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CAUTION!!! Do not modify or edit this file, otherwise the online help function of HD-COPY will not work anymore!!! --- ┌──────────────┐ │ Help on Help │ └──────────────┘ To get help on a menu entry: - Select the menu entry using the cursor keys ( and ), then press the F1 key. Please refer to the HD-COPY.DOC file for a detailed manual and much more information than this online help provides. HD-COPY.DOC is part of the standard HD-COPY distribution. --- ┌──────┐ │ Read │ └──────┘ The content of the disk which is currently inserted into the source drive is read and stored in HD-COPY's internal buffer. Then it can be written to any number of destination disks. Mouse usage: simply click anywhere in the source window, or click on this line in the main menu. --- ┌───────┐ │ Write │ └───────┘ The content of HD-COPY's internal buffer is written to the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive. You can do that for as many destination disks as you desire, without needing to reread the source disk. If "auto verify" is switched on, the data written to the disk is reread and compared with the actual data, so write errors can be detected, but it takes more time of course. If "format" is switched on, the destination disk is also formatted. It is also formatted if "format" is switched to "automatic" ("*") and if the disk isn't already appropriately formatted. Mouse usage: simply click anywhere in the destination window, or click on this line in the main menu. --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Verify Destination │ └────────────────────┘ The content of the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive is compared with the content of HD-COPY's internal buffer. Any differences and read errors are displayed in the destination window: "V" - verify successful (content is identical) "M" - mismatch (content is different) "E" - read error --- ┌───────────────┐ │ Verify Source │ └───────────────┘ The content of the disk which is currently inserted into the source drive is compared with the content of HD-COPY's internal buffer. Any differences and read errors are displayed in the source window: "V" - verify successful (content is identical) "M" - mismatch (content is different) "E" - read error --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Format Destination │ └────────────────────┘ This menu entry leads to the "Format" submenu. It enables you to format disks at various formats (720 Kb up to 1.764 Mb). Press the Esc key to return to the main menu. A unique serial number and name is assigned to each disk. You can also specify a volume name for the disks being formatted, or you can let HD-COPY choose an "artificial" name which is calculated from the current system date and time. Additionally, each disk gets a special boot sector which causes the computer to boot from hard disk automatically if the disk isn't bootable. This also reduces the risk of virus infection. --- ┌─────────────┐ │ Put to File │ └─────────────┘ The content of HD-COPY's internal buffer is written to a file on your hard disk. This enables you to store the contents of disks as single files on your hard disk for later retrival and duplication. These files are called image files (*.IMG), because they contain images of floppy disks. By default HD-COPY produces compressed image files, which can be disabled with the command line parameter "/I-" (see HD-COPY.DOC for details). When you've selected this menu entry, you are asked for the name of the image file (and its drive and directory, if necessary). The extension ".IMG" is automatically appended, unless you specify a different extension. You can cancel this function by pressing the Esc key. You will often use this function with multiple disks belonging together (for example installation disks). Therefore it is advisable to use a file name which contains a number, e.g. "DISK1". HD-COPY will then automatically increase the number the next time you select this function. --- ┌───────────────┐ │ Get from File │ └───────────────┘ Reads an image file from your hard disk and places it into HD-COPY's internal buffer. This has the same effect as reading the disk itself. Note that the file must be an image file produced by HD-COPY (see the help text on "Put to File") or by a program which produces compatible (raw) image files. When you've selected this menu entry, you are asked for the name of the image file (and its drive and directory, if necessary). The extension ".IMG" is automatically appended, unless you specify a different extension. You can cancel this function by pressing the Esc key. You will often use this function with multiple disks belonging together (for example installation disks). Therefore it is advisable to use a file name which contains a number, e.g. "DISK1". HD-COPY will then automatically increase the number the next time you select this function. --- ┌──────────────┐ │ Special Menü │ └──────────────┘ This menu entry leads to the "Special" submenu. It contains some functions which don't fit anywhere else. Press the Esc key to return to the man menu. These are the functions of the "Special" menu: - Display statistics about the memory usage of HD-COPY. - Support for using cleaning disks. - Save the current configurations and options to disk (HD-COPY.CFG). - Eliminate viruses by writing a new boot sector. - Display the root directory of a disk. Each menu entry has got its own online help text. There are still some unused entries in the "Special" menu. If you have any suggestions or ideas, please let me know! --- ┌───────────────┐ │ About HD-COPY │ └───────────────┘ Copyright information and a short description of HD-COPY is displayed. Hit any key or mouse button to return to HD-COPY's main menu. --- ┌───────────────┐ │ Escape (Exit) │ └───────────────┘ Select this menu entry to leave HD-COPY. You can also press Esc or Alt-X instead. "It's pleasing to think that something we've done is something that will be remembered. Something we've done will go down as an all time classic. It becomes part of people's lives, their memories, their hopes... But if it all ends tomorrow, we've had a good ride, we've seen what it's like." (Brian Nash, F.G.T.H., 1985) --- ┌──────────────┐ │ Source Drive │ └──────────────┘ If you've got two floppy disk drives (A and B), you can select which of them is used as the source drive. Of course, source and destination drive can be the same. HD-COPY supports 3½ and 5¼ inch drives (8.89 and 13.335 cm, for those German lawyers). Both DD (double density) and HD (high density) drives are supported. Note that your drives must be correctly assigned in the BIOS/CMOS setup of your PC. Mouse usage: simply click on the title bar of the source window to change the source drive. --- ┌───────────────────┐ │ Destination Drive │ └───────────────────┘ If you've got two floppy disk drives (A and B), you can select which of them is used as the destination drive. Of course, source and destination drive can be the same. HD-COPY supports 3½ and 5¼ inch drives (8.89 and 13.335 cm, for those German lawyers). Both DD (double density) and HD (high density) drives are supported. Note that your drives must be correctly assigned in the BIOS/CMOS setup of your PC. Mouse usage: simply click on the title bar of the destination window to change the destination drive. --- ┌─────────────┐ │ Auto Verify │ └─────────────┘ If this option is switched on, each track is reread after being written and compared with the actual data. If there are any errors or differences, an "E" (error) or "M" (mismatch) is displayed in the destination window. This is also meaningful when formatting: bad sectors are detected and repaired if possible, otherwise they're marked in order to prevent MS-DOS from using them. IMPORTANT: Errors and defective sectors can ONLY be detected if "Auto verify" is switched on. It is thus strongly recommended to switch this option on, even though it takes a little more time. Only switch this option off if you are absolutely sure that your disks are 100% error free. It is a fact that HD-COPY, with verify on, is about as fast as many other disk copy utilities with verify off. --- ┌───────────────┐ │ FAT Selection │ └───────────────┘ Each MS-DOS disk contains a small area called FAT (File Allocation Table) that contains information about which sectors of the disk contain data and which are free. If you switch on the "FAT selection" (which is recommended), HD-COPY only reads and writes those tracks which actually contain data, and free tracks are ignored. If "FAT selection" is swiched off, the whole disk is read/written, regardless of its content (even if it's entirely empty). This might be useful for non-MS-DOS disks (e.g. Unix or Atari) which don't contain a FAT, although HD-COPY normally detects the absence of the FAT and copies the whole disk anyway. --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Format Destination │ └────────────────────┘ Effect of this switch when copying (writing): - on: The destination disk will be always formatted, regardless of its previous content (if any). - off: The destination disk will not be formatted, i.e. it must be previously formatted with the same format. - auto: HD-COPY checks if the destination disk is already formatted, and formats it if necesary. Effect of this switch when formatting ("Format" menu): - on: The disk will be low level formatted, i.e. all of its tracks will be formatted. - off: All files will be deleted, and a new boot sector will be written. This only works if the disk has been previously formatted. - auto: HD-COPY checks if the disk is already formatted with the same format, and performs a low level formatting only if necessary. Normally it should be switched to "auto" ("*"). --- ┌──────────┐ │ Password │ └──────────┘ HD-COPY is able to encrypt disks with a password. Such disks can be handled by HD-COPY only, in conjunction with the password. Note that such disks are unusable for any other program, including DOS. Encryption: - Read the disk which is to be encrypted. - Switch on the password option and enter the password (it will not be displayed on the screen). - Write to the disk ("Format" switched on). Decrypt: - Switch on the password option and enter the correct password. - Read the encrypted disk. - Switch off the password option. - Write to disk ("Format" switched on, if necessary). Caution: If you forget the password, you can not retrieve the disk content! The password option applies to EVERY function, i.e. read, write, verify, format. --- ┌─────────────┐ │ Head Settle │ └─────────────┘ If this option is witched on, there will be a short delay (a few milli seconds) after each track change. The reason for this is that some old disk drives require a short delay (called "head settle time") before the drive's heads are correctly positioned on the new track. New drives which are in common use today don't need such a delay, thus you should normally be able to switch this option off, which might result in a very small speed increase. If you often get random read/write errors immediately after track changes, you should try to switch this option on. If it doesn't help, your drive might need cleaning. --- ┌──────────────┐ │ Verbose Mode │ └──────────────┘ This switch selects the amount of messages which is displayed in the bottom right window. If switched off, some less important warnings are not displayed (e.g. those "trying again" messages upon errors). --- ┌─────────────┐ │ Expert Mode │ └─────────────┘ This switch has the following effect: - off: HD-COPY asks for your confirmation whenever you are going to overwrite something. - ein: HD-COPY doesn't ask anything and assumes that you know what you are doing. - "risky": This mode enables you to copy or format large amounts of disks in a minimal amount of time, without needing to use the keyboard or the mouse. But you can also easily overwrite a disk by mistake when inserting the wrong disk into the wrong drive. Caution: Do not use the "risky" mode (indicated by an asterisk "*") if you don't know what it's good for. Remember to write protect all of your source disks. Please refer to the manual (HD-COPY.DOC) for more information about the "risky" mode. --- ┌───────────────┐ │ Sound Effects │ └───────────────┘ In certain situations HD-COPY uses sound effects (beeps) to gain the attention of the user. This might be useful if you aren't looking at the screen all the time. On the other hand, you (or your neighbours) might find those sounds annoying. Therefore, you can switch the sound effects on and off with this option. Note, in the "risky" mode (see "Epert Mode") HD-COPY uses a short beep to indicate the completion of an operation (read, write, format). This beep also occurs if sound effects are switched off. --- ┌──────────────┐ │ Volume Label │ └──────────────┘ Select this menu entry to enter a name for the disks being formatted. If you don't enter a name, HD-COPY chooses an "artificial" name which is calculated from the current system date and time, so each disk automatically gets a unique name. --- ┌──────────────────┐ │ Number of Tracks │ └──────────────────┘ By selecting this menu entry you can change the number of tracks that are formatted by HD-COPY. Standard disks have 80 tracks, which is the default value. When using so-called special formats (non-standard, e.g. 1.68 Mb), you can gain additional disk space by formatting 82 tracks (resulting in 20 to 42 Kbytes more, depending on the number of sectors per track). HD-COPY even allows to format up to 84 tracks, but this is not recommended, because many disk drives are limited to 82 tracks and might even be damaged when the drive's head hits the upper limit. Even if your drive supports up to 84 tracks, take into account that such disks might not be readable on someone else's drive. If you hear unusual noise from your drive when accessing track 83 or 84, then do not use more than 82 tracks. --- ┌─────────────────────┐ │ 9 Sectors per Track │ └─────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 9 sectors per track, resulting in 720 Kb capacity (80 tracks). This is the standard format for 3½ inch DD (double density) disks. Of course, HD-COPY can also format HD (high density, both 3½ and 5¼ inch) disks with this format, which is also very fast. --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 10 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 10 sectors per track, resulting in 800 Kb capacity (80 tracks, 820 Kb at 82 tracks). By using this format you get a higher capacity than the standard format. You must install the FDREAD program, otherwise DOS can not handle disks with an "unusual" number of sectors per track. Of course, HD-COPY can also format HD (high density, both 3½ and 5¼ inch) disks with this format, which is also very fast. --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 15 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 15 sectors per track, resulting in 1.2 Mb capacity (80 tracks). This is the standard format for 5¼ inch HD (high density) disks. Of course, HD-COPY can also format 3½ inch HD disks with this format, which is also very fast. --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 17 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 17 sectors per track, resulting in 1.36 Mb capacity (80 tracks, 1.394 Mb at 82 tracks). By using this format you get a higher capacity than the standard format on 5¼ inch HD disks, without loss of speed (sectors are 1:1 interleaved). You must install the FDREAD program, otherwise DOS can not handle disks with an "unusual" number of sectors per track. Of course, HD-COPY can also format 3½ inch HD disks with this format, which is also very fast. --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 18 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 18 sectors per track, resulting in 1.44 Mb capacity (80 tracks). This is the standard format for 3½ inch HD (high density) disks. HD-COPY can also format 5¼ inch HD disks with this format, but that requires the sectors to be 1:2-interleaved, which means a loss of handling speed, because each track requires two rotations for processing. You must install the FDREAD program, otherwise DOS can not handle disks with an "unusual" number of sectors per track (this applies to 5¼ inch drives only, of course). --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 20 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 20 sectors per track, resulting in 1.6 Mb capacity (80 tracks, 1.64 Mb at 82 tracks). This format only works on 3½ inch HD drives (not 5¼ inch). By using this format you get a higher capacity than the standard format on 3½ inch HD disks, without loss of speed (sectors are 1:1 interleaved). You must install the FDREAD program, otherwise DOS can not handle disks with an "unusual" number of sectors per track. --- ┌──────────────────────┐ │ 21 Sectors per Track │ └──────────────────────┘ Formats the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive, using 21 sectors per track, resulting in 1.68 Mb capacity (80 tracks, 1.722 Mb at 82 tracks). This format only works on 3½ inch HD drives (not 5¼ inch). By using this format you get a higher capacity than the standard format on 3½ inch HD disks, but that requires the sectors to be 1:2-interleaved, which means a loss of handling speed, because each track requires two rotations for processing. You must install the FDREAD program, otherwise DOS can not handle disks with an "unusual" number of sectors per track. --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Escape (Main Menu) │ └────────────────────┘ Select this menu entry to return to HD-COPY's main menu. You can also press the Esc key or Alt-X. --- ┌───────────────────┐ │ Memory Statistics │ └───────────────────┘ Displays some information about where HD-COPY stores its internal buffer. Note that the buffer is dynamically allocated, therefore this function makes only sense if there is something in the buffer. The letters which are displayed in the buffer window have the following meaning: - X: XMS memory (eXtended Memory System) - E: EMS memory (Expanded Memory System) - R: virtual RAM disk (environment variables HDCTEMP, RAMDISK or RAM) - H: hard disk file (located in C:\) Press any key or mouse button to remove the statistics. --- ┌───────────────────┐ │ Use Cleaning Disk │ └───────────────────┘ It is advisable to use a cleaning disk from time to time. You can buy so-called wet cleaning disks in computer shops, which work pretty well. Here's how to use them: - Apply some drops of the cleaning fluid to the cleaning disk. - Insert the cleaning disk. - Select this menu entry in HD-COPY. The drive's motor is switched on, and the drive's head is moved evenly over the surface of the disk for about 25 seconds. - Remove the cleaning disk and wait a few minutes, in order to let the remaining fluid evaporate. In any case, pay attention to the instructions of the cleaning disk! --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Save Configuration │ └────────────────────┘ All current options will be saved to the file HD-COPY.CFG (located in the same directory as HD-COPY). Since HD-COPY automatically reads this file on start-up, all the options will be the same when you start HD-COPY the next time. It is also possible to modify the configuration file with a standard text editor, if you like. Note that its is overwritten when this menu entry is selected. --- ┌─────────────────┐ │ Eliminate Virus │ └─────────────────┘ Select this menu entry to write a new boot sector to the disk which is currently inserted into the destination drive. This boot sector has several advantages: - A virus which might exist in the boot sector is eliminated (removed). So-called boot sector viruses don't infect single files, but whole floppy and hard disks. They install themselves in memory when you boot from an infected disk. - If upon start-up of your PC a disk is inserted which doesn't contain an operating system, the PC is automatically booted from your hard disk (a short message is displayed). - If that message is not displayed anymore, a boot sector virus might have infected the disk. Please check it with one of the well-known anti virus programs, and also scan your hard disk for viruses. --- ┌───────────────────┐ │ Display Directory │ └───────────────────┘ Displays the root directory of the disk which is currently inserted into the source drive. If there's more than one screenful of files, press any key to advance to the next page, or press the Esc key to cancel. --- ┌──────────┐ │ (unused) │ └──────────┘ This menu entry is currently not used. Nothing happens if you select it. Many functions and features of HD-COPY are based on ideas of users of HD-COPY. I appreciate any suggestions for functions which could be included into HD-COPY, provided that it makes sense and is not too difficult. If you are dissatisfied with HD-COPY, please let me know. I must know what's wrong in order to be able to fix it! --- ┌────────────────────┐ │ Escape (Main Menu) │ └────────────────────┘ Select this menu entry to return to HD-COPY's main menu. You can also press the Esc key or Alt-X. ---