NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #18/NN_1992_18.iso/spool/comp/sys/ibm/pc/digest/152

Internet Message Format | 1992-08-13 | 20.7 KB

Path: sparky!uunet!cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!BRL.MIL!Info-IBMPC
From: [e-mail] (Info-IBMPC Digest)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.digest
Subject: Info-IBMPC Digest V92 #130
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: 8 Aug 92 15:30:24 GMT
Sender: [e-mail]
Reply-To: [e-mail]
Distribution: world
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 547
Approved: [e-mail]

Info-IBMPC Digest           Sat,  8 Aug 92       Volume 92 : Issue 130

Today's Editor:
         Gregory Hicks - Rota Spain <[e-mail]>

Today's Topics:
                    Antiglare screens, which and why
                     Apartment Management Software
                 Boiler plate sentences manager sought
                            Cheap PC Network
                  DOUBLE SIDE PRINTING WITH POSTSCRIPT
                  DR DOS 6 and disk compressor answers
                        FDFORMAT and DOS 4.0/5.0
                      HELP: Clipper Hot Key ALT-D
           How to configure DR DOS 6 for use with Windows 3.1
             Purchasing a Computer by Mail-Order (V92 #122)
                    Out of Memory Errors (V92 #123)
                        Partition Table Patching
                                Sideways
                              Tandy 6000HD
               typing tutor sought for Italian keyboards
                              Xappeal demo
                         XT-286 boot-up problem
                                ISA Bus

Send Replies or notes for publication to: <[e-mail]>

Send requests of an administrative nature (addition to, deletion from
the distribution list, et al) to: <[e-mail]>

Addition and Deletion requests for UK readers should be sent to:
<[e-mail]>

Archives of past issues of the Info-IBMPC Digest are available by FTP
ONLY from WSMR-SIMTEL20.ARMY.MIL in directory PD2:<ARCHIVES.IBMPC>.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 24 Jul 92 13:14:00 EDT
From: "MACPHERSON, DOUGLAS" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Antiglare screens, which and why

Terry Lum asked for info on antiglare screens.  I'm posting my reply
here because other may be interested in the reasons for eye fatigue and
how that influences your choice.

The usual reason given for eye fatigue is the fuzzy screen and it's bad
enough.  But there's another  -  visual accomodation fatigue.  Visual
accomodation is the adjustment the lens makes to change focus and the
fatigue occurs when you have to do a lot of it.

You're not aware of it but you do do a lot of it when you're working on
a monitor because your visual distance is a foot or so and that glare
is coming from the front of the CRT while the message is being painted
on the back, 1/4" or more.  So while you read this this the lenses of
your eyes are going streach-squish every time an edge of the glare gets
in the way.

The edge is important, that's what your eye reacts to, and that's why a
matte finish on the front of the CRT helps.

The usual transparent filters reduce the glare on the screen but
provide a fainter image (set of lines) to focus on that are even
further away.  They can increase fatigue if the image is not dull
enough.  Filters with matte surfaces will be better than the shiny
ones because they will dull and blur the high contrast edges to the
point that your eye doesn't respond.

So get a micro thread screen.  It's made by stringing very fine thread
very close together.  My 10 yr old Tandy still cuts glare from the
screen as well or better than the flat plastic kind, and NOTHING
reflects off it.  But if you're using a color monitor try it on your
make/model  --  it can produce moire patterns which you may object to.

My advice is mine, not necessarily my lab's.  And I have no known
financial interest in any of this.

                          Doug. Macpherson
                         Research Psychologist
US Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Jul 92 21:17:00 EDT
From: Etop Udoh <[e-mail]>
Subject: Apartment Management Software....

hi,

  there is a public domain Apartment Management program in the PC-blue
public domain archive and it is called... "Manage".

:                                  Southern College of Technology   :
:     << [e-mail] >>                 Marietta, Georgia         :

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 15:13:54 SET
From: Marco Simionato <[e-mail]>
Subject: Boiler plate sentences manager sought

I do a lot of technical translating and I often come up with repetitous
"boiler plate" sentences, which I either have to retranslate or trace
back to copy and paste. I was wondering if there was any kind of
multi-clipboard where I could store these standard phrases/procedures
and then paste them into the document when needed by only pressing a
keyword.

I think something like this exists on the Mac, but I would like to have
the like for use with Word for Windows. Or it would be nice if there
were a popup list-box where to select the desired phrase for pasting.

Marco Simionato

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Jul 92 21:38:26 EDT
From: Etop Udoh <[e-mail]>
Subject: Cheap PC Network

   the cheapest PC network software which actually works and is
available for under $100 is "Little Big Lan" written by Information
Modes....

   I've personally bought and installed the network, connecting 2 or
more PC's, been able to access any drive on any other machine etc.,
copy files and entire directories in almost a flash from one machine to
another, so all I can do is recommend this to anyone looking for a
cheap PC network and the total price is barely $80 (not including
cables of course)...

  anyway, this company first came out with the $25 network (yes,
really...) and the "little Big Lan" is known as the $75 network....

  I-Modes  1-800-628-7992

:                                  Southern College of Technology   :
:     << [e-mail] >>                 Marietta, Georgia         :

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 17:44:00 SST
From: Peh Kok Wah <[e-mail]>
Subject: DOUBLE SIDE PRINTING WITH POSTSCRIPT

If I have a double-side Postscript printer, say a LaserJet IIID with a
Postscript cartridge, how do I turn on/off double side printing?  As
far as I know, there are no such commands in the Postscript definition.
Any tips would be appreciated.

------------------------------

Date: 24 Jul 92 13:25:00 EDT
From: "MACPHERSON, DOUGLAS" <[e-mail]>
Subject: DR DOS 6 and disk compressor answers

Dane Jasper and Brian Drendel have asked about DR DOS 6 and disk
compression TSRs.  Here's what I've found.

Dane's query >
>I found an ad for Dr Dos
>6.0 that said that it included SuperStore and Super-PC-Kwik with it,
>all for only $89!

It also includes TASKMAX, a task switcher that DOESN'T have to save the
environment to Drive C, so you can save to RAMDISK.

And a EMM that's better than DOS 5's.

>is running a utility like SuperStore really a good idea?
>the drive is the slowest part the system.

Is your drive one of the Seagate RLLs?  Norton says SS sped up my drive
30%.  Why?  The 16mH 386SX chip can decompress far faster than the data
comes off the disk, and there's only half as much to come off the disk.
My Spinrite manual told me something else  --  my Western Digital RLL
controller card was dumbed down to run DOS 2, which also slows it down
30%.  Pulling the appropriate jumper (2*3 array) also speeds it up 30%.
But DR DOS doesn't recognize the drive with jumper pulled.  (It did
once, just long enough for Norton to show a 50% improvement, but I
couldn't replicate it.) So the bottom line is the same as the top  -
30% improvement and a 55mB capacity 30mB disk.

For Brian I'll add that a PC-Mag test of disk compressors on a 486 with
15ms drive reported that the compression didn't slow the system down.
If he is using a <20ms drive a compressor will slow it down, but not
much.  A slower drive and he'll get a speedup.

About TASKMAX:  I'm running the SX with Phoenix Bios, on a Chincony
board, and with an OAK VGA/EGA card.  Different programs output EGA or
VGA.  Something in this mess confuses TASKMAX and it crashes hard.  The
DR DOS manual says:

  try the special VGA driver  --  no joy  --

  take everything out of High Memory and add stuff til I find the cause
--  see above.

  TASKMAX doesn't work with TELESCAN, according to the TELESCAN tech.
personnel (TELESCAN is a graphics communication package).

(Actually, the latest revision may have improved things but I haven't
tested it.)

About EMM:  It's less brain damaged than DOS 5 in that it gives you
more information on where to cram stuff in High Mem (640k - 1mB).  Like
DOS 5 there's a driver that can use the 64 k at the 1mB boundry.

(Almost) undocumented feature:  DR DOS saves erased files by changing
the names to numbers and hiding them.  Unfortunately it can forget to
hide them, whereupon you may find strange files appearing in you
directories.  One professional developer took DR DOS off for this
reason.

Bottom line:  DR DOS is a very good value, but it's going to take time
to check out on your configuration.  It come with a 3 month return
policy, but ineffective support.  On the other hand, in my sample of
three users I'm the only one to continue.

                Doug Macpherson
                Army Research Institute

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 17:43:12 EST
From: [e-mail]
Subject: FDFORMAT and DOS 4.0/5.0

>Apparently it can! I set up a 286 laptop (Toshiba T3200) for a friend.
>The operating system that came with the machine is Microsoft's MS-DOS
>4.0. I was interested in knowing the differences between versions 4.0
>and 5.0 and FORMAT was the first thing I tried. I simply tried 'format
>a:' after placing a DD diskette in the single floppy drive, as I wanted
>to find out if it could recognize the diskette type without specifying
>the switch /F:720. To my surprise it formatted the diskette as though
>it was HD, giving 1457664 bytes total disk space. I tried writing then
>reading then copying from the diskette. Surprisingly all file transfers
>took place faithfully.

>Unfortunately, I could not use the "abnormally" formatted diskette in
>my PC-compatible running MS-DOS 5.0. Not even a simple 'dir' would
>work.  This reminds me of C. Hochstatter's FDFORMAT: diskettes with
>unconventional format (i.e., 360K floppy formatted to 820K) could not
>be used in MSDOS5.0 in systems that have not successfully loaded
>FDREAD.EXE.

This is not a matter of the DOS-Version, but a hardware matter of your
floppy drive. Most 3.5" drives check the second hole, which is present
only in HD-Diskettes. But some drives (including IBM drives) don't
check that hole.

Christoph H. Hochstaetter, Author of FDFORMAT

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 22 Jul 92 09:41:19 SST
From: csar![e-mail]
Subject: HELP: Clipper Hot Key ALT-D

I have a problem using the hot key ALT-D in Clipper 5.01. I know that
this key is used by the Clipper Debugger. Even if I compile my codes
using /L option (no debugging info), Clipper does not return the
keycode to my application when I press ALT-D. I have no problem with
any other keys. Is there a way to get Clipper to return the keycode for
ALT-D to my application?

Peter Lam, Software Engineer
CSA Research Pte Ltd, Singapore
[e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 15:14:56 SET
From: Marco Simionato <[e-mail]>
Subject: How to configure DR DOS 6 for use with Windows 3.1

I successfully installed DR DOS 6 on my 386SX compatible machine, but
I'm not sure how to configure it for use with Windows 3.1.  I don't
know anybody around who has already faced this, so now the problem
arises how to write the configuration files without having to get a
degree in memory management drivers, and so on.

Below my AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files are reported as they are
now, but I hope I can get more out of my computer, since at the moment
it is not performing as it was with - properly configured - MS DOS 5.
I have already upgraded version 6 with the Win 3.1 patches.

What I don't like is that it is doing a lot of swapping and scrolling
in WinWord is kind of slow for a 386 machine. Windows is using its own
swap file (6Mb).

I would appreciate it if you could give me suggestions or even send me
a copy of your configuration files.

Marco Simionato

AUTOEXEC.BAT

@ECHO OFF
:DRDOSBEG
SET PCTOOLS=C:\UTIL\PCTOOLS\DATA
PATH C:\DRDOS;C:\;C:\WINDOWS;C:\UTIL\NORTON;C:\UTIL\VARIE;
     C:\UTIL\PCTOOLS;c:\util\nc
VERIFY OFF
SHARE /L:80
PROMPT $P$G
SET TEMP=C:\TEMP
IF NOT "%TEMP%"=="" MD %TEMP% >NUL
DISKMAP C:
MEMMAX +U
SUPERPCK  /EM /R:768
:DRDOSEND


CONFIG.SYS

SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM C:\ /P /E:512
BREAK=ON
DEVICE=C:\DRDOS\EMM386.SYS /F=NONE /K=AUTO /B=FFFF /R=AUTO
HIBUFFERS=20
FILES=30
FCBS=4,4
FASTOPEN=512
LASTDRIVE=E
HISTORY=ON, 256, OFF, OFF, OFF
COUNTRY=039,,C:\DRDOS\COUNTRY.SYS
HIDOS=ON
?"Carico il software MemoryMAX (S/N)?"DEVICE=C:\DRDOS\EMM386.SYS /F=AUTO /K=3072
/B=FFFF /R=AUTO
HIDEVICE=C:\DRDOS\PCKWIN.SYS
HIINSTALL=C:\AGMOUSE.COM
HIINSTALL=C:\DRDOS\KEYB.COM IT+
HIINSTALL=C:\DRDOS\LOGIN.EXE C:\DRDOS
STACKS=9,256

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 12:03:46 -0500
From: Tom Fisher <[e-mail]>
Subject: Purchasing a Computer by Mail-Order (V92 #122)

[e-mail] (Info-IBMPC Digest):
>
> I am getting ready to purchase a 486-33 system and am thinking about
> going through a mail order company using Computer Shopper as my guide.
> Can anyone with experience in this area send me some information on how
> to make sure I get a quality system that won't blow up as soon as the
> warranty runs out?  I am particularly concerned about the quality of
> the motherboard.  Do most mail-order companies make their own
> motherboards or is there a certain manufacturer I should look for?  Are
> there any mail-order companies I should steer clear of?
>

I was faced with the same situation earlier this year, and I also
spent many hours pouring over the CS adds.  Quality is also a
big-deal with me.  I ended up buying an Austin 486-33 ISA system
and, so far, I'm real pleased.  Tri-Star was also high on my list
of "good" companies.  Two outfits to steer clear of are Blue
Dolphin and Strobe Computers (if you want details, ask and I'll
supply them).  Good luck!

Tom Fisher
[e-mail]


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 11:09:34 -0500
From: Tom Fisher <[e-mail]>
Subject: Out of Memory Errors (V92 #123)

[e-mail] (Info-IBMPC Digest):
>
>     I am new to this list, and I hope that this question is in the
> right place.  I am getting an 'Out of Memory' error when trying to run
> the BASICA command in IBM DOS 5.0 on an IBM PC (8086).  The machines
> have 640K of memory and CGA monitors.  They have only two floppy
> drives, no hard drive, and are connected to a Banyan Vines network.  I
> have tested this without connecting to the network, and I get the same
> error, so I am assuming that the network is not the problem.  The
> BASICA command worked on our network when we were running IBM DOS 3.3,
> therefore I am wondering if there is maybe a bug in the DOS 5 version
> or something?  Any information would be helpful and greatly
> appreciated.   Thanks!

Check your config.sys file for "FCBS=x"   Whatever x is, increase
it by 1 or 2, reboot and see what happens.  Also, read the DOS
manual on FCBS (File Control Blocks).  Good luck.

Tom Fisher


------------------------------

Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 12:39:13 -0500
From: "Miguel de Icaza A." <[e-mail]>
Subject: Partition Table Patching

I'm writing a program who patches the MBR (Master Boot Record, In fact
it changes some data in the Partition Table) and everything goes fine
on my machine (an IBM PS/2 80), when I tried to use it on a PS/2 mod.
25 the machine just hangs.

So I made some experiments, I have a program who can read the MBR to a
file and a program who writes a file to the MBR, these are the
experiments:

a) Machine is in good state (boots)
   read the current MBR and save it on file GOOD.MBR
   write GOOD.MBR on the MBR.
   reboot.
   Result: The machine works.

b) Machine is in good state (boots)
   read the current MBR and save it on file GOOD.MBR
   write my own version of the MBR
   write file GOOD.MBR over MBR.
   reboot.
   Result: The machine hangs.

I don't understand what's happening, since in (b) I restored the
machine to a known state (the same as before begining the experiment).
Continuation...

b.2)
    Boot with a floppy disk
    Read MBR and save it on file BAD.MBR
    Compare BAD.MBR with GOOD.MBR
    Result: Files are the same.

Does anybody know if I'm missing some step when writing to MBR (Sector
1, Track 0, Head 0 on hard disk)?

I'll post a digest of whichever answer I get.

Thanks in advance,
Miguel de Icaza
Instituto de Ciencias Nucleares,
UNAM.

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 22 Jul 92 17:11:26 -0500
From: "John Boyd;LAHDI" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Sideways

I have an '85 vintage program called Sideways which allows you to print
output that is horizontally wider than your printer, by running it
vertically down the paper.  Well, it doesn't understand a couple of the
printers that I'm now using, and I can't seem to find an ad for it
anywhere.  I think I remember hearing rumours that it rolled to a newer
product called 'Allways' and that it is only bundled with Lotus 1-2-3.
Is any of this true, or does anyone know where I can obtain this, or a
similar pkg??

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Jul 92 21:23:02 EDT
From: Etop Udoh <[e-mail]>
Subject: Tandy 6000HD

 I recently acquired a Tandy 6000HD and it came with no documentation,
and also without disks....

 When I power it up, it tries to boot from the Harddisks and returns
with a boot error....  Does anyone know anything about this machine ???
anything at all ????

:                                  Southern College of Technology   :
:     << [e-mail] >>                 Marietta, Georgia         :

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 15:20:00 SET
From: Marco Simionato <[e-mail]>
Subject: typing tutor sought for Italian keyboards

I need a typing tutoring program - no matter if share- or freeware -
which could also be configured for Italian keyboards.  Any info
appreciated.

Marco Simionato

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 23 Jul 92 17:59:55 IST
From: "Jacques J. Goldberg" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Xappeal demo

Has anybody succeeded in operating  the demo?  I did exactly what the
README says, got to the point that I have the X-11 background screen
and an X cursor, but no login window.  Could it be that my PC has to be
known to the mainframe which I am trying to address? If yes, how?

README says that a file X0.HOS with authorised hosts could help.  What
is the format?  Yes I tried to ask [e-mail]: the
Rutgers router can't send my mail further (path broken, I guess).

For replies by e-mail: [e-mail]       Thanks Jacques
                          \___two zeroes

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 21 Jul 92 21:20:42 EDT
From: Etop Udoh <[e-mail]>
Subject: XT-286 boot-up problem....

   if your computer "loses its memory" so to speak when you turn it off
and back on again then the on-board battery is low or no good.  you
have to buy a battery pack with a 4-pin connector which connects to a
4-pin connector on the motherboard near the keyboard connector....

:                                  Southern College of Technology   :
:     << [e-mail] >>                 Marietta, Georgia         :

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1992 20:29:31 GMT
From: [e-mail] (Steven Pye)
Subject: ISA Bus

Hi,

Sorry in advance if this is not where I should be asking this.  Perhaps
you could tell me what I should be doing.  I saw your userid as the
source for an article in comp.sys.ibm.pc.digest.

I am looking for information on interfacing to the 16-bit ISA bus.  I
have the IBM AT Technical Reference Manual with all the pinouts, but am
looking for some 'instructional' advice as to the best ways to use the
bus.  Perhaps some examples of how some Ethernet cards use the bus
would be useful.  I don't want to have to re-invent the wheel as I
realize there are many cards which have solved this problem.  I heard
there was an Application Note written by Intel for the bus, but it is a
discontinued document.  It has the document number 458057.  Is there
some place where I might be able to get an old document like this one?

Thanks a lot,

Cheers,
Steve Pye     ([e-mail]).

------------------------------

End of Info-IBMPC Digest V92 #130
*********************************
-------