Other Information" column to alert caller's to this situation.
-- [ PCBFV 2.4 New Features 7/19/91 ] -------------------------------
* ARJ support added. Both .ARJ and ARJ self extracting (SFX) .EXE files are
supported.
* The Sysop may configure a default answer for the (R)ead command if needed.
This is configurable in FVSETUP. For instance, *.DOC
File within PCBFV.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? (*.DOC )
If a default answer is used, hitting any key other than backspace will
completely erase the default answer so a new answer may be instantly
entered (such as entering L for List at this prompt).
* Multi-language FVHELP and FVMENU files are now supported. If a caller is
using an alternate language, PCBFV will look for the appropriate
FVHELP.??? and FVMENU.??? files and use them if they exist.
* PCBFV now supports /X# versions of PCBoard (node numbers over 99).
* Files created with the PAK compression method with an extension of .SDN
(Shareware Distribution Network) are now supported.
* PCBFV's SWAP capability can now be turned off in FVSETUP. This "might"
clear up some incompatibilities experienced with PCBFV 2.3 in unsupported
environments (multi-taskers other than DESQview, etc.).
* PCBFV will always display FVMENU (if it exists) as it did prior to PCBFV
version 2.3. In 2.3, the caller's eXpert mode was followed. Many Sysops
stated they would prefer that FVMENU was always displayed by default.
* PCBFV will no longer label a TEXT file as BINARY if it contains null
characters. It seems some (older) text editors use that character as a
space.
* PCBFV.HLP will need to be renamed to FVHELP, or use the FVHELP contained
in PCBFV24.ZIP.
* If using PCBFV as a door, PCBFV no longer uses the SET PCBFV=DOOR setting
in the door file. Simply add /DOOR to the end of the PCBFV command line in
the door (batch) file to use PCBFV as a door.
* PCBFV no longer uses the SET NODE= environment setting for local use. If
you are using PCBFV in PCBFiler or as a local utility, and PCBFV.CNF
contains @NODE@ in certain parameters for multi-node use, you will need to
create a new .CNF file (FILER.CNF for instance) for these uses. The
parameters which contained the @NODE@ macros will now need to be fully
specified in the special FILER.CNF file, and PCBFV.CNF will need to be
replaced by FILER.CNF in PCBFiler and any local utility batch files.
-- [ PCBFV 2.3 New Features 4/26/91 ] -------------------------------
* PCBFV now features a (F)ind Text command while reading text files! This is
a full featured search mechanism. The whole page surrounding the text is
displayed with the found text highlighted in the center of the screen.
* The (F)ind command is complimented by a (R)epeat Find, which repeats the
last Find command that was performed in the current text file.
* The text reading and searching process is further enhanced by a (T)op of
file command which allows the caller to quickly return to the beginning of
the file for additional Find commands, etc.
* All three of the new commands above appear in the "More" prompt at the end
of a full page of text. The (R)epeat command only appears after a (F)ind
has been executed. Both (F)ind and (R)epeat obey any limitations the Sysop
has set with regard to how far into a text file a caller may read.
* PCBFV will now SWAP itself to EMS or disk (disk if EMS is not available)
if there is insufficient memory for external compression utilities to
function. This drastically reduces PCBFV's overall memory requirements.
* A new "Embedded" (L)ist command is located in the following prompts:
File within PCBFV23.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? ( )
- AND - ^
File within PCBFV23.ZIP to flag, (L)ist? ( )
^
Entering JUST an L at these two locations will cause a quick, compact list
of file names inside the compressed file to be displayed. For example:
PCBFV23.ZIP contains these files:
QUICK.DOC PCBFV.CNF PCBFV.EXE PCBFV.DOC PCBFV.HLP
ORDER.FRM PCBVIEW.BAT FVSETUP.EXE FEATURES.NEW
File within PCBFV23.ZIP to read, (L)ist, (wildcards are OK)? ( )
This should be very helpful if a filename is forgotten, and the original
list has scrolled off the screen. The caller will not have to return to
the main PCBFV prompt, do a long List again, then for an R or F again....
* PCBFV 2.3 no longer uses the original method of manually sending the Auto-
Flag request through the host's hardware (AS PCBFV 2.1 & 2.2 did with
PCBoard 14.5). Instead, PCBFV now uses PCboard 14.5a's internal mechanism
(PCBSTUFF.KBD). This means Auto-Flag will no longer function if running
PCBFV 2.3 with PCBoard 14.5(no "a"). However, Auto-Flag will now function
on systems running under DESQview and where the screen display is toggled
off, neither of which was possible with PCBFV's ORIGINAL "Auto-Flag".
* PCBFV will now follow the screen color and intensity as set in PCBoard.
This further adds to PCBFV's "seamless, looks like PCBoard" claims.
* If using the MENU, it will need to be renamed to FVMENU.
* Use of a small FVMENU is now recommended, but is still optional. PCBFV
will follow the caller's menu mode as last set in USERS with regard to
displaying FVMENU (if used).
* An (X)pert toggle has been added to turn the menu on or off.
* PCBFV will now read non-DOS text files in text mode. Non-DOS text files
are files which contain only line-feeds, as opposed to carriage-return\
line-feeds (Unix text files, for example).
* There are now exemptions to the "Number of lines to display per text file"
and "maximum size to extract" settings. These exemptions are:
A) If the remote caller is Record #1 in the USERS file (Sysop).
B) If PCBFV is being accessed in any form of local mode, whether it is
through the board, PCBFiler mode, or local utility mode.
This allows Sysops full access of all files on their systems.
* If you have LZH files on-line, PCBFV now looks for LHA.EXE instead of
LHARC.EXE.
* FVSETUP has been greatly enhanced with the addition of F1-Help at each of
the FVSETUP parameters.
-- [ PCBFV 2.2 New Features 2/22/91 ] -------------------------------
* Callers may now view GIF files to determine the GIF's resolution. This
applies applies to straight GIF files AND GIF files which are STORED in
ZIP files.
* New (C)-CRC command allows callers to view the CRC value of all member
files contained in a compressed file.
* The "(S)elect another file" feature will handle PCBoard's file indexing
introduced in PCBoard 14.5a.
* New HEX display mode for viewing Non-Text files within compressed files.
Sysop configurable. Sysop may allow any Non-Text files in a compressed
file to be viewed, or exclude executable and compressed files inside of
compressed files, or disable the HEX display of Non-Text files completely.
* New (T)runcate command allows callers to truncate long lines in text files
at 79 columns while reading. Some text files with long lines are easier to
view, even though text past 79 columns is truncated in this mode.
* PCBFV now follows the caller's screen length from PCBoard, rather than
defaulting to the 23 line standard.
* The two macros used in PCBFV.HLP and the optional MENU (@flagfile@ and
@filename@), are now complemented by @flagfilepd@ and @filenamepd@ which
pad to 12 spaces. Use in PCBFV.HLP and MENU if using borders or boxes.
-- [ PCBFV 2.1 New Features 11/21/90 ] -------------------------------
* AutoFlag! If enabled, PCBFV will make PCBoard think the caller has typed
instructions to "FLAG" the caller created "FLAG.ZIP" as part of PCBoard's
own "FLAG Batch List". PCBoard will include the file in the caller's batch
download list, remind the caller if it hasn't been downloaded and they say
(G)oodbye, etc. This feature is explained in detail in PCBFV.DOC.
* PCBFV is now fully functional with non-standard COM ports, IRQ settings,
and addresses.
* An optional command menu may be used. This optional menu is not really
needed if the main PCBFV prompt has been modified to contain command
examples, however the ability to add a menu is available for Sysops who
desire it.
* For multi-node systems already running PCBFV, the SET NODE= environment
setting is no longer needed.
* The PCBFiler/Local mode has been greatly enhanced. PCBFV now features a
true local mode which does not need any PCBoard system files to operate.
* PCBFV now follows the F3 printer toggle and if 'on' PCBFV will send any
output which normally goes to the caller log to the printer also.
-- [ PCBFV 2.0 New Features 10/19/90 ] -------------------------------
* Now supports all activities on .LZH files, LHarc SFX .EXE and .COM files,
and PKSFX .EXE files, as well as the previously supported .ZIP .ARC and
.PAK formats.
* New (S)elect command allows callers to select other compressed files for
viewing without having to pop back and forth between PCBoard and the F V
shell (completely CONFERENCE DLPATH.LST and FSEC aware!).
* PCBFV is now completely Desqview aware and "behaved". PCBFV detects the
presence of Desqview, writes only to the appropriate video buffer for the
appropriate window, and gives it's time slice to other applications while
idling at an input prompt.
* A couple of prompts in PCBFV can be customized by the Sysop, allowing
PCBFV to continue to live up to it's "looks like PCBoard" claims. (i.e.
looks like *YOUR* PCBoard if you change many of PCBTEXT defaults).
* Ability to limit types of files for (F)lagging based on file names.
* Now allows "flagging across files". If the Sysop wishes, the caller may
view from one file to another while adding individually selected files to
one "caller created file", without having to download the caller created
file between each File View.
* The Sysop may specify the number of individual files which can be added at
one time to a caller created file (helps prevent abuse).
* New (I)nventory command allows callers to review the contents and size of
their caller created file (especially helpful if "flagging across files"
is enabled).
* An "information" file is automatically included in each caller created
file, stating the name of the individual files and the compressed file(s)
they came from.
* Writes pertinent information to the caller log. This gives the Sysop the
ability to monitor the files callers are flagging for individual download.
* Can now be installed as a door, for those systems where memory limitations
prohibit shelling.
* (F)lag and (R)ead commands can each have their own security attached to
them. For example, a Sysop may want to limit non-subscribing callers from
the "higher end" features, using "text reading" and "flagging" as a perk
for subscribing.