home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
BBS Toolkit
/
BBS Toolkit.iso
/
rbbs_pc
/
aed243a.zip
/
AEDMRG.DOC
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1990-06-10
|
13KB
|
326 lines
03-22-90 AEDMRG.DOC
This is the ANSIED merge for RBBS v17.3x. ANSIED is a full-screen editor
for entering messages. The current version is v2.43. It is compilable
with QuickBASIC v4.5 or v3.0.
What's in this ZIP:
AEDMRG.DOC - What you're reading now.
AED243.BAS - Standalone version of ANSIED.BAS. Can be loaded into
the QuickBASIC v4.5 environment and run. I use this
version to figure out bugs.
ANSIED.HLP - Editor help file. Put this in the directory that all
of your other RBBS help files are, and ANSIED will
display this for it's internal help command.
ANSIED.BAS - The full-screen editor program source.
ANSIED-3.BAS - The full-screen editor program source, compilable with
QuickBASIC v3.0.
*.MRG - Merges to RBBS-PC.BAS for the editor. For detailed
information, see below.
UPGRADE4.BAT - RBBS recompile batch file. Uses QB v4.5.
LINK4.DAT - Linker data file when NOT including ANSIED in your
merges.
LINK4A.DAT - Linker data file when including ANSIED.
UPGRADE3.BAT - RBBS recompile/link files for QuickBASIC v3.0.
LINK3.DAT
LINK3A.DAT
What's New since v2.42:
ANSIED has gotten an awful lot of attention in the RBBS community of
late. Most of the changes/improvements are due to suggestions by
users, predominately Mike Zakharoff and Nathan Barber, who each run
outstanding bulletin board systems.
o Status Line. Shows message To: and From: fields, as well as Ins/Ovw
status.
o Cursor keys, INS, and DEL keys now work locally. When a remote user
is online, the cursor keys work to adjust security/time levels.
o Local sysop can type at the same time as the user, to "guide" the
user in the use of the editor.
o Delete key didn't work correctly. Fixed.
o When quoting a message, the cursor starts below the quoted lines,
rather than always on line 1. Message is scrolled to ensure that
the user will begin typing approximately halfway down the screen.
o ANSI escape sequences are removed from quotes before editing.
Previously, a quoted message containing ANSI would distort the
display.
o Right Margin: The user's actual right margin setting is now used
when wrapping long lines and right justifying. Version 2.42 always
used a value of 75.
o RBBS' maximum message length is now honored, and text can't be added
below the value set in CONFIG.
o Lines that are "locked" by RBBS can't be modified or deleted.
o "Loading DOOR. Please Wait..." message comes up twice in "UGLY"
merges. Fixed.
o If you use the "UGLY" or "EDIT" merges, the editor is available to
COLOR users or users with highlighting on. When using the "UTOG" or
"ETOG" merges, any user can elect to use the editor, independent of
graphics mode or highlighting.
o The parts of the "UGLY" merges that removed RBBS support for
background colors were removed.
o The "UGLY" and "UTOG" merges allow macros to be constrained when
using PUIs. To restrict a command to a given PUI, use the macros
constraint of "/x /", where 'x' is the first letter of the name of
the PUI. To constrain a command to TOP.PUI, for example, use "/T /"
as the macro constraint.
o RBBS-PC v17.2x merges removed from the main ZIP.
o ANSIED.BAS partially recoded to eliminate redundant or unnecessary
code. Even with the new enhancements, ANSIED v2.43 is SMALLER (by
about 1K of EXE size) than v2.42.
Merges:
When modifications or fixes are made to the main RBBS program, rather
than releasing an entire new set of source code, changes are released
as "merges" - files that contain the DIFFERENCE between the original
RBBS version and the new RBBS version. Ken Goosens' BLED program is
used to merge the new changes into the old version. This new "merged"
RBBS-PC is then recompiled. The ANSIED merges follow in this
tradition.
Included in this archive are:
R???EDIT.MRG
R???UGLY.MRG
R???ETOG.MRG
R???UTOG.MRG
What's the difference? Well, the "EDIT" and "ETOG" merges just include
the changes necessary to include ANSIED in the final RBBS-PC.EXE. The
"UGLY" and "UTOG" merges include the editor, change a few of RBBS'
prompts, and fix a few minor bugs in the code that the authors don't
acknowledge as being bugs. If you think RBBS' prompts are fine as is,
and don't have problems with macros or the PUI, use the "EDIT" or
"ETOG" merges.
Now, what about the "EDIT" verses the "ETOG" merges? Well, if you
install the "EDIT" merges, then whenever a user goes to enter a
message, he'll be prompted with "Use the ANSI Screen Editor (Y/[N])?"
If you install the "ETOG" merges, the choice of an editor is installed
in the RBBS code as a T)oggle. With "ETOG" (and "UTOG"), the user can
turn the editor on or off from the utilities section. No prompting
will ever occur.
So, let's get it straight. If the merges' name has a "U" in it ("Ugly"
or "Utog"), then the merge changes RBBS' prompts and fixes bugs. If
there's no "U," the merge just includes the editor. If the merges'
name contains the string "TOG," then the editor is installed as a
TOGgle to select it. This gives us four possible merges, thus the four
sets included in this ZIP.
Now, why would you NOT want to use the "TOG"-style merges? Well, these
merges use a previously unused bit field in the RBBS users record to
record whether the fullscreen editor is turned on or not for a given
user. In theory, future RBBS versions could use this bit for something
else. So, be forewarned... if you use the "TOG" merges, they *may* not
work with future RBBS versions.
How to Merge it:
To merge ANSIED in your current RBBS version, do the following:
a) Figure out which set of merges you want to use.
b) Get the RBBS-VAR.BAS file from your current RBBS version. It MUST
be the current version that you intend to compile. If you merge
in RFIXes, the RFIXed RBBS-VAR.BAS is what you'd have to use.
c) If you're using the "EDIT" or "UGLY" merges, skip this step. If
you're using the "ETOG" or "UTOG" merges, then...
i) Edit RBBS-VAR.BAS, and add the following line:
ZFullScreenEditor, _
Note the comma and the underline after the variable name.
It's recommended that you add this in alphabetical order with
the other variables in the file. In RBBS-VAR.BAS for RBBS
version 17.3/0227, this is after the variable
ZFreeSpaceUpldFile$.
ii) Save this file.
d) Copy RBBS-VAR.BAS to a new name, called RBBS-VAR.MOD, like this:
C:\RBBSWORK>copy RBBS-VAR.BAS RBBS-VAR.MOD
This creates a file called RBBS-VAR.MOD, which is identical to
RBBS-VAR.BAS.
If you did step b), this RBBS-VAR.BAS is the NEW one.
e) Edit RBBS-VAR.MOD, and comment out the last line in the file by
putting a single quote at the beginning of the line. It should
look like this:
+--- Column 1
v
' DEF FNOffOn$ (Switch) = MID$("OffOn", 1 - 3 * (Switch <> 0), 3)
Save this file.
f) Put all of the R*.BAS files in a work directory, along with the
.OBJ version of all of the assembler routines. The R*.BAS files
usually come from a file called RBBS-BAS.ZIP. The .OBJs are
usually in RBBS-ASM.ZIP. Also make sure that ANSIED.BAS and
RBBS-VAR.MOD are in this directory.
g) Edit UPGRADE4.BAT and LINK4x.DAT to reflect your paths. UPGRADE4
and LINK4x assume the following paths:
BC.EXE (QuickBASIC v4.5 compiler) - C:\QB45
BLED.EXE (Goosen's merge program) - C:\QB45
BCOM45.LIB (QuickBASIC library) - C:\QB45\LIB
LINK.EXE (Microsoft linker) - In the PATH
R*.BAS (RBBS .BAS files) - Current Directory
*.OBJ (RBBS .OBJ files) - Current Directory
ANSIED.BAS (Screen editor source) - Current Directory
RBBS-VAR.MOD (Modified RBBS-VAR.BAS) - Current Directory
h) Run UPGRADE4 as follows:
upgrade4 edit y /r
-or-
upgrade4 ugly y /r
-or-
upgrade4 etog y /r
-or-
upgrade4 utog y /r
Note:
The generic form of the UPGRADE4 command line is:
upgrade4 xxxx <y/n> </r>
^ ^ ^
| | +-- Just do RBBS-PC, no CONFIG
| |
| +-- compile after merging?
|
+-- merges name ... R-PCxxxx.MRG or RSB2xxxx.MRG
will be merged. (4 chars)
So, UPGRADE4 can be used for RBBS version/fix upgrades, as well as
for merging ANSIED. Here's a command line for RBBS v17.2A -> v17.2B:
upgrade4 172b y
To just compile RBBS, without merging anything, specify a merge
name that doesn't exist. Like this:
upgrade4 junk y
i) If all goes correctly, you should have a new RBBS-PC.EXE in your
current directory. Copy this version on top of your old version,
(You backed it up first, right?) and copy ANSIED.HLP to your RBBS
help directory.
You should be up and running with ANSIED!
Guarantees:
ANSIED is absolutely guaranteed to work exactly as you expect it to all
of the time. It has no bugs and it's completely compatible with all
existing computers and their related software. If ANSIED does not in
any way meet your expectations of it, simply return it with a
proof-of-purchase seal and we'll refund double your money. Thank you
for purchasing ANSIED!
Getting the latest version:
ANSIED is not really a "product," so no effort is being undertaken to
distribute it wiidely. In general, the latest version is available to
any FidoNet sysop who cares to request it. To File request ANSIED, send
a file request to the MSFA BBS, Catonsville, MD, FidoNet node 1:261/1047,
and request the magic name "ANSIED" (without the quotes). If you're not
a FidoNet sysop, and would like to obtain the latest version, try the
MSFA BBS (1-301-536-1935), under the P)ersonal downloads.
Reaching the Author:
To reach the author, enter a message in the FidoNet RBBS-PC echomail
conference, or leave a message on the MSFA BBS.
New RBBS Versions:
When a new RBBS version is released, there's an excellent chance that
ANSIED can be recompiled with the new RBBS version. Start off by
merging the "EDIT" merges, and if they work, try some of the others.
Remember, though, any changes to the RBBS mainline code that results in
a new RBBS-VAR.BAS means that you have to recompile all modules,
including ANSIED.
Questions and Answers:
Q: What if I don't have QuickBASIC v4.5?
A: ANSIED can be used with v3.0, but you'll have to use ANSIED-3.BAS.
The easiest way to use ANSIED-3.BAS is to use the UPGRADE3 batch
file, which works just like UPGRADE4.BAT.
You can't use ANSIED with QuickBASIC v2.01 or BASCOM v1.00, because
it uses some of the v3.0+ statements. ANSIED should be compilable
with some of the newer MicroSoft BASIC compilers, though I won't
swear to it.
Q: I sometimes get 'String Space Corrupt' or other weird errors with
ANSIED.
A: You forgot to make up a new RBBS-VAR.MOD and/or RBBS-VAR.BAS, didn't
you?
Q: I sometimes get 'Out of String Space' errors with ANSIED.
A: RBBS has gotten to be such a huge program that it's right on the
verge of being out of string space at all times, and ANSIED
aggrevates the problem. ANSIED should work with RBBS v17.3, but
future versions may not work. Try removing some of the excess RBBS
code with LITs.
-- Tom Collins, ANSIED author