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PHLBL ASCII Label Printer Version 1.42 Released 06-25-90 Herron Software P.O. Box 1288 Battle Ground, Washington USA 98604 COPYRIGHT 1990 Phil Herron. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY __________________________________________ THIS PRODUCT IS PROVIDED FOR EVALUATION, AS IS AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. THE AUTHOR MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR LOSS OF PROFIT OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGE ARISING FROM EITHER THE USE OF OR THE INABILITY TO USE THIS PRODUCT. This product should be thoroughly evaluated using backed up or noncritical data and files. ______________________________________________________________ Evaluation Preface Section ______________________________________________________________ Shareware............................................... 0.1.0 What it is............................................ 0.1.1 License Terms......................................... 0.1.2 Registration.......................................... 0.1.3 Benefits, Forms, Fees, Quantity discounts Evaluation.............................................. 0.2.0 Evaluation Version.................................... 0.2.1 Evaluation Menu....................................... 0.2.2 Virus Prevention...................................... 0.2.3 _____________________________ 0.1.0 Shareware _____________________________ 0.1.1 The SHAREWARE Concept _____________________________ "Shareware" is a software distribution method which enables the potential user to obtain software at very low initial cost, for evaluation on a trial basis. You can evaluate the software in your own environment, on your own machine, with the programs and data that you normally use. You're not required to become a registered user unless the software meets your needs. Another benefit of Shareware is lower pricing. By minimizing the marketing and advertising expenses associated with more traditional software distribution methods, Shareware products can be priced lower. You don't pay for what you don't need or use. You are encouraged to share the evaluation version of this software with others, so long as you follow the limitations set forth in the LICENSE TERMS section below. 0.1.2 LICENSE TERMS _____________________ This product and its documentation are copyrighted and owned solely by the author, who reserves all rights to any benefits derived from it. It is distinctly separate from, and should not be confused with, those categories of software known as "public domain" or "freeware." You are granted the right to use the evaluation version of this software on a trial basis for a limited amount of time, to decide whether to continue using (and therefore whether to register) the product. You can transmit this evaluation version to associates by copying on diskette or uploading to electronic bulletin board services, so long as the program, documentation and any associated files are distributed together, and not altered in any way. 0.1.3 REGISTRATION ____________________ When you send in the registration form and fee, you'll receive by return mail a diskette containing the latest REGISTERED version of the program and documentation. BENEFITS OF REGISTRATION The registered version WILL NOT include the Evaluation Menu front end, start-up time delay or forms printing sections of this version. Thus it will be more convenient to use, from either the DOS prompt or from batch files. It will also be 12K-15K bytes smaller, for more efficient disk storage and faster loading. The registered version WILL include any new functions or enhancements made to date. You will receive notification of future updates and new products. You will be able to upgrade to newer versions at a reduced cost. REGISTRATION FORM The registration form and a pre-addressed mailing cover can be printed from the "Forms Printing" selection of the Evaluation menu, discussed in section 0.2.2 below. FEES The single-quantity registration fee is displayed on the initial Evaluation Menu screen. Higher quantities are discussed below. QUANTITY DISCOUNTS Each registered copy of this software will be licensed for operation at a single location (on a single terminal or computer) at any one time. If you need to run the software on more than one terminal or computer at the same time, the appropriate number of registrations must be made. Multiple-quantity registration fees are displayed in the "QUANTITY DISCOUNT" section of the Evaluation menu. You can take advantage of quantity discounts by ordering multiple registrations of one program or single registrations of several different programs at the same time. You also save on shipping and handling charges by registering several products together. _____________________________ 0.2.0 Evaluation _____________________________ 0.2.1 EVALUATION VERSION __________________________ This software contains the complete and fully functional version of the program, the latest available at the time of this release. The program itself is identical to the REGISTERED version. An Evaluation Menu and forms printing section were added to ensure that: (a) Registration information and forms will not become separated from the program file. (b) Users who might be unfamiliar with the process of displaying a file's contents on the screen or printer will have no difficulty learning about, evaluating or registering this product. 0.2.2 EVALUATION MENU _______________________ The program is invoked from the DOS prompt by typing its name and pressing the RETURN or ENTER key. The initial screen displays the warranty section and some information about the program: Program name, Version number, Release date, Single-quantity registration fee. It next displays the Shareware Product EVALUATION MENU. A single key press will select the following functions from the menu: ESC - EXIT to DOS without evaluating this program R - READ the documentation (THIS file) x - EVALUATE this program Q - QUANTITY Discount information F - FORMS printing menu - registration & mailer When you press "R" to READ the documentation, this file will be shown one screen at a time. The display pauses whenever the screen becomes full, and prompts... <downArrow> or Esc The <downArrow> character is similar to the "MORE" prompt in other DOS utilities. It indicates that more is available. Press ESCape to exit back to the Evaluation Menu, or any normal typing key to continue (space bar is a convenient key to use). 0.2.3 VIRUS PREVENTION ________________________ If you'd like to evaluate this software but you're not sure where it's been, you can order a copy straight from the source. See the SHAREWARE PRODUCT CATALOG section at the end of this file. _________________________________________________________________ Table of Contents Section _________________________________________________________________ PhLBL...................................................... 1.0 Introduction............................................ 1.1 Explanation............................................. 1.2 System Requirements..................................... 1.3 Installing........................................... 1.3.1 Help.................................................... 1.4 Syntax.................................................. 1.5 Wildcard Characters.................................. 1.5.1 File Selection Window................................... 1.6 Examples................................................ 1.7 Operating Screen..................................... 1.7.1 Data Storage Files...................................... 1.8 Printing................................................ 1.9 Printer Attributes................................... 1.9.1 Label Sizes...........................................1.9.2 Miscellaneous notes..................................... 2.4 Applications............................................ 2.5 DOS ErrorLevel.......................................... 2.8 Future Additions........................................ 2.9 Version History......................................... 3.0 Support.................................................... 9.0 Problem Resolution...................................... 9.1 Before Reporting........................................ 9.2 Reporting a problem..................................... 9.3 Custom Modifications.................................... 9.4 Correspondence.......................................... 9.5 Shareware Product Catalog................................. 10.0 ********************************************** NEW in this version ********************************************** *** Wide printer attribute (8.5 cpi) *** "Pick" window for data file selection *** Printer number selection & assignment _________________________________________________________________ PHLBL 1.0 ASCII Label Printer _________________________________________________________________ 1.1 INTRODUCTION __________________ When you need labels only occasionally, it would be nice to get them quickly, with a minimum of bother and frustration. Label printers generally seem to come in two forms: too simple to be useful, or too complex for occasional use without a refresher course. This program began life as a "quick and easy" label printer. It's still that, but has gained some features along the way. PHLBL was written to handle a relatively small number of labels. If you have extensive mailing lists or need labels sorted by name or zip code, you may need a dedicated mailing list manager. If you regularly need singles or multiples of only a few dozen different labels, then PHLBL will probably meet your requirements. 1.2 EXPLANATION _________________ PHLBL is simple because it only prints labels; it doesn't have provisions for maintaining, sorting, or editing. You do that using a word processor or text editor that you already know, so there won't be any strange new word processor commands to learn. PHLBL allows the use of different printer attributes for each line of each label. Line Attribute commands ("@Axxx...", discussed later) are stored with the labels in a data file. Any editor that can write standard ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) files can be used to add or edit labels. Although any such editor (even the DOS EDLIN utility) can be used, there are some advantages to using one of the memory- resident utility packages available as Shareware or otherwise. A few of the available desktop accessory programs are: ALT HomeBase Desk Commando My-Desk DeskMate PC DeskTeam DeskUtil Right Hand Man EZDesk SideKick Using a memory-resident editor, you can edit or enter new labels while PHLBL is running, then reload the data file with the "H" or HOME key. With an editor having import capabilities, you can "cut" label text from other applications or files and "paste" it into a data file. Another possibility is a standard text editor with jump (shell)- to-DOS capability. Such an editor can be used to create or edit a data file, then you can shell to DOS to run PHLBL. 1.3 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS _________________________ PC, XT, AT or compatible. DOS version 2.1 or later. At least 128K of free RAM. An Epson-compatible dot-matrix printer is needed if printer attributes are used; any printer will work for plain labels. PHLBL was designed using an Epson FX-85 dot-matrix printer with this default configuration at power-up: Default pitch ......... Draft Pica Horizontal spacing .... 10 Chars per inch Vertical spacing ...... 6 Lines per inch 1.3.1 INSTALLING __________________ The program can be run from diskette or from hard disk. No installation is necessary, other than copying the files to a drive and directory of your choosing. 1.4 HELP __________ Can't remember the command line syntax? Issue the program's name without any parameters; it will load the default label data file PHLBL.LBL, or if not found, will display a file selection window containing files and subdirectories available from this point. 1.5 SYNTAX ____________ PHLBL [filespec] If filespec is not entered, PHLBL will try to load the default data file, PHLBL.LBL, if it exists in the current directory. If not, it will display a file selection window. 1.5.1 WILDCARD CHARACTERS ___________________________ Wildcard characters * and ? are legal for use in specifying filenames and extensions. 1.6 FILE SELECTION WINDOW ___________________________ A file selection or "pick" window is displayed: - Whenever the command line argument includes wildcard characters; - Whenever the main menu "NewFile" command prompt is answered by pressing the <Return> key with no filespec, or when the filespec entered includes wildcard characters. The window will display a sorted list of files and/or directory names (500 maximum) that match the filespec entered. Selection is made by moving the reverse-video block to the desired entry, then pressing the <Return> key. Directory names are displayed in higher intensity than files. "..\" is the "parent" directory to the current one, so if you're in C:\LA and select "..\", you will get a list of files in C:\, the root directory. By selecting directory names, you can get a file list from anywhere on the current drive. 1.7 EXAMPLES ______________ Valid command lines: PHLBL - tries to load default file PHLBL.LBL PHLBL *.* - file selection window of currrent dir. PHLBL A:*.* - file selection window of A: root. PHLBL C:\LA\*.L* - file selection window of C:\LA, files *.L* PHLBL MyFile.Txt - tries to load MyFile.Txt; halts if not found. Filespecs shown above are also valid from the main menu "NewFile" command prompt. 1.7.1 OPERATING SCREEN ________________________ The operating screen appears whenever "PHLBL" is issued from the DOS prompt with a valid file specification; assuming that PHLBL.EXE and default data file PHLBL.LBL are both located in subdirectory \LA, and it is the current directory, no command line argument is needed: PhLbL loads PHLBL.LBL, and the screen displays: 1 __PhLbl_______________________ 2 | | 3 |______________________________| 4 File: C:\LA\PHLBL.LBL 5 Lbl# 1 Margin 0 Lines/Skip 5/1 Attr bdddd 6 . This is a comment line 7 ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ 8 Label 1, line 1 . Label 1, line 2 . ... . └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ 25 F1-help -next Print Margin Home Newfile Ruler Esc Lines displayed: 1 - \ 2 - Program name/copyright block 3 - / 4 - Filespec of current data file. 5 - Label number in current data file. - Margin setting: May be embedded in the data file; can be changed from the main menu at bottom of screen. - Lines/Skip setting: defaults are 5/1. Both can be embedded in data files; Lines: height of label or other printing stock. Skip: lines between labels. Usually left at default. - Printer Attributes assigned to this label: One character for each line in the current label. Default is D)raft; others may be embedded in the data file using the "@Axxx..." command. 6 - one-line comment (if any) attached to current label. 7 - Label top border; can be switched to a ruler. 8 - One to fifteen lines display current label contents, . depending on label length and Lines setting (described . above). Label lines up to 160 characters can be handled, . although only the first 79 characters will be displayed on . screen. Optimal line length depends on label width and . printer attribute selected; 160 characters will fit only on a . label at least 8 inches wide, using the S)mall (20 chars per . inch) attribute. ? ?+1 Label bottom border; can be switched to a ruler. 25 - Bottom line on the screen is the main menu: Menu key Function -------------------------- -------------------------- F1 Help screens. <DownArrow>, <PgDn> Advance to next label. or <Spacebar> P)rint Printing sub-menu. M)argin Enter new left Margin. H)ome or <Home> Reload; back to top of data file. N)ewfile Load a different data file. R)uler Toggle ruler on or off. <Esc> Quit. 1.8 Data Storage Files ________________________ PHLBL will work with any number of data storage files, so labels can be split into as many files as you need to keep them conveniently grouped. Labels can be grouped by filename, extension, subdirectory, and even by disk drive. Some examples: Subdirectory \BIZ-INT (Business, internal) Label files Inv.LBL (product inventory labels) DiskLabl (diskette labels) FileLabl (file folder labels) RoloLabl (rotary file cards) Govt.LBL (taxing authorities) Subdirectory \BIZ-EXT (Business, external) Label files Distr.LBL (distributors of your product) Vendors.LBL (suppliers to your business) Customer.LBL (customer list) MailList.1 (mailing list 1) MailList.2 (mailing list 2) Subdirectory \PERSONAL Label files Personal.LBL (personal contacts) Xmas.LBL (Christmas card list) Tape (audio, video cassette labels) BASIC LABELS Labels are stored in ASCII text files. The most basic data file, containing two labels: Label One, line 1 Label Two, line 1 At least one blank line must separate a label from its neighbors. Any block of text without a blank line is considered one label. COMMENT LINES A comment line is any beginning with a period (".") in column 1, and is ignored by the label printer. Any number of comment lines can be put in a data file. Only the first 79 characters of a comment line will be displayed on screen. Comment lines separated from any label by a blank line are not attached to any label, so are never seen on the label printer screen. Comment lines without a blank line below them are attached to the following label; the first (top) comment line in a block above a label will be displayed on the screen with that label. . This comment block is not attached to a label. ..... It can be used for internal notes... .This comment will be displayed with Label One Label One, line 1 . This comment line will be displayed on screen . This comment line will NOT be shown on screen Label Two, line 1 BLANK LINES within LABELS These are any that begin with a dash, "-" in column one, and have no other characters. They force a blank line within the label when it is printed. Label One, line 1 - Label One, line 3 PRINTER ATTRIBUTE LINE A printer attribute command line begins with @A in column one, and is used to change the default settings of the printer. Cmd Attr CPI Printer Setup ─── ───────── ─────── ──────────────────────── B Bold 10 Pica + Emphasized C Compress 17.125 Compressed D Draft 10 Pica (power-on default) E Elite 12 Elite H Huge 5 Expanded + Emphasized I Italic 10 Italic + Emphasized N NLQ 10 Near Letter Quality S Small 20 Compressed + Elite U UnderLin 10 Underlined + Emphasized W Wide 8.5 Expanded + Compressed An attribute command line for a 5-line label will contain 5 letters from the table above (one for each line in the label). Case is not significant. The line can also contain spaces or tabs to make groups of letters easier to read. @Aiiiii Sets all five lines to ITALIC attribute. @A I I I I I Duplicate of above. @A bcdeh Sets line 1 to BOLD attribute, line 2 to COMPRESSED, line 3 to DRAFT, line 4 to ELITE, line 5 to HUGE. MARGIN SETTING A margin setting line begins with @M in column one, and is used to set the left margin to other than the default of zero. Left margins are set in 0.10 inch increments, and can range from 0 to 255. Default is zero. This example sets the left margin to 42 for all subsequent labels (or until another @M line is encountered): @M42 LABEL HEIGHT SETTING A label height setting line begins with @L in column one, and sets the maximum number of lines in a label. It can range from 1 to 15; default is 5 lines. This example sets the number of lines to 12: @L12 INTER-LABEL SKIP A skip setting line begins with @S in column one, and sets the number of lines to be skipped between labels. It can range from 0 to 99; default is 1 line. @S3 Embedded DATE & TIME COMMANDS An embedded date command !@DATE or time command !@TIME can be placed in any column. These cause the current system date or time to be displayed on screen (and printed when the associated label is printed). Example: Label One, line 1 printed on date !@DATE, at time !@time. A complete list of commands and formats is available from within PHLBL by pressing the F1 help key. For a label file containing examples of many of the above commands and settings, see the default data file PHLBL.LBL. 1.9 PRINTING ______________ Only the label currently displayed on screen can be printed. Press "P" to access the Printing sub-menu: Print single Multiple Other printer Esc-exit ____________ ________ _____________ ________ P)rint single is a shortcut that allows fast printing of single labels with a double press of the "P" key from the main menu. M)ultiple allows you to print from 1 to 999 duplicate labels. If you change your mind here, enter 0. O)ther printer allows selecting printer 1, 2 or 3, if you have more than one printer installed. Default is printer number 1. 1.9.1 PRINTER ATTRIBUTES __________________________ If you want only plain labels, you need never deal with attribute commands. Without them, all labels in a data file will use the default "Draft" mode. If you decide to use attributes other than draft, they can be placed permanently in your data files. The format for the printer attribute commands is @Axxx... where up to 15 attributes can be assigned, one for each line in the longest label. Examples can be found in PHLBL.LBL. Each attribute stays in effect until changed, so if all labels in a given file will use the same set of attributes, only one command is needed at the top of the file. Alternately, each label can be given different attributes by embedding a new attribute command above each label. A complete list of attributes and associated pitches is available within PHLBL by pressing the F1 help key. KNOWN LIMITATIONS with OLDER PRINTERS Epson FX-85 (and possibly other models): "Elite" mode is not available in IBM mode. Epson FX-80 and its wide version, the FX-100: "Small" mode will not print at 20 characters per inch, since these printers don't accept Compressed and Elite attributes at the same time. When sent a line with the attribute of "Small", they print in Elite mode. To get the most compact printing, you must use the Compressed attribute. "NLQ" mode prints in draft on these printers, since they don't include Near-Letter-Quality capability from the factory. 1.9.2 LABEL SIZES ___________________ Maximum line length for comment lines and label lines is 160 characters. Only the first 79 chars in each line will be displayed on screen, but up to 160 characters can be used for labels. When using a label line of 160 characters, you must also be using an attribute of "S" ("Small" print) to get 160 characters into an 8 inch width on the printer (160 / 20CPI = 8.0 inches). You must also have the Left Margin set at zero, or the printer will wrap the text around onto the following line. Label height in lines : default is 5; maximum is 15. Lines to skip between labels: default is 1; maximum is 15. If a data file does not include the "@Lnn" command to set label height, or "@Snn" for lines to skip between labels, defaults are used. Default label height is 5 lines; default skip size is 1 line. These dimensions cover common labels with height of 15/16 of an inch; on a 6 line per inch printer, they work perfectly with five lines of text and one skip line between labels. 2.4 MISCELLANEOUS NOTES _________________________ The most efficient application of PHLBL is as a companion program to a memory-resident pop-up notepad utility; the notepad can be used to enter, edit, import and view labels. When labels are setup as required, switch back to PHLBL, press the "Home" key to reload the modified data file, then advance to the desired label. To gain familiarity with PHLBL... Print the sample labels to see the available printing attributes. Experiment with the Left Margin settings to find those useful with your labels. You can conserve label/card stock by printing on standard printer paper during experimentation. SPECIAL ITEMS in a data file... Access Help Screens in the program with the "F1" function key. To stop printing immediately: turn off the printer's power switch. LEFT MARGIN If a margin setting is needed for your standard label/card stock, you should only have to set it once, with an embedded command near the top of each data file. The menu "M" command can also be used to set the Left Margin to another value. This might be necessary when first setting up data files, or when you need to print on nonstandard stock that requires a different left margin. Another time the left margin might be changed manually is when you're printing on label sheets that have more than one row of labels. Print the left-most row of labels with the standard margin setting, then run the labels through the printer again, this time using a greater margin setting to print the second row of labels. A manually-set margin will remain in effect until you exit the program or load a new data file. To keep it permanently, it must be entered into the data file. You generally won't need to have more than one Left Margin or Lines/Skip setting in each data file. CREATING a NEW LABEL DATA FILE: Using your text editor, create a new file with an appropriate name, then enter the label text (or cut and paste from another application). EDITING an EXISTING DATA FILE: If you currently have the data file loaded into PHLBL, its full filespec will be shown near the top of the screen. Load that file into your text editor. VIEWING NEW labels or CHANGES to existing labels: Save the editor file, then either run PHLBL and load that file, or if the file is already running in PHLBL, reload it by pressing the "H" key, or the keypad "Home" key. Finally, scan down until you find the label of interest. DATA FILE LINE LENGTHS PHLBL does no checking to see if text lines found in data files will fit on the output form (labels, rotary file cards, etc.). You must determine that by using the ruler (menu "R" command) and the CPI (characters per inch) specification of the line attributes you're currently using. EXAMPLE: Finding the maximum line length for a particular application... Given: CPI for default Draft mode 10 Label width 3.5 inches Left Margin setting 5 At 10 CPI, the left margin setting shortens the label printing area by 5/10 or one-half inch, to 3.0 inches. 3 inches multiplied by 10 chars per inch equals 30 characters that will fit on the remaining label width. Label Height (LINES) SETTING Before or immediately following an @L command, an @A command should assign attributes for each line. Otherwise, each line will use the default "draft" attribute. 2.5 APPLICATIONS __________________ PHLBL will find application in low-volume, high-variety uses, and in high-volume uses such as inventory-handling, where many similar or identical labels are needed. Possible output formats: Name tags Index ("3x5") cards Post cards Rotary file and Rolodex(tm) cards Diskette labels Tape cassette labels Inventory labels Storage container labels File folder labels Mailing address labels Warning labels Library circulation cards, catalog cards, book labels Report, binder and notebook cover labels Address book entries Reusable labels: Compose a letter using your standard text editor. Pop up a memory-resident notepad utility, load the appropriate label data file, import the address from the letter. Quit the text editor, run PHLBL, print label(s). One-shot labels: For one-shot applications, you can avoid loading label stock in the printer and just print directly on the envelope. First you'll need to experiment to find the margin setting that will shift the address over the correct distance. Compose correspondence and save it to a disk file. Run PHLBL and load the file as if it were a data file. If the file has at least one blank line above and below the inside address, PHLBL will display it as a standard label (probably the second label; the date block will be the first). The only limitation here is that the label will be printed in draft mode, since most correspondence doesn't contain any "@Axxx..." attribute commands. 2.8 DOS ERRORLEVEL ____________________ Upon termination, the program returns a DOS ErrorLevel value which indicates how the program ended, and which can be used for subsequent operations in a batch file. For further information, see the "IF ERRORLEVEL" batch command in your DOS manual. ErrorLevel List: 0 - Successful 2 - Specified file not found 3 - Input parameter is out of range. 4 - Input parameter contains an illegal character. 5 - Missing parameters. 27 - ESCaped out of a file selection window. 2.9 FUTURE ADDITIONS ______________________ Some future enhancements being explored: Alternate (European, ISO) date and time formats for the "!@DATE" and "!@TIME" commands. !@SN command for Serial/sequence numbering. !@SERIES command for quantity numbering ("nn of nn"). 3.0 VERSION HISTORY _____________________ 1.0 Initial release. 1.1 Added @Lnn command to handle larger labels, index and rotary cards. 1.2 Added provision for selecting printer number. 1.3 Added a "pick" window for selecting data file. 1.4 Added Wide printer attribute (8.5 cpi). 1.42 Printer selection was not assigning correct printer. _________________________________________________________________ 9.0 Support _________________________________________________________________ 9.1 PROBLEM RESOLUTION ________________________ Please document and report any anomaly in program operation, whether it's a genuine "bug" or just some feature of the program that particularly "bugs" you. If you're the first person to document and report a problem that we agree needs attention, you'll receive a free upgrade with the correction when it's been made. If you're a registered user, you'll get the upgraded registered version; if you haven't yet registered, you'll get the upgraded evaluation version. 9.2 BEFORE REPORTING ______________________ Things to try prior to reporting a problem: 1 - Reread the documentation to make sure you understand what we thought we understood when we wrote it. 2 - If the system reports "Bad command or file name" when you attempt to run the program, its executable file (or at least the file name you specified) was not found. First, make sure no typos or misspellings have crept into your command line; next, try changing your PATH setting, or make the drive & directory where the program resides the "current" drive & directory. 3 - If the program is being run from a batch file, try deleting lines previous to the line that actually invokes the program, to see if some prior activity is causing the problem. 4 - If you have any memory-resident or "TSR" utilities installed (pop-up calculators/note pads, keyboard enhancements, etc.), try removing them from memory and running the program again to see if the problem reoccurs. 9.3 REPORTING A PROBLEM _________________________ If the problem persists, please document it as completely and accurately as possible; we have to be able to duplicate it before we can begin to resolve it. Include at least the following: 1 - Version of DOS you are using. 2 - Machine type, drives, memory, etc. 3 - Programs executed prior to the problem. 4 - Problem program's name and version number. 5 - Where and how you obtained the problem program. 6 - Address and/or phone number where you can be contacted. 7 - Anything you can think of that might relate to the problem; for example, listings of your AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files, or any batch files used to run the program. 8 - Any relevant printouts. NOTE: If you're a registered user, you'll find the utility UserResp.Exe on the distribution diskette; it can be used to print a pre-addressed mailer and a problem report. If you have not yet registered, send problem reports to the address below (or print the pre-addressed mailer from the Evaluation Menu). 9.4 CUSTOM MODIFICATIONS __________________________ If you need custom modifications to this software for your particular application, please write to the below address with complete details of your requirements. 9.5 CORRESPONDENCE ____________________ We welcome any comments or suggestions you might have concerning improvements and future enhancements to this product. Send all correspondence and orders to: Phil Herron P.O. Box 1288 Battle Ground, Washington USA 98604 _________________________________________________________________ 10.0 Shareware Product Catalog _________________________________________________________________ This section contains a list of our other Shareware products; it may be updated whenever products are added or changed. ____________________________________________ If you'd like to try any of the programs in this catalog, but can't find them locally, you can order evaluation copies straight from the source... The basic fee of $4.00 covers the cost of the first disk, shipping and handling. Each disk (5.25" DSDD 362kb) can hold up to five programs and associated documentation files. Add $2.00 for each additional disk of programs you want to evaluate (Example: $4.00 for 1 to 5 programs, $6.00 for 6-10, $8.00 for 11- 15, etc. All payments in U.S. funds). Washington State residents please add 7.6% sales tax. If your address is outside the U.S. and Canada, include an additional $6.00 shipping. Include your mailing address and the names of the programs you want to try. By return mail you'll receive the latest versions for evaluation. ____________________________________________ Or, you can download them from several online services... GENIE - in the IBM PC Software Library (menu 616) DELPHI - in the GROUP/PC compat/ DATABASE/GEN area Once in the download areas, search for keyword HERRON. ____________________________________________ PROGRAM SPECIFICATIONS AND REGISTRATION FEES MAY CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. ____________________________________________ ChkD - Check_Disk_space reports disk drive space usage. It reports drive cluster size, then drive space TOTAL, FREE and USED by actual value and by percentage. Faster and more convenient than the DOS "dir" or "chkdsk" utilities for displaying drive information. ChkM - Check_Memory_space reports standard system memory (RAM) space usage. It reports memory space TOTAL, FREE and USED by actual value and by percentage. Faster and more convenient than the DOS "chkdsk" utility for displaying system memory information. CleanOut - Clean_Out_files searches all directories of the default drive for file(s) specified on command line (wildcards * and ? are legal). Each time a matching file is found, the user is prompted for disposition: Delete or Save. File contents, either text or binary, can be VIEWED before deciding. A single press of the "S" key saves a file; a double press of the "D" key deletes it. An optional mode allows deletions without confirmation. Useful for cleaning out .BAK file leftovers, among others. CleanTxt - Clean_Text converts WordStar text files to straight ASCII. It strips out certain control characters, and will optionally expand tab characters to the appropriate number of spaces. CleanZ - Most text editors won't read files beyond the first control-Z end-of-file character. Control-Z's can become embedded in a text file when several files are combined using the DOS "type" command. CleanZ will strip out each control-Z, or it will optionally replace each with a seldom-used character, to ease the task of locating the former boundaries in combined files. DiskInit - Diskette_Initialize erases all files and subdirectories on a 5.25 inch 362k DSDD diskette in about two seconds. It does not initialize marked bad sectors, but tells you to reformat instead. ErrLev - ErrLev is a utility for testing batch file "if errorlevel" statements. During testing, executable program calls are commented out and replaced with "ErrLev nn", where nn is the DOS errorlevel to be simulated. The simulated errorlevel then exercises branching commands in the batch file under test. FindD - Find_Directory searches the default drive for specified subdirectory names, and lists the complete path to those found. FindF - Find_File searches the default drive for specified files, and writes the file information to screen or disk. Useful for locating misplaced files or for generating a listing of all files and subdirectories on the default drive. FreqCh - Letter-frequency analysis of text or binary files; handles the full 256-character extended Ascii set; display is sorted in order of Ascii code or frequency of occurence. Gen - Generate_file replaces several trial-and-error methods of building specific-sized files for printer, storage or timing tests. It generates files of any size from zero to twenty million bytes, much faster than typing random characters into a text editor. Besides generating files on disk, it can send characters directly to the console screen, printer or other DOS device. KeyCode - KeyCode responds to each press of a key or combination of keys by displaying the key or combination pressed, its associated Ascii character (if any), key type (normal or extended), Ascii code and Scan code. KeySet - KeySet's interactive mode displays the current settings of the CapsLock, NumLock, ScrollLock and PrtSc (Print Screen) keys, and allows them to be changed. The command line mode directly sets the keys to specified states, allowing use of a batch file for presetting at system boot-up or between applications. PhLBL - Ph_Label prints label text stored in easily-maintained ASCII files. Each label/card/tag can contain embedded commands for date, time, left margin, and selectable printer attribute for each line; 5, 8.5, 10, 12, 17 or 20 characters per inch pitch, normal/bold/ underlined on Epson compatible dot-matrix printers. PrinTest - PrinTest repetitively displays the status of ports assigned to parallel printer interfaces. It can be used to isolate problems to the printer interface card, the cable or the printer itself. It reports printer and port number, status byte and status condition. Qscr - QuickScreen converts a single text screen to an executable file for more rapid display. The resulting .COM file will write a screen of text much faster than batch file ECHO statements. Useful for setting up compact menu systems, demos and tutorials. ScanF - Scan_File speeds up the search for ASCII text strings within executable files. It filters out the unintelligible control and extended characters, allows user definition of minimum string length for display, and pauses after each screen of information. ScanM - Scan_Memory speeds up the search for ASCII text such as ROM copyright statements and machine identification, anywhere within standard system memory space. It filters out the unintelligible control and extended characters, displays each string longer than three characters, and pauses after each screen of information. Split - Split_file breaks huge text files down into smaller ones that will fit into your text editor or onto a diskette. Useful for working on large files with a limited-filesize memory-resident notepad utility. StoRm - STOrage_RooM reports the amount of disk space required for storage of a specified file or group of files on any disk, using any version of DOS. It takes into account all of the factors involved in determining file storage size. It locates files specified on the command line and determines their actual total size and the amount of room needed to store them. Useful for determining the number of files that will fit on a disk. _____________ Future releases ______________ AcctSort - Fast entry of dollar amounts & assignment to user-designed charts of accounts; user-selected limit checking of $ and account numbers. 1099 - Entry/editing/printing of 1099-MISC forms _______________________________________________________________ | | | COPYRIGHT 1990 Phil Herron. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | |_______________________________________________________________|