NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #26/NN_1992_26.iso/spool/comp/sys/ibm/pc/digest/175

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Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.digest
Subject: Info-IBMPC Digest V92 #174
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Date: 10 Nov 92 00:43:09 GMT
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Info-IBMPC Digest           Tue, 10 Nov 92       Volume 92 : Issue 174

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

Today's Topics:
             Adding Devices to GRiD Portable External Buss
                    Appleworks to MS-DOS conversion
                      Cannot execute L:myprog.exe
           Cant format 720k disks anymore....think I know why
                Finish Deleting OS/2 (V92 #168) (2 msgs)
                         Internet to DDN/Milnet
                              mouse driver
             moving files PC <--> Mainframe over phone line
                    Print TIFF to Apple LaserWriter
                        Safety Tracking Program
                                UnMouse
                             Windows debate
                     Windows V3.1 CGA Video Driver
                            xebec controller

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the distribution list, et al) to: <[e-mail]>

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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: Sat, 7 Nov 92 17:42:26 EST
From: Peter C Olsen <[e-mail]>
Subject: Adding Devices to GRiD Portable External Buss

I'm looking for information about adding a device to the external bus
connector on a GRiD portable computer.  I have GRiD 1550SX with a
120MB HD and I'd like to use a Colorado Memory Systems tape drive to
back up the HD.  I'd like to contact anyone who has done this or
anything similar.  It appears that all the floppy control lines come
out the external buss port and that all I should have to do is make a
suitable connector, install the tape software, and start making
backups.

Can anyone share their experience?

Thanks!

 Peter Olsen, PE, n2ell, P.O. Box 410, Simpsonville, MD 21150, 410-997-8584
[e-mail]  ...!uunet!super!pcolsen  CG:[e-mail]/G-ASMTP
     "Engineering is the art of applying a professional knowledge of
      mathematics and the physical sciences to improve the quality of life"

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

Date: Fri, 6 Nov 92 5:46:32 MST
From: "Alan I. Moses" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Appleworks to MS-DOS conversion

I finally upgraded my home computer system from an Apple IIc to a 386
SX (yes, I know the only difference between men and boys is the price
of their toys).  I have two disks created with appleworks (primarily
electronic spreadsheets) plus 1 data appleworks data base file and
two text documents that I would like to convert to MS-DOS WordPerfect
5.1/dBase IV V1.1/LOTUS 1-2-3 R2.3.  Is there an inexpensive service
to accomplish this without having to rekey in all the data?

send replies to   [e-mail] will compile,
test results, and advise results.

Thanks in advance

Regards

Alan I. Moses

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

Date: Fri, 06 Nov 92 20:56:14 +0200
From: Omer Zak <[e-mail]>
Subject: Cannot execute L:myprog.exe

I encountered an undocumented MS/DOS 5.0 error message.

Background:  I work in an LAN Manager environment, over an Ethernet
network.  I wanted to execute a program which is stored in the LAN
Manager server.

When the program exists in my own hard disk (drive C:), it executes
without problems.  However when I copy the file to the server (which
provides me with the network directory L:) and try to execute
L:MYPROG, I get the error message:

Cannot execute L:myprog.exe

This message does not seem to be from the LAN software because the
MS-DOS 5.0 COMMAND.COM contains the text of this message.  However
the Microsoft book on MS-DOS 5.0 (and none of the independently
written books on MS-DOS 5.0 which I consulted) does not explain this
error message.

Does anyone know under what circumstances does this error message
arise?

Note that I made sure that I have all access privileges to the copy
of the program on the server, and it did not help.  Even logging in
with Administrator privileges did not help.  --- Omer Bitnet:
XLACHA1@WEIZMANN

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

Date: 06 Nov 1992 01:17:32 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Cant format 720k disks anymore....think I know why

Hi,
   A friend of mine and I made a minor modification to my 3.5" floppy
drive.  We took the HD detector switch off of it thinking that if it
wasn't there the drive would just let us format things HD all the
time.  THAT worked great.  Now I get High Density on ALL disks.
(this is because a 720k and a 1.44M disk are the same the 1.44 disk
is just gone through more testing to make sure it can handle the
extra data)  Anyway, NOW I cannot format ANY 720k disks to 720k.  I
can't write to them more than once or twice either.  For some reason
the disk drive now reads them as having bad boot sectors or
unrecoverable data errors.  I have researched this and cannot come up
with a reason why that would be.

One hunch though....
  Does that little lever tell the disk drive to look at the disk in a
certain way?  And, if so, when it's not active, does the drive look
for HD format?  And, if so, does that mean that I REALLY screwed this
thing up?  And....IF SO......anyone got a cheapo 720k drive out there
that I can steal from ya?

I'll even take a 5.25" floppy drive at this point...I have a ton of
junk on those that I need to convert over to 3.5" disks anyhow.  And
only have the one floppy drive.

So, I guess this was a two pronged question.

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

Date: Sat, 7 Nov 92 16:47:27 EST
From: [e-mail] (Prof. A.J. Stretton)
Subject: Finish Deleting OS/2

You can use the "attrib" command from MS DOS 5.0 to see hidden files
and to change their attributes to make them eraseable.  Simply do:

attrib

in the directory to see ALL files, then do:

attrib -h -r -s ea
erase ea

in the directory where the mystery file is located.

There are other common packages which show you hidden files, such as
XTREE GOLD.  But even earlier packages for DOS have always had the
"attrib" command.

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

Date: Sat, 07 Nov 92 12:20:07 -0500
From: Joe Morris <[e-mail]>
Subject: Finish Deleting OS/2 (INFO-IBMPC 92.168)


In INFO-IBMPC 92.168  Chris Thompson <[e-mail]> writes:

>I need some help getting rid of the last vestiges of OS/2 on my
>machine.  We have succeeded in erasing most of it, but there are
>about 8-12 Mbytes still taken up by an invisible unmovable file
>called 'ea'.  This file can't be seen by anything we have except
>Norton Disk Editor, at the sector or cluster level.  Any hints?

OS/2 has the distressing characteristic that in dual-boot (OS/2 and
DOS coexisting on the same disk) it uses files named in a way that
violates DOS naming rules, in particuar by including embedded spaces.

This may have been done in an attempt to ensure the integrity of the
OS/2 file system (and to keep DOS programs away from it) but a
perhaps unintended result is that numerous directory-related programs
get unhappy.  A frequent symptom is that only part of the filename
may be displayed because a program's parsing algorithm stopped when
it encountered the embedded blank...which in a legal DOS filename
ends the field.  In turn, a consequence is that normal DOS utilities
may be totally unable to manipulate the directory entry.

If you are familiar with using Norton Utilities (or any other
sector-edit program which can edit a directory) the following should
solve your problems:

 1. Start DiskEdit, pointing to the C: root directory (or wherever
else you've put OS/2).

 2. Locate the offending entry in the directory.

 3. Turn off the Hidden, System, and Read-Only bits if they are on.

 4. Edit the filename *and* file extention fields to remove the
embedded blanks.  It doesn't really matter what you do to them as
long as the result is a legal DOS filename and doesn't duplicate
another entry.

 5. Scan the directory to make sure that you've really found all the
OS/2 files.  There are at least two files with these screwy names.
If you find any other files from OS/2 go back to step 3.

 6. Exit DiskEdit and issue normal DOS commands to delete the
file(s).

Joe Morris / MITRE

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

Date: Fri, 6 Nov 92 20:40 EST
From: <[e-mail]>
Subject: Internet to DDN/Milnet

I'm an Army Officer in graduate school at Penn State and I'm looking for some
help in determining how to send E-Mail to Army activities using the Internet.
Do I just send them using the DDN address like [e-mail] or is
something else required?  I tried to send mail to my last unit at Fort Sill
using [e-mail] two days ago and as of today it still had not
arrived.

I realize this isn't really your job but I know how helpful you guys out of
White Sands are (fired numerous Lance missiles there) and even if you don't
know the answer you'll know where to send me for help.

                                Mucho Gracias,
                                James Lindley
                                [e-mail]

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

Date: Fri, 06 Nov 92 09:02:02 UCR
From: Rodrigo Bogarin <[e-mail]>
Subject: mouse driver

Does anyone know where I can get a source code for a mouse driver. I
have to figure out the protocol used by the mouse in order to
comunicate with the computer. At least, any place where I can get
information about it.

Thanks.

You can contact me to:

rbogarin@ucrvm2 (bitnet)
[e-mail] (internet)

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

Date: Sat, 7 Nov 1992 17:09:33 GMT
From: [e-mail] (Clifton R Peterson)
Subject: moving files PC <--> Mainframe over phone line

In digest V92 #169 [e-mail] writes:

>> Date: Tue, 20 Oct 1992 08:51:32 PDT
>> From: [e-mail]
>>
>> I need to be able to perform file transfer over a phone line between
>> a PC and an MVS host under either TSO or CICS.  On the HOST we have
>> IND$FILE but I cannot seem to find any SW out there that supports
>> this protocol.  Can anyone offer any suggestions here?

I'd think that it would be worthwhile for you to ask your mainframe
administrator to get Kermit.  This is usually available free for most
systems and most PC software supports it.  I realize that it is an
old relatively unsophisticated transfer protocol, but it usually
works just because of those facts.
 _________________________________________________________________________
/ Clifton R. Peterson    1108 Burnett        [phone]              \
| B.S. Chem E            Ames IA  50010                                   |
\_______________"42"_is_one_hell_of_an_answer!!___________________________/

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

Date: Wed, 04 Nov 92 09:30:43 CST
From: "Thomas E. Phillips" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Print TIFF to Apple LaserWriter

Are there any shareware/freeware/commercial programs that will allow
me to print a TIFF file to a Apple LaserWriter NTXII?  Preferably
directly from my PC without having to import it into another package.
Thanks.

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

Date: Thu, 5 Nov 92 14:17:12 EST
From: Bill Starnes <[e-mail]>
Subject: Safety Tracking Program

Our Safety Office wants a program to track a number of OSHA and
command emphasized injury and illness statistics.  I could write one
but it would take a while nd be a pain in the lower extremities, what
with all the reports they want/need.  Before I get busy re-inventing
the wheel does anyone know of an injury tracking program, either
shareware or self written?  Due to fund constraints, we can't go out
and buy a commercial program at the moment.

Please reply direct to me since I get behind the power curve and
don't get to read the digest with any regularity.  Thanks.

Bill Starnes                         Phone:  DSN  236-7229/7136
[e-mail]                    Comm 919-396-7229/7136
1112th Signal Bn Information Center

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

Date: Wed, 4 Nov 92 14:44:24 EST
From: "Bruce E. Nevin" <[e-mail]>
Subject: UnMouse

A fellow train passenger, having seen my AST notebook, gave me a
photocopy of a page from the November 1992 _Popular Science_ with a
description of this device, described as follows:

  Tiny touch-screen
  The UnMouse, a pointing device sold to notebook computer manufacturers
  for use in their machines, replaces a mouse or track ball.  Pressing
  the 2-by-3-inch touch-sensitive glass tablet moves the cursor; tapping
  the glass selects an item.  MicroTouch Systems, 55 Jonspin Rd.,
  Wilmington, MA 01887.

Anybody know anything about it?  I suppose it could give you
reasonably precise control of the mouse cursor despite its small area
if it takes several strokes of the fingertip across the plate to get
the cursor all the way across the screen.  I could enquire directly
to find out if they sell to anyone but manufacturers--probably a
tricky retrofit--but I thought I'd ask if anyone had any experience
with something like this.

Disclaimer: no connection, etc., just curious, etc.

    Bruce Nevin
    [e-mail]

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

Date: Sat, 07 Nov 1992 13:35:40 GMT
From: [e-mail] (Erik van Linstee)
Subject: Windows debate

[e-mail] writes:
>        DOS is still used for most computers in the world (Macs, like

Of course you meant to say, ibm compatible personal computers. :-)

Erik van Linstee   |   Delft University of Technology   |   I'll be back ...

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

Date: Sun, 8 Nov 92 01:54:21 -0500
From: [e-mail] (Patrick Lyerly)
Subject: Windows V3.1 CGA Video Driver

Hello,

I have an xt with an accelerator card in it with: Vga graphics card
and an RGB color monitor, like you.

Does windows 3.0 support this kind of a setup, I think this is what
you had, did it work ok?

Thanks
RickeR

[e-mail]

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

Date: Fri, 6 Nov 92 16:22 CST
From: [e-mail]
Subject: xebec controller

Does Anyone have any information on the Drive Table located in the
rom of the Xebec 1210 hard disk controller (the controller that came
with the original XT).  The reason I need this information is that I
have a hard drive that is not supported by the controller.  If I know
exactly where the drive parameters are located in the ROM, I can
modify them to match my drive.  Any and all information would be
helpful.

                                        Thank You in Advance,
                                        Karl M. Pierz
                                        Bitnet: [e-mail]

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

End of Info-IBMPC Digest V92 #174
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