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VUIMAGE(tm) (Version 3.10) (Shareware) GIF*/TIFF/PCX Format Picture Viewer/Printer Copyright (C) 1989-1991 Offe Enterprises. All rights reserved. USERS MANUAL Offe Enterprises, 1163 E. Ogden Ave. #705-131, Naperville, IL 60563 USA 708-357-6679 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | A list of changes in this version is provided at the end of this file. | | Some of the sources from where the latest version can usually be | | obtained are listed at the end of this file. | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ * GIF and "Graphics Interchange Format" are trademarks (tm) of Compuserve, Inc., an H&R block company. PostScript is a trademark of Adobe Systems, Inc. VUIMAGE, VUIMAGE PLUS, TBG and SCRtoPS are trademarks of Offe Enterprises. ============================================================================== FEATURES -------- Offe is proud to bring you our GIF/TIFF/PCX display/print software for the IBM PC family. Its main features are: - super fast display of GIF, PCX and bilevel/grayscale TIFF files - print files (seven dithering options) to laserjet and dot-matrix printers - handles large images while needing only 170K of free memory* - zoom in / zoom out using the "+" and "-" keys - panning - cursor keys allow moving screen window over different sections of picture - Support for the GIF89a standard - plain text, graphics control, comment extensions, restore to background, restore to previous etc. - print entire image, set your own print size - supports a variety of display types - CGA/Hercules/6300/DEB/EGA/MCGA/ VGA/SuperVGA/VESA SuperVGA - 320x400x256, 360x480x256 and 800x600x16 driver for standard IBM VGA - VESA SuperVGA driver for all SuperVGA cards that have VESA BIOS support. Supports the following VESA standard modes (if available in card): 800x600x16, 1024x768x16, 1280x1024x16 640x400x256, 640x480x256, 800x600x256, 1024x768x256, 1280x1024x256 - excellent color rendition in all video modes - various dithering options for two-color video modes - automatic/manual video mode selection capability - auto/manual scaling - automatically scale to full screen or manually scale from 1% to 999% - adjust brightness and contrast, autoscale etc. while picture is on screen - display picture in a window on screen - supports other boards/future boards through BIOS mode - user-friendly, multiple interfaces - menu-selectable options - command-line selectable options (useful in batch files and when called as a sub-program by other programs) - pre-programmed keystroke mode (std. input re-direction) - select files using cursor or by file numbers - specify a list of files to be displayed, move forward/backward in list - continuously repeat list of files (for demos etc.) - Sort directory alphabetically, by date or by filesize, or disable sort - List directory in short, medium or long format - abort single picture or list of pictures in the middle - handles corrupt files well - returns DOS errorlevel value (useful in batch files and when called as a sub-program by other programs) - user selectable menu screen colors - includes utility to convert interlaced GIF files to non-interlaced GIF files - display quick picture info without displaying picture * GIF89a images that use "restore to previous" function need may need more memory for complete restoral to previous. ============================================================================== FOR REGISTERED USERS -------------------- Registered users get VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) Version 3.10, our non-shareware version of the program with the following added features: - the program configuration can be saved - menus may be disabled and file (or files) to be shown may be specified from the command line (in this mode, the image may be left on the screen when the program ends). Also, a slideshow file facility is available. - print options (printer select, set print size, printer port etc.) can be specifed from the command line - invert images by pressing the "i" key after the picture has been displayed on the screen - compressed bilevel TIFF files (compression type - CCITT Group 4, Group 3-1D or PackBits) can be viewed. Many scanners come with software that can produce such files. - most uncompressed TIFF 8-bit palette color images can be viewed. ============================================================================== REGISTRATION ------------ This version of the program is released as shareware. It is not free and is not in the public domain. Private, non-commercial users are requested to register and support its continued development. Registered users get VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) Ver 3.10. To register, please use the order form supplied with this package, or send your name, address and phone number(s) with the registration fee of US $35.00** to: Offe Enterprises, 1163 E. Ogden Ave. #705-131, Naperville, IL 60563 USA (Outside US, please add $5.00**). Telephone: (708)-357-6679 (USA) Any use of VUIMAGE(tm) in a commercial environment is illegal and is strictly prohibited. Commercial users should purchase VUIMAGE PLUS(tm), the non-shareware version. Volume discounts and site licenses are available for VUIMAGE PLUS(tm). Contact Offe Enterprises for customized versions. DISTRIBUTION ------------ You may make copies of the program files for VUIMAGE(tm) and the documentation VUIMG.DOC (this file) together and distribute them to others, upload to bulletin boards etc. for non-commercial purposes. The program files should not be distributed without the documentation file VUIMG.DOC. None of the files should be modified in any way. OTHER PROGRAMS AVAILABLE FROM OFFE ENTERPRISES: ----------------------------------------------- TBG(tm) - TIFF black&white/grayscale image to GIF/TIFF black&white/ grayscale converter (can reduce large b&w images to smaller grayscale ones for easier viewing, convert TIFF to GIF etc.). Commandline options for non-interactive conversion. SCRtoPS(tm) - Dump text and graphics screens (CGA/EGA/VGA) to PostScript* printer or capture to Encapsulated PostScript file (including line/box characters). Requires only about 10K of resident memory. See file PROGRAMS.DOC for more information on these programs. ============================================================================== ******************************* NOTICE ******************************** * * * This program, and all supporting programs and documentation are * * provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed * * or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties * * of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no * * event will Offe Enterprises be liable to you for any damages * * arising out of the use or inability to use this program and/or * * all supporting programs and documentation. * ************************************************************************* ** All prices and other information are subject to change without notice. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INSTALLATION AND USAGE 2. PROGRAM CONFIGURATION 3. THE MAIN MENU 3.1 SELECTING THE FILE TYPE 3.2 SETTING THE DISPLAY MODE 3.3 DISPLAYING PICTURE FILES 3.4 TIMEOUT 3.5 ABORT PICTURE 3.6 REPEATING LISTS (CONTINUOUS SLIDE SHOW MODE) 3.7 SELECTING THE DISPLAY DIRECTORY 3.8 DIRECTORY SORT 3.9 SCALING OF PICTURES 3.10 TEXT SCREEN COLORS 4. FUNCTIONS AVAILABLE WHEN A PICTURE IS FULLY ON-SCREEN 4.1 ZOOMING 4.2 PANNING 4.3 BRIGHTNESS 4.4 CONTRAST 4.5 INVERTING THE IMAGE 4.6 PRINTING 4.7 PRINTING INTERLACED GIF FILES 4.8 SUMMARY OF COMMANDS AVAILABLE WHEN A PICTURE IS FULLY ON-SCREEN 5. COMMAND LINE OPTIONS 6. DOS EXIT CODES (ERRORLEVEL) 7. DISPLAY BOARDS and EXTENDED VIDEO MODES/DRIVERS 8. MISCELLANEOUS 8.1 SOME SOURCES WHERE THE LATEST SHAREWARE VERSION IS USUALLY AVAILABLE 8.2 COMMON PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS 8.3 REVISION HISTORY 1. INSTALLATION AND USAGE -------------------------- Note: Requires MS-DOS Version 2.0 or later and at least 170K of free memory. 1. FLOPPY DISK Copy all the files from the program disk to another floppy disk. Use this as your working disk - place this disk into drive A:, type "A:" and press return. Go to step 2. HARD DISK Make a new subdirectory. For example, if you are using drive C: and the subdirectory name you want is \VUIMAGE, enter c: md \vuimage Now make this subdirectory your current directory. In our example, enter cd \vuimage Copy all the files from the program disk to this subdirectory. Go to step 2. 2. Now all the files are in the current drive/directory. To start the program, at the DOS prompt, type the following and press return: vuimg (for VUIMAGE(tm) shareware version) vuimgp (for VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) non-shareware version) You will be placed in the main menu. Also shown will be a list of files in the current directory that have the extension "GIF". The current display mode will be displayed at the bottom left of the screen. The main menu options are displayed at the bottom right of the screen. Press "Q" to quit back to DOS. Go to step 3. 3. You can execute the program any time by changing to the subdirectory that contains the program files and typing "vuimg" or "vuimgp" as applicable, as in step 2. However, if you would like to execute the program from any directory, you should include the name of the directory containing the program files as part of your "PATH". (The PATH is a list of directories that DOS will search when you type in a command. Refer to your DOS manual for information on PATH and how to add a sub-directory to your PATH.) 2. PROGRAM CONFIGURATION ------------------------- VUIMAGE PLUS(tm): VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) users can configure the program by making selections through the various menus and/or through commandline options, and then saving the configuration using the "z" key within the Options menu. A configuration file "vuimgp.cfg" will be created in the directory that contains the program files (if you are using a version of DOS earlier than DOS 3.0, this file is created in the current directory instead and should be present in the current directory at the time the program is started). If you are using an extended driver, use the "-v" commandline option to select a driver as you start the program before saving the configuration. Once it has been saved, the extended driver does not have to be specified again. Commandline options can be used to override the saved configuration (see later section on commandline options) for the current session. VUIMAGE(tm) shareware version: VUIMAGE(tm) shareware version users can configure the program using "batch" files. You can create a batch file by typing copy con: v.bat <return> where "v.bat" is the name of the batch file. Now enter the program name along with the drive and directory name. For example, c:\vuimage\vuimg <return> Then press <ctrl>-Z followed by a <return> to finish creating the batch file (you can also use an editor to create this file). Now you can start the program by typing "v" and return. The batch file need not be kept in the same subdirectory as the program files. However, the sub-directory that it is kept in must be part of your "PATH". (The PATH is a list of directories that DOS will search when you type in a command. Refer to your DOS manual for information on PATH and how to add a sub-directory to your PATH). After you become familiar with the command line options of the program (see later section on command line options), you can re-create the batch file and also specify the command line options that you normally prefer to use. This way you can "configure" the program to suit your needs. 3. THE MAIN MENU ----------------- From the main menu, at the "File(s)" prompt, you can enter: - "t" to select the file type - GIF or TIFF - "m" to change the display mode - "s" to change the scaling options - "o" to change other user selectable options - "d" to select a different directory/different group of files - "q" or ESC to quit and go back to DOS. - a list of picture files to be displayed. For example, enter 3,1,5-7,17-14 <return> to display files 3,1,5,6,7,17,16,15,14 from the list (in that order). - One of the arrow keys to select files using the cursor keys. To display a single file, move the cursor bar to the file and press enter. To display a list of files, move to each file and press the space bar to select (mark) the file. Press enter to display the marked files or "/" to continuously repeat the list of files. If there are too many files to fit on one screen, use the PgUp/PgDn keys to see other files. After moving the cursor to a specific file, you can press the "Insert" key to obtain quick information about the file. 3.1 SELECTING THE FILE TYPE ---------------------------- The default file type is "GIF". To select between TIFF, GIF and PCX, press "t" at the main menu prompt. You can also select the file type from the command line using the "-T" option (for example, -Ttiff will select TIFF - see section on command line options). 3.2 SETTING THE DISPLAY MODE ----------------------------- The program selects a video display mode appropriate for the video adapter and the picture being displayed automatically. The mode is chosen from the CGA/Hercules/EGA/VGA modes present and any modes supported by any extended mode driver that has been loaded (extended mode drivers are selected by the command line option "-v" - see section "Display Boards and Extended Modes/Drivers" for more details on extended modes). SuperVGA modes are extended modes. If the user desires to select a particular video mode to display the picture instead of the automatically selected mode, this can be done by pressing "m" at the main menu prompt, going into the display mode menu and changing the display mode. An appropriate mode supported by your video display board may be specified. If any extended video mode drivers have been loaded, the extended modes supported by these drivers are also listed. Instead of using the menu, you can also specify the mode to be used from the command line by using the "-m" option (for example, "-m7" will use the EGA 640x350 16-color mode - see section on command line options). There is also a "BIOS" mode that you can use for extended modes that are unsupported. Your display board will need to provide complete BIOS support. Usually the BIOS mode is extremely slow. If you are using a video mode that has only 2 colors, you can use dithering to improve the displayed picture. Use the Options menu to select a type of dithering to be used for 2-color modes. A suggested dither option for 2-color displays is 3 (3x3). To view interlaced files correctly when dithering is used, convert them to non-interlaced files by using the utility NINTLACE.EXE. (See section on interlaced files later). 3.3 DISPLAYING PICTURE FILES ----------------------------- You can select one file or a list of files to view using one of the following ways: Method 1: From the main menu, enter the number of the file you wish to display and press return. If you wish to display a sequence of files, you can enter a set of numbers, separated by commas: Example: 3,5 <return> will display file 3 followed by file 5. You can enter a starting number and an ending number to display a list of files: Example: 2,5-7 <return> will display files 2, 5, 6 and 7. Example: 2,7-5 <return> will display files 2, 7, 6 and 5. After you enter a list of files (or one file) and press return, the picture(s) are displayed in sequence. Method 2: Alternately, you can use the cursor keys to move the cursor bar (initially placed on file 1) to the file you wish to view, and press enter to view the file. To select a list of files, "mark" each file by moving the cursor bar to it and then pressing the space bar. When you press return, the files will be displayed in sequence. Methods 3 and 4 are available on VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) only. Method 3: You can specify a file to be viewed from the commandline using the "-C" option. This is available in VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) only. See the section on commandline options. The filename may contain wildcard characters "*" and "?". Method 4: You can specify from the commandline a slideshow file created by the user that contains a list of files to be viewed using the "-S" option. This is available in VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) only. See the section on commandline options. 3.4 TIMEOUT ------------ Each picture is displayed for a default time of 20 seconds. Pressing a return, however, will force the display to end and move on to the next picture or back to the main menu. Pressing the backspace key will move back to the previous picture if a list of pictures is being viewed. The timeout value can be changed from the "Options" menu or from the command line using the -t option. If the "@" key is pressed after drawing the picture on screen, the timeout is disabled. In this case the picture will continue to be displayed until another key is pressed. If you use a screen grabber program to capture the displayed image and you are not successful, use of the "@" key may help. 3.5 ABORT PICTURE ------------------ Pressing the ESC key while a picture is being drawn aborts that picture. You can abort a list of pictures by pressing the ESC key twice. 3.6 REPEATING LISTS ( CONTINUOUS SLIDE SHOW MODE ) --------------------------------------------------- When you enter a list of pictures in the main menu, if you end the list with the forward slash ("/") instead of a <return>, the list will be continuously repeated. To abort this repeated display, press the ESC key twice in quick succession. 3.7 SELECTING THE DISPLAY DIRECTORY ------------------------------------ From the main menu, press "d" to change the display directory (the directory containing the picture files). The files in this directory will be listed when you return to the main menu. If only a directory name is specified, all files that have an extension of GIF or TIF (depending on file type selected) in that directory will be displayed. If you want to list other files also, enter an appropriate string to be matched. Examples: To list Enter all files in the current directory *.*<return> all files with extension GIF in the current directory *.gif<return> all files with extension GIF or TIF (depending on pics<return> file type) in the subdirectory "pics" of the current directory all files with extension GIF or TIF (depending on \picdir<return> file type) in the subdirectory "picdir" of the root directory all files in the subdirectory "picdir" of the root \picdir\*.*<return> directory. You can also set the display directory from the command line using the -d option. 3.8 DIRECTORY SORT ------------------- By default, the directory is sorted alphabetically. If you press the "d" key from the main menu, you can choose between an alphabetical sort, sort by date, sort by file size or no sort. You can also select between a short listing with only file names and a long listing with file dates and sizes in addition. Only the first 1020 files will be sorted in a directory. All others are displayed unsorted. 3.9 SCALING OF PICTURES ------------------------ There are many scaling options. The default scaling is 1:1 i.e. no scaling. You can choose to set the scales manually. You can also have the program perform auto-scaling. The "auto-scale full screen" option makes the picture "fit" the screen horizontally and vertically. You can also auto-scale with the constraint that the horizontal and vertical scales should be equal. Use the "Scale" menu to change the scaling options. You can also select the scaling method from the command line using the -s option. 3.10 TEXT SCREEN COLORS ----------------------- You can change the text screen colors used by going into the "Options" menu and pressing "C - Screen Colors ". Use the left/right arrow keys to change the foreground color and the up/down arrow keys to change the background color. (Alternately, you can use the "f" and "F" keys for foreground and the "b" and "B" keys for background). Select the colors you like. Note the numbers shown that corresponds to each of the colors that you selected - these numbers can be used with the "-cd", "-co" and the "-cg" command line options to automatically select your favourite colors when the program is started. 4. FUNCTIONS AVAILABLE WHEN A PICTURE IS FULLY ON-SCREEN --------------------------------------------------------- 4.1 ZOOMING ------------ Once a picture is displayed on the screen, you can zoom in using the "+" key and zoom out using the "-" key. 4.2 PANNING ------------ Once a picture is displayed on the screen, you can move the viewing window around the picture by the use of the cursor keypad: (Number lock should be disabled) down arrow (or "d") move down half screen (1/8 screen for TIFF) right arrow (or "r") move right half screen (1/8 screen for TIFF) up arrow (or "u") move up half screen (1/8 screen for TIFF) left arrow (or "l") move left half screen (1/8 screen for TIFF) "End" (or "1") move to bottom left corner "PgDn" (or "3") move to bottom right corner "PgUp" (or "9") move to top right corner "Home" (or "7") move to top left corner (Scroll lock should be disabled) shift-down arrow (or "2") move down full screen shift-right arrow (or "6") move right full screen shift-up arrow (or "8") move up full screen shift-left arrow (or "4") move left full screen 4.3 BRIGHTNESS --------------- Once a picture is displayed on the screen, you can increase the brightness by pressing the "b" key and reduce the brightness by pressing the "B" key. You can also set an overall brightness adjustment from the Options menu. 4.4 CONTRAST ------------- Once a picture is displayed on the screen, you can adjust the contrast by pressing the "g" key and the "G" key. You can also set an overall contrast adjustment from the Options menu. 4.5 INVERTING THE IMAGE ------------------------ Once a picture is displayed on the screen, you can invert the image by pressing the "i" key (available in VUIMAGE PLUS only). This is useful for black and white or grayscale images. Image inversion can be selected during startup by using the "-iiy" commandline option. 4.6 PRINTING ------------- Once an image is displayed on the screen, you can print that image by pressing the "p" key. Before printing, make sure that you have set up the printer port and selected the correct printer by going into the Options menu. The entire image is printed. Any brightness and contrast adjustments you have made will affect the print output. The output to 2-color printers (most printers) can be dithered so as to obtain a better print-out. You can choose between no dithering, 2x2, 3x3, 4x2, 4x4, 6x6 or 8x4 dithering by going into the Options menu. You may wish to experiment with the dithering options to obtain the best print image. For fairly high resolution printers (200x200 dpi or greater), 6x6 or 8x4 is suggested for paint-type images and scanned images with large number of colors or grayscales. For line art, either no dithering or 2x2 is suggested. For scanned images with low number of grayscales, 2x2, 3x3 or 4x2 is suggested. To obtain the best results, it suggested that the various print dither options be experimented with. From the Options menu, you can also set the desired size of the print-out. You can specify "lpt1:","lpt2:","lpt3:","com1:","com2:" or a filename for the printer port. 4.7 PRINTING INTERLACED GIF FILES ---------------------------------- Interlaced GIF files are the files that contain images that are not drawn top to bottom, but are drawn in four passes over the image area. On each pass, some lines are skipped that are subsequently filled by a following pass. To display interlaced images using dithering in 2-color modes and also to print interlaced images, the image must be converted to a non-interlaced image. This can be done using the utility NINTLACE.EXE by typing: nintlace input.gif output.gif where input.gif is the interlaced GIF file and output.gif is the non- interlaced GIF file to be created. (If you use the "-n" option for NINTLACE.EXE as in "nintlace -n x.gif y.gif", the program does not do this conversion, but will eliminate all unnencessary characters from the end of the file that may have been added as a result of using communications protocols like XMODEM or YMODEM to transfer files). 4.8 SUMMARY OF COMMANDS AVAILABLE WHEN A PICTURE IS FULLY ON-SCREEN -------------------------------------------------------------------- (Disable Scroll-Lock) @ Disable timeout, freeze pic on screen till the enter key is pressed +, - Zoom In, Zoom Out a Auto-scale current pic to fit screen arrow keys, d,r,u,l Pan down, right, up, left shift arrow keys, 2,6,8,4 Pan down, right, up, left (larger shift) End , 1 Pan to bottom left corner PgDn, 3 Pan to bottom right corner PgUp, 9 Pan to top right corner Home, 7 Pan to top left corner b, B, ctrl-b Increase brightness, decrease brightness, reset brightness g, G, ctrl-g Decrease contrast, increase contrast, reset contrast f cycle through dithers (if being dithered) i invert image (VUIMAGE PLUS only) p Print image delete Re-draw picture insert Show picture info return Move to next picture in list backspace Move to previous picture in list escape Abort the list ^L 5.0 COMMAND LINE OPTIONS ------------------------- Many of the options may be set from the command line instead going through a menu. For example, to start the program with the mode option set to 9 and the scaling option set to 3, enter: vuimg -m9 -s3 The options are specified following "vuimg" or "vuimgp" as applicable, before pressing a return. The available command line options are listed below: -Tfiletype where filetype is "gif" or "tiff". Example: -Ttiff (display tiff files) -vdrivername where drivername is the name of the extended mode driver appropriate for your board. If the program files are not in the current directory, then the drive and subdirectory must also be specified. Example (load ATI VGAWonder driver): -vdativ (program files in current dir) -vc:\vuimage\dativ (program files in c:\vuimage) -mmodeindex where modeindex is the number you would enter if you were to go into the "Mode" menu and make a selection. Example: -m9 (set 320x200x256 mode) -mdmodeindex where modeindex is the mode to be forced disabled for autoselect -memodeindex where modeindex is the mode to be forced enabled for autoselect -mamodeindex where modeindex is the mode to be not forced Example: -md11 (force disable mode 11 for autoselect) -me7 (force enable mode 7 for autoselect) -ma7 (let program decide automatically) -sscaleindex where scaleindex is the number you would enter if you were to go into the Scale menu (part of the "Options" menu) and make a selection. Example: -s3 (set autoscale full screen) -sxhscale where hscale is the horizontal scale value (1% to 999%). This option should be used only if manual scaling is selected. Example: -sx200 (set horizontal scale to 200%) -syvscale where vscale is the vertical scale value (1% to 999%). This option should be used only if manual scaling is selected. Example: -sy50 (set vertical scale to 50%) -ddirectory where directory is a directory name (or file matching string) that you would enter when you go into the Dir menu. -Dssorttype where "sorttype" is 0 for no sort, 1 for alphabetical sort, 2 for sort by date and 3 for sort by file size. Example: -Ds2 (sort by date) -Dllisttype where "listtype" is 0 for short, 1 for long directory listing. Example: -Dl1 (show long directory listing) -Dddateform where "dateform" is 0 for month-day-year format, 1 for day-month-year format. Example: -Dd1 (DD-MM-YY format) -ttimeout where timeout is the number of seconds to display each picture. Example: -t40 (set timeout to 40 seconds) -by enables the beep at the end of a picture -bn disables the beep at the end of the picture Example: -bn (disable beep) -Bbrightness where brightness is the brightness value (100 is nominal) Example: -B120 (set brightness to 120%) -cddircolor where dircolor is the color number for the filenames -cofncolor fncolor is the color number for the file numbers -cmmodcolor modcolor is the color number for the display mode -cggencolor gencolor is the color number for general text To find the color numbers for the colors of your choice, first go into the "Options" menu and select the colors that you like. The corresponding color numbers are also displayed. Example: -cd78 (filenames in yellow on a red background) -co10 (filenumbers in bright green on black) -cm4 (video mode in red on black) -cg14 (general text in yellow on black) -iby show brief info (-iby) as pic is displayed (filename, image -ibn size), do not show brief info (-ibn) -idy show detailed info (-idy) as pic is displayed, -idn do not show detailed info (-idn) -iiy invert the image (-iiy), do not invert the image (-iin). -iin (really useful for only black and white/grayscale images) -wxoffsetx where "offsetx" is the horizontal offset of window, -wxoffsety "offsety" is the vertical offset of window, -wxsizex "sizex" is the horizontal window size, -wysizey and "sizey" is the vertical window size of a window on the screen to display the picture in. All dimensions are in number of pixels. Example: -wox100 -woy50 -wx240 -wy160 (display in a window of size 240x160, offset by 100x50) (*** The following options are available only in VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) ***) -Tpcx select filetype to be PCX. -pprinternum where printernum is the number you would enter if you were to go into the Options menu and choose a printer. Example: -p1 (select EPSON FX80/100 printer) -pddevicename where devicename is the printer device (lpt1:, lpt2:, lpt3:, com1:, com2: or filename). Example: -pdlpt1: (send output to lpt1:) -pdvuimg.prn (send output to file vuimg.prn) -pxwidth where width is the width of the printed image in 1/100 inches Example: -px904 (print image width=9.04 inches) -pyheight where height is the height of the printed image in 1/100 inches Example: -py1200 (print image height=12.00 inches) -fddithertype where dithertype is the number you would enter if you were to go into the Options menu and choose the display dither type. Example: -fd3 (dither 2-color displays using 3x3 matrix) -fpdithertype where dithertype is the number you would enter if you were to go into the Options menu and choose the printer dither type. Example: -fp4 (dither 2-color printers using 4x4 matrix) -C disables the menus. If you use this option, you must also -Cp specify a filename to be displayed including the pathname. This should be the last option entered on the command line. The filename may contain wild card characters ? and * and should be the last parameter. Any directory name entered with the -d option will be ignored. If the "-Cp" option is used instead of the "-C", the image is also printed. Examples: -C somefile.gif -C \pics\*.gif -Cp image.tif -S specify the name of a slideshow file created by the user using a text editor that contains a list of files to be shown. This file may also contain other commandline options. For example, you can enter vuimgp -S slidshow.1 where the file "slidshow.1" contains -------------------------- | -m0 -s3 | <- startup parameters | -C file1.gif | <- show file1.gif | -m8 -C file2.gif | <- show file2.gif | -s1 -m0 -C file3.gif | <- show file3.gif -------------------------- The lines within the file are executed in sequence. Backspace may be used to go back a file during display. The "-Cp" and "-S" options should not be used within this file. -L leave the last image on the screen when the program ends. Valid only when the -C option is used. Useful when called as a sub-program by another program. -l do not reset the video mode or clear the screen between images. Valid only when the -C option is used. This option is useful only if the images being viewed are close enough in size, resolution and colors that the video mode and the palette will be the same for the images. Not recommnded for use unless this is the case. It is recommended that an appropriate video mode should be specified instead of using auto-select. 6.0 DOS EXIT CODES (ERRORLEVEL) -------------------------------- The return codes generated by the program that may be tested in a batch file are: 0 - no error 1 - command line option error 2 - the -C option was used without specifying a file 3 - file not found or invalid filename 12 - slideshow file not specified 13 - Error opening the slideshow file 14 - commnd line option error within the slideshow file 7. DISPLAY BOARDS and EXTENDED VIDEO MODES/DRIVERS --------------------------------------------------- If the program does not work with your display board, try loading any software drivers (BIOS emulators, int 10h drivers, RAM BIOS drivers) that come with it. Refer to the instructions that come with your graphics board. Some video display boards support even higher resolutions than standard VGA, for example, 640x480 in 256 colors and 800x600 in 16 colors. These are sometimes referred to as SuperVGA modes. Additional drivers that support these "extended modes" are included with the program. These drivers have filenames with the extension ".VDR" and are listed later in this section. They can be loaded using the "-v" command line option (see section on command line options). Typically, extended modes are dependent on your type of graphics card. Refer to your graphics card manual to see what extended modes are supported. Only VGA type extended modes with either 16 or 256 colors out of a palette of 262,144 colors are supported by the extended mode drivers. Check the list of extended mode drivers at the end of this section to see which driver is suitable for use with your card. Some of the modes listed may not be available in your specific card. The unavailable modes can be AND SHOULD BE disabled by using the "-md" commandline option so that the Auto-select videomode function does not try to use these modes. Saving the configuration in VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) will also save this information. However, there is a SuperVGA standard known as the VESA SuperVGA standard. Many or most of the SuperVGA cards now support this standard. If your card supports this standard, then you can take advantage of the VESA driver (DVESA.VDR) that comes with the program. Even if there is a separate driver that supports your card, WE RECOMMEND that you use the VESA driver instead if your card supports the VESA standard. In order for your card to support the VESA standard, you may need to load a device driver or TSR that comes with your card (through the CONFIG.SYS or AUTOEXEC.BAT file). Refer to the documentation that comes with your card (in printed form or disk file form). If you are not using any extended drivers, you may still be able to display in an extended mode if your BIOS for the board will support this. Not all boards come with BIOS that support the extended modes completely. Installing any RAM BIOS drivers that come with your board may help. Display done through the BIOS is usually extremely slow. To use the BIOS supported extended modes, you need to know the mode number, the no. of columns, the no. of rows, and the no. of colors for the mode. Refer to the manual for your graphics card. If you have a plain VGA card with no SuperVGA modes, you may still be able to get higher resolutions (320x400x256, 360x480x256, 800x600x16, 400x600x256) using the DNVGA driver. Extended Mode Drivers (SuperVGA drivers) included: ------------------------------------------------- Note: Some of the modes listed may not be available in your specific card. These should be disabled (see section above). Additional drivers may be available from Offe Enterprises. If your display board is: Try driver ------------------------ ---------- Any board that suports the VESA standard DVESA and has VESA BIOS installed Ahead Systems VGA Wizard DAHEADB AST VGA cards DPVGA ATI Prism Elite DTRID ATI VGAWonder DATIV AT&T VDC600 DPVGA BOCA w/Tseng 4000 Chipset DTSNG4 Cardinal 600 VGA DCHT Chips & Technologies DCHT Everex EV673 DE673 Everex EV678 DE678 Genoa 6400 DORCH Hercules Graphics Station DHGS IMTEC DTRID LOGIX DTRID MAXXON DTRID Northgate Pro DV7VRAM Orchid ProDesigner DORCH Orchid ProDesigner II (Tseng 4000) DTSNG4 Paradise VGA Professional DPVGA Sigma VGA cards DORCH Standard IBM VGA & register compatibles with multisync monitors DNVGA STB VGA cards DORCH STB PowerGraph (Tseng 4000) DSTBPG Tandy 1000 (320x200x16) DTANDY Trident Video cards DTRID Video-7 Fastwrite DV7FW Video-7 1024i DV71024 Video-7 VRAM DV7VRAM Other Chips&Technolgies chipset cards DCHT Other Genoa VGA cards DORCH Other Paradise VGA cards DPVGA Other Trident chipset cards DTRID Other Tseng 4000 Chipset cards DTSNG4 If your board is not listed, you can try one of the supplied drivers to see if any of the extended modes will work (to see what extended modes will work, each extended mode will have to be manually selected and then an image tried in that mode). All extended modes available on a board may not be supported by the driver. All extended modes supported by the driver may not be available on your board. Some may simply be unavailable, some may require more memory. All modes that are unavailable should be determined by manually selecting each mode. These modes should be disabled while running the program (see section before on how to disable these modes). Extended Modes Supported by the Drivers (mode numbers in decimal and hex) DVESA Mode 256 (100h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 257 (101h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 258 (102h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 259 (103h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 260 (104h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 261 (105h) 1024 x 768 x 256 colors Mode 262 (106h) 1280 x 1024 x 16 colors Mode 263 (107h) 1280 x 1024 x 256 colors DAHEADB Mode 106 (6Ah) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 113 (71h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 116 (74h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 96 (60h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 97 (61h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 98 (62h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 99 (63h) 1024 x 768 x 256 colors DATIV Mode 84 (54h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 97 (61h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 98 (62h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 99 (63h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 101 (65h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors DCHT Mode 112 (70h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 114 (72h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 120 (78h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 121 (79h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 128 (7bh) 800 x 600 x 256 colors DE673 Submode 19 (13h) 640 x 350 x 256 colors Submode 20 (14h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Submode 21 (15h) 512 x 480 x 256 colors DE678 Submode 49 (31h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Submode 50 (32h) 512 x 480 x 256 colors Submode 77 (4dh) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Submode 78 (4eh) 800 x 600 x 256 colors DHGS 640 x 480 x 256 colors 800 x 600 x 256 colors 1024 x 768 x 256 colors DNVGA ------- 320 x 400 x 256 colors ------- 360 x 480 x 256 colors ------- 800 x 600 x 16 colors ------- 400 x 600 x 256 colors DORCH Mode 41 (29h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 45 (2Dh) 640 x 350 x 256 colors Mode 46 (2Eh) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 47 (2Fh) 720 x 512 x 256 colors Mode 48 (30h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 55 (37h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors DPVGA Mode 88 (58h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 94 (5Eh) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 95 (5Fh) 640 x 480 x 256 colors DV7FW Mode 98 (62h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 102 (66h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 103 (67h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors DTANDY Mode 9 (09h) 320 x 200 x 16 colors DTRID Mode 91 (5Bh) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 92 (5Ch) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 93 (5Dh) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 94 (5Eh) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 95 (5Fh) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 98 (62h) 1024 x 768 x 256 colors DTSNG4, DSTBPG Mode 41 (29h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 55 (37h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 45 (2dh) 640 x 350 x 256 colors Mode 47 (2fh) 640 x 400 x 256 colors (DTSNG4) Mode 120 (78h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors (DSTBPG) Mode 46 (2eh) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 48 (30h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors Mode 56 (38h) 1024 x 768 x 256 colors DV71024 Mode 98 (62h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 101 (65h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 102 (66h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 103 (67h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors DV7VRAM Mode 98 (62h) 800 x 600 x 16 colors Mode 101 (65h) 1024 x 768 x 16 colors Mode 102 (66h) 640 x 400 x 256 colors Mode 103 (67h) 640 x 480 x 256 colors Mode 105 (69h) 800 x 600 x 256 colors 8. MISCELLANEOUS 8.1 SOME SOURCES WHERE THE LATEST SHAREWARE VERSION IS USUALLY AVAILABLE 1. Compuserve - PICS (GRAPHICS SUPPORT) forum, library 3. - Enter "browse vuim*.*" in library 3 to list. 2. EXEC-PC BBS - "Free download to all callers" section of the BBS - (414)-789-4210 - Filename VUIMGxyz.* where xyz is the version number. 3. Computer Connections BBS (202)-547-2008 - Filename VUIMGxyz.* where xyz is the version number. 8.2 COMMON PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS 1. While attempting to display a picture, a) the screen dims, or b) the screen changes color, or c) nothing happens and the picture is not displayed. After some time, a beep is heard and if the return key is pressed, the main menu returns. The most likely cause of the problem is that a video mode that is not available in your video adapter is being used. This usually happens when the "autoselect video mode" feature is on, and an extended video driver is specified. To solve the problem, go to the "Mode" menu from the main menu, and determine what modes are NOT available by following this procedure. a) Select each of the modes marked by an asterisk manually b) Try to display a picture The modes that do not work should be disabled using the "-md" commandline option (see section on "DISPLAY BOARDS and EXTENDED VIDEO MODES/DRIVERS" for more information). VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) users need to specify this through the commandline option only once if the configuration is subsequently saved. 2. How do I print ? Go to the Options menu and select the printer type and printer port, and the print dither type. Once a picture has been displayed on the screen, press the "p" key. For more information, read the sub-section "PRINTING". 3. The printed image appears in four bands of different heights. Most likely, you are trying to print an interlaced GIF file. Read the sub-section titled "PRINTING INTERLACED GIF FILES". 4. My printed image quality could be better. You may be using a print dither inappropriate for the image. See sub-section on "PRINTING". 5. I would like to see a specific feature added to the program. You can write or call Offe Enterprises. Features requested by larger number of registered users are given higher priority. (Note, however, that no guarantee can be given that the feature will be incorporated in a future release.) 8.3 REVISION HISTORY --------------------- Additions/Changes from Version 2.96 to Version 3.10: - VUIMAGE(tm) now supports PCX - VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) now supports a slideshow file facility ("-S" option) - improved printing speed - can display pictures in a window on the screen (commandline options added: -wx, -wy, -wox, -woy) - added EPSON LQ2500 360x180 dpi mode, 24 -pin, and IBM Proprinter X24 - added TIFF Group IV support to VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) - added 8x4 and 4x2 dither options (deleted 5x5 dither option) - VUIMAGE PLUS can display TIFF 24bit rgb triplet uncompressed images in 256 color mode - added Hercules Graphics Station driver. - added Ahead Systems VGA Wizard Deluxe Driver (VGA-V-5000B chipset) - added 1024x768x256 mode to DV7VRAM driver - now prints message "Printing.." while printing - handles more TIFF Files - added ability to read GIF files with 128 byte header (MAC->IBM format) - increased max print width at 300 dpi. Additions/Changes from Version 2.80 to Version 2.96: - added scaling options 5 & 6 (autoscale only if image is larger than screen) - added IBM Proprinter support - added 400x600x256 mode to DNVGA.VDR - added Tandy 320x200x16, 640x200x16 driver - improved auto videomode select - added the "-Cp" option to print from the commandline in VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) - memory requirement has increased to 170K - added the "ctrl-b" and "ctrl-g" keys to reset brightness, contrast - added the 800x600x256, 1024x768x256 modes to the trident driver - filename/image size can be displayed while image is being drawn using the "-iby" commandline option - specific video modes can be disbaled or enabled for autoselect using the "-md", "-me" and "-ma" commandline options - Added drivers for Tseng 4000, STB Powergraph - VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) can save the configuration - Sort directory alphabetically, by date or by filesize, or disable sort - List directory in short, medium or long format - Simpler main menu - can select Mode, Options etc while using scroll-bar - Space bar to mark/unmark automatically moves to next file on display - autoscale to fit screen while image is on-screen (use the "a" key) - get quick picture info in main menu without displaying ("insert" key) - get quick picture info while image is on screen (use the "insert" key) - re-draw the image on screen (use the "delete" key) - move backwards through a list of files using the backspace key - When entering file numbers, need to press enter after "/" for repeat - VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) can read most uncompressed TIFF 8-bit palette color images - adjust contrast (use the "g","G" keys when image is on screen) - added the program NINTLACE.EXE to convert interlaced files to non-interlaced files (useful for mono display modes and printing) - edit user responses to queries (use cursor keys) - cycle through dithers when dithering in 2-color modes (use the "f" key) - freeze image on screen i.e. disable timeout (use the "@" key) - added the "-l" option to VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) to avoid clearing the screen between images Additions/Changes from Version 2.70 to Version 2.80: - Added 5x5, 6x6 dithering, better dithering - GIF89a - supports "restore-to-previous" feature - improved auto-select video mode, scaling in multi-image pictures - max. timeout increased to 43199 seconds - other minor enhancements - VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) now supports PCX also Additions/Changes from the previous version (V2.62): - Support for the GIF89a standard - ASCII plain text extensions, graphics control extensions (delay, transparency, restore to background), comment and application extensions - better print quality - Ability to invert the image (VUIMAGE PLUS(tm)) Additions/Changes from the previous version (V2.60): - SuperVGA support added for any SuperVGA card that supports the VESA standard. Most SuperVGA cards now come with VESA BIOS support in the form of a device driver (installed through CONFIG.SYS) or TSR (installed through AUTOEXEC.BAT). The VESA driver for VUIMAGE(tm)/VUIMAGE PLUS(tm) supports the following VESA standard modes (if available in card): 800x600x16, 1024x768x16, 1280x1024x16 640x400x256, 640x480x256, 800x600x256, 1024x768x256, 1280x1024x256 Use of the VESA extended video driver (dvesa) is strongly recommended. - added Chips & Technologies extended video driver - added HP Thinkjet printer - from main menu and cursorbar menu, can use ctrl-home/ctrl-end to get to top of directory or end of directory - from main menu, any arrow key takes you to cursorbar selection - four digit filenumber display allows upto 9999 files. Additions/Changes from the previous version (V2.53): - Now supports printing of images. To choose printer, use the Options menu. Print entire image, set your own print size. - Now can dither images in 2-color display modes - none, 2x2, 3x3, 4x4, 5x5 or 6x6 dithering - Dither print output - none, 2x2, 3x3, 4x4, 5x5 or 6x6 dithering - better Options menu - reads more TIFF files - memory requirement has increased to 150K Additions/Changes from the previous version (V2.42): - drivers for Trident, Video-7 1024i and Video-7 VRAM cards added - select files using cursors, mark/unmark for list of files - read more TIFF files - Vuimage Plus(tm) now supports PackBits compressed bilevel TIFF files