Beijing Paradise BBS Backup

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ Beijing Paradise BBS Backup / PARADISE.ISO / software / BBSDOORW / 1STDEAL.ZIP / DEALER.DOC < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1994-09-01 | 54.8 KB | 1,619 lines

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ │ │ │ │ ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ The Sparkware DEALER System │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ Entire work │ │ │ │ Copyright 1994 by Mark Herring │ │ │ │ All Rights Reserved │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ Sparkware │ │ │ │ Post Office Box 386 │ │ │ │ Hendersonville, Tennessee 37077 │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ └────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │ │ │ │ │ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ Table of Contents License............................................... i A Piece of the Action?................................ 1 Sounds good to me! What's next?...................... 2 Installing DEALER..................................... 3 Using SETUP........................................... 4 Transfer protocols.................................. 5 Reconcile coupons................................... 5 List of coupons..................................... 6 Commission analysis................................. 6 DOS command line switches........................... 7 Notes............................................... 7 Script commands....................................... 8 ADD................................................. 8 APRINT.............................................. 8 ASK................................................. 9 ASSIGN.............................................. 9 ATTRIBUTE........................................... 9 BEEP................................................ 10 BOX................................................. 10 CALL................................................ 10 CHDIR............................................... 10 CLOCK_PAUSE......................................... 11 CLOCK_RESUME........................................ 11 CLOSE............................................... 11 CLS................................................. 11 COLOR............................................... 11 COMPARE............................................. 12 COPY................................................ 12 COUPON.............................................. 12 DCHECK.............................................. 12 EOF................................................. 12 EXIST............................................... 13 EXIT................................................ 13 FILLSCRN............................................ 13 GETKEY.............................................. 13 GOSUB............................................... 14 GOTO................................................ 14 GREATER............................................. 14 HANGUP.............................................. 14 INSTR............................................... 14 KEYHIT.............................................. 15 KILL................................................ 15 LASTKEY............................................. 15 LESS................................................ 15 LOCATE.............................................. 15 MKDIR............................................... 16 MONO................................................ 16 MREAD............................................... 16 NAME................................................ 16 NULL................................................ 16 ON <choice> GOTO.................................... 17 OPEN................................................ 17 PAUSE............................................... 17 PLAY................................................ 17 PRINT............................................... 18 QPRINT.............................................. 18 QUIT................................................ 19 READ................................................ 19 RETURN.............................................. 19 RUN................................................. 19 SEEK................................................ 20 SET_FILE............................................ 20 SET_PROT............................................ 20 SHELL............................................... 20 SHOW_FILE........................................... 21 WRITE............................................... 21 @Variables supported.................................. 22 Questions and answers................................. 23 License Before you may use The Sparkware Dealer System you must obtain a dealer ID from Sparkware by calling our customer support bulletin board system at (615) 230-8822 and using the "DEALER" command to register your dealer system. You may also register with us via the Internet (see Questions and Answers). There is no charge to register; and you are free to use the software as designed for the purposes for which it is provided, with Sparkware products only, unless notified in writing by Sparkware. By your possession and/or use of this software, you acknowledge this software incorporates valuable trade secrets of Sparkware and you agree to all the terms and conditions of this license. SPARKWARE GRANTS NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, BY STATUTE OR OTHERWISE, REGARDING THE DISK, PROGRAMS AND RELATED MATERIALS, THEIR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE, THEIR QUALITY, THEIR MERCHANTABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. THE LIABILITY OF SPARKWARE UNDER THE WARRANTY SET FORTH ABOVE SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT PAID BY THE CUSTOMER FOR THE PRODUCT. IN NO EVENT SHALL SPARKWARE BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR OTHER DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF WARRANTY. SPARKWARE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MAKE ANY CHANGES TO THESE PROGRAMS, DOCUMENTATION, AND CUSTOMER SUPPORT PLANS AT ANY TIME WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE. THIS SOFTWARE PROGRAM IS A PROPRIETARY PRODUCT OF SPARKWARE AND IS PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL TREATIES. YOU MAY DISTRIBUTE THIS SOFTWARE TO OTHERS AS LONG AS IT IS DISTRIBUTED UNMODIFIED. YOU MAY NOT DECOMPILE, DISASSEMBLE, REVERSE ENGINEER, OR OTHERWISE MODIFY THIS SOFTWARE OR ANY FILES IT CREATES. SPARKWARE GRANTS YOU THE RIGHT TO USE THIS SOFTWARE AFTER YOU REGISTER (FREE OF CHARGE) WITH US AS OUTLINED IN THIS MANUAL. SPARKWARE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO TERMINATE YOUR RIGHT TO USE THIS SOFTWARE AT ANY TIME. IF ANY PROVISION IN THIS LICENSE IS FOUND UNENFORCEABLE, THE REMAINING PROVISIONS SHALL REMAIN IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT. The Sparkware Dealer System Entire work copyright 1994 by Mark Herring All Rights Reserved Sparkware Post Office Box 386 Hendersonville, Tennessee 37077-0386 (615) 230-8822 24 hour support bulletin board system (615) 230-MAIL Office (10-12, 1-5 central weekdays) A Piece of the Action? ---------------------- Just what does this mean to you, a sysop? Well, look at the large number of shareware and demoware packages that you offer to your users via your bulletin board system. Whenever one of your users registers one of these packages with the author, you don't get a dime for your efforts. You continue to run you BBS and pay for the expenses out of your own pocket. This changes now! This new dealer system from Sparkware introduces you to a new way to market and profit from Sparkware products. Now you can benefit each time a user on your BBS registers a copy of our 1stReader offline mail reader system with us. How does this work? Simple. This dealer package includes a door program that you can install into your own bulletin board system. Your callers can use this door to find out what offline mail reading is all about and how 1stReader can help them get the most out of their offline dollar. The door program also lets the callers download a demo copy of our 1stReader offline mail system without having to navigate through your own bulletin board's command structure to find the file. And the door program also allows your callers to download an "electronic coupon". This electronic coupon can be redeemed by your callers good for $3.00 off our $25.00 registration price. When your callers register 1stReader with us the coupon is automatically bundled directly with their order by 1stReader and transmitted to us via our tollfree order line. When the order system receives the ORDER.ZIP file from your user the coupon is included and we will let the user register 1stReader for only $22 instead of $25. PLEASE NOTE: 1stReader 1.12 (or higher) is required by the caller in order to use this dealer system. Previous releases of 1stReader will not be able to work with this dealer system But here is where YOU fit into the picture. The coupon that your callers download from our door program is also stamped with your "Dealer ID" (more about this later) and a unique serial number. Each time one of your callers redeem this unique electronic coupon with us via our tollfree order system, you get $5.00 from Sparkware! At the beginning of each month you will receive a check from us for the orders processed through your BBS and our tollfree order system in the previous month. 1 We also provide a sysop utility that keeps track of the how many coupons your system has issued by caller name. You can also call our customer support BBS at any time and receive an ORDERS.NEW file that tells you which coupons were redeemed by us. You can then import this file into the sysop utility and quickly find out how many coupons have been redeemed through your system. You can even import the information into a spreadsheet for further analysis. Sounds good to me! What's next? -------------------------------- This sysop dealer program is only available to bulletin board systems located in The United States and Canada where access to our tollfree system is available. It is not available to sysops located in other countries. Sorry if this means you. We will cover system installation below. But first, before you can install our door program you must obtain a "Dealer ID" from Sparkware. Any coupons received by an unauthorized system will still be honored for the $3.00 off the registration price for the caller, but we do NOT reserve the $5.00 commission from the sale for you unless you are currently registered with Sparkware and in good standing. Do not issue yourself a dealer ID and then call us later with the number. Only Sparkware can issue dealer ID numbers and besides, you may be using a dealer ID that is already issued and you will just be putting money into some sysop's pockets. CALL US TO OBTAIN A DEALER ID BEFORE INSTALLING THIS SYSTEM! Now, how do you obtain a dealer ID number? Call our customer support bulletin board system at (615) 230-8822. When you arrive at the "Main Board Command?" prompt type "DEALER" and press ENTER. Then follow the instructions on your screen. No other system or site may issue dealer ID numbers. The DEALER command will also generate the ORDERS.NEW file described earlier, so call back from time to time and keep current on who is registering Sparkware products through your bulletin board system with us. You may also send us a dealer ID request via the Internet. See "Questions and Answers" at the end of this manual for more information. PLEASE NOTE! The Sparkware DEALER system issues uniquely serialized electronic coupons. Once a serial number has been redeemed by a customer, Sparkware will no longer honor the dealer commission for that serial number if it is redeemed by another caller. Once used, a coupon is 'retired' from use. Installing DEALER ----------------- The DEALER system you now have is easy to install. Simply unzip the archive into a separate subdirectory. If you received The DEALER system on diskette then just copy the disk's contents to the subdirectory. The DEALER system works with any bulletin board system that can generate a DOOR.SYS "drop file". Systems that handle their own internal multitasking such as TBBS and MajorBBS probably will not work with DEALER. If you own such a BBS product we leave it to your devices when it comes to installing DEALER. The "DEALER.BAT" file will run the DEALER door for you. You need to edit this batch file with a text editor and modify the first line of the batch file. Currently, this line reads as: \DEALER\DEALER.EXE If you did not install DEALER into the \DEALER subdirectory then you need to modify this line so that it will point to the subdirectory you created. You will also need to add a command at the bottom of the batch file to reload your bulletin board software. All that is left to do is to install DEALER into your bulletin board system using utilities provided by the authors of your system. And you should run the SETUP.EXE program provided with DEALER to check the system's configuration (such as your bulletin board's name, your name, etc). 3 Using SETUP ----------- The SETUP program is designed to help you manager your DEALER system. The main menu is separated into five different sections. Press the [ESC] key to exit to DOS from the main menu. Door information ---------------- This section lets you enter the name of your bulletin board system, your name (as the sysop), as well as the Dealer ID code you received from Sparkware. Also, you can enter the name of the "BBS drop filespec" used by your BBS. DEALER can support the following drop files (use these names ONLY, no pathspecs please): DOORINFO - used by QuickBBS, Remote Access, SuperBBS and RBBS. DOOR.SYS - Telegard, Force!, PcBoard and Gap, among others. INFO.BBS - Phoenix BBS CALLINFO.BBS - Wildcat!, Genesis and Force! SFDOOR.DAT - Spitfire CHAIN.TXT - WWIV PCBOARD.SYS - PCBoard DOBBS.BAT - FrontDoor Script filespec is the name of the startup script to use (usually, this is MASTER.SCR). And finally, if you are using a FOSSIL driver with your bulletin board system then you can set this switch so DEALER will communicate through the fossil driver. 4 Transfer protocols ------------------ This section lets you enter the file transfer protocol definitions used by the DEALER system. We have already predefined the Xmodem, Ymodem, Ymodem/G and Zmodem definitions using the QSZ protocol engine from Sparkware, but you may change any of the command definitions you wish. Just use the arrow keys and press ENTER (or press the letters A-Z) to make your selection. You may be interested in a few "@variables" supported by the DEALER system. These variables are: @PORT@ - The serial port number @RATE@ - Connect baud rate @FILE@ - Name of the file to transfer. (The SET_FILE command will let you set this variable. See the section on script commands for more information). Reconcile coupons ----------------- After you have been setup as a Sparkware dealer you may call our customer support system from time to time to download a file named ORDERS.NEW from our own DEALER system. This file contains all of the coupons processed by our tollfree order system that originated from your BBS. You may then import the information contained in ORDERS.NEW into your own coupon logs kept by the DEALER system so you may find out how many coupons have been redeemed. To get your copy of your ORDERS.NEW file call our customer support system at (615) 230-8822 and use the DEALER command to access our dealer system. Then use the "4" command from the menu to generate and download your copy of ORDERS.NEW. Simply tell SETUP where the ORDERS.NEW file is located and it will import the information into your own coupon log file. 5 List of coupons --------------- This section will let you see a list of callers to your system who received electronic coupons from the DEALER system. You may use the arrow keys on your keypad to move around the list of entries. Press the [ESC] key to quit. After you quit viewing your entries you will be asked if you wish to print a report on your printer. If you do decide to print a report on your printer then SETUP will also create a text file named REPORT.ASC that contains coupon information that you may import into a spreadsheet program for further analysis. The format of REPORT.ASC is (one entry per line): S/N,User name,DL date,Redemption date,Product,$Comm Commission analysis ------------------- This section provides a quick analysis of the commissions you have earned in the DEALER program from Sparkware. 6 DOS command line switches ------------------------- SETUP allows you to use DOS command line switches so you can use some of the features in a "batch" mode. These switches are supported: SETUP /KEY:<value> <value> corresponds to a letter selection in the menu. If "/KEY:C" is used then SETUP will attempt to find the COUPONS.NEW file and if found will import them into your log of coupons kept by DEALER. "/KEY:D" will print a list of coupons on your printer as well as generate the REPORT.ASC file for spreadsheet use. SETUP /PRT:<filename> This command line switch lets you redirect printer output from the "PRN" default to any other device or file you wish. You can use the command: SETUP /KEY:D /PRT:BLT1 to make SETUP produce a bulletin of issued coupons for your own use. Notes ----- The coupon logs and information are stored in the files COUPONS.CNT and COUPONS.DAT. Under no circumstances should you delete these files. If you do delete then and simply allow them to be recreated by the DEALER system then your electronic coupons would begin with serial #1. And these coupons may have already been redeemed and are no longer valid (see "Please Note!" on page #2). 7 Script commands --------------- The following script commands are supported by the DEALER system. This manual is only a reference guide for the commands and their functions. A tutorial is beyond the scope of this manual. Command: ADD Syntax: ADD(Variable$,value) Example: ADD(Count$,5) Variable$ is any previously assigned variable. "value" can either be a literal value or another variable. Command: APRINT Syntax: APRINT(Variable$,Row,Col,Color[,MonoColor]) Example: APRINT("This is a test",12,33,-1) APRINT writes a text string to the ROW and COLumn positions on your screen. Variable$ can either be an assigned variable or text. COLOR is the color to display Variable$ on the screen. Setting color to '-1' tells APRINT to use the current color found at ROW,COL. Passing APRINT a COLumn value of '-1' tells APRINT to center Variable$ on your screen. You can also pass a fifth parameter to APRINT. The fifth parameter is the color to use if displaying the text on a monochrome system. If you do not include the fifth parameter APRINT always uses the COLOR attribute. You can also call APRINT once with a full list of parameters and then call APRINT passing only the text to print. Example: APRINT ("This is a test",12,20,-1) APRINT ("--------------") When you omit the extra parameters APRINT will increment the last ROW value by one and use the last COLumn and COLOR values. The main difference between APRINT and QPRINT is that APRINT displays Variable$ on the caller's screen allowing you to use @x color codes while QPRINT displays Variable$ through direct screen writes. 8 Command: ASK Syntax: ASK("Prompt text",Variable$,Color,Mono,Len) Example: ASK("Your name? ",Name$,112,30) The ASK command will allow you to take keyboard input and load the result into a variable. COLOR is the attribute to use for the data entry field if the caller is in graphics mode. Otherwise, the MONO attribute is used instead. LEN is the maximum data field length. Command: ASSIGN Syntax: ASSIGN(Variable$,SET,"text") Example: ASSIGN(Path$,0,"C:\1ST\"+Filename$) The ASSIGN command assigns a value (either another variable or string text) to Variable$. This command does support 'joining' two strings together using the '+' character. If SET=0 then "text" is simply assigned to Variable$ IF SET<0 then "text" is LSET into a string -SET characters long. If SET>0 then "text" is RSET into a string SET characters long. If Variable$ has not been previously assigned then DEALER creates a new variable entry in its table. You can have up to 100 active variables. DEALER pre-initializes these variables for you: Variable Description ──────── ───────────────────────────────────── _YES$ Y _NO$ N _PRESS$ Press any key to continue... _PAUSE$ More (Y/N)? _COMMAND$ (DOS command parameters passed to DEALER) Command: ATTRIBUTE Syntax: ATTRIBUTE(Color[,MonoColor]) Example: ATTRIBUTE(48,112) The ATTRIBUTE command will change the color attribute on the caller's screen. If you pass DEALER a MonoColor parameter then DEALER will use this value if the caller is in non-graphics mode. 9 Command: BEEP Syntax: BEEP[(Tone,Duration)] Example: BEEP(3000,1) The BEEP command will sound a tone on the PC speaker. If you do not pass parameters to BEEP then (2500,1) will be used as a default value. Command: BOX Syntax: BOX(ULRow,ULCol,LRRow,LRCol,Color,MonoColor ,Frame,Shadow [,Text$,Header$]) Example: BOX(10,10,14,70,48,112,1,1,"Testing...","Option") The BOX command draws a box on the screen. ULRow, ULCol, LRRow and LRCol describe the box boundaries. COLOR and MONOCOLOR are the two attributes to choose from (depending if you are using a color or monochrome display). FRAME can be one of the following values: 1 = single line all around the box 2 = double line all around the box 3 = double line horizontally, single line vertically 4 = single line horizontally, double line vertically If SHADOW is set to '1' then a shadow is added to the box. TEXT$ is optional and if used TEXT$ is centered in the middle of the box. HEADER$ is also optional and if used will be used as the 'name' of the box. Command: CALL Syntax: CALL <Scriptname> Example: CALL SCRIPT2.SCR The CALL command lets you call another DEALER script (.SCR). After the script has executed the program returns to the original script at the next statement after the CALL command. Command: CHDIR Syntax: CHDIR Variable$ Example: CHDIR "C:\1ST" The CHDIR command changes the current subdirectory to Variable$. It will also change drives if needed. 10 Command: CLOCK_PAUSE Syntax: CLOCK_PAUSE Example: CLOCK_PAUSE Pauses the time left clock. Please note that the built-in computer's clock is not altered in any way. Command: CLOCK_RESUME Syntax: CLOCK_RESUME Example: CLOCK_RESUME Restarts the time left clock paused by the CLOCK_PAUSE command. Command: CLOSE Syntax: CLOSE [FileNum] Example: CLOSE 1 The CLOSE command will close a file previously opened by the OPEN command. If you do not pass a file number with the command then ALL open files will be closed. Command: CLS Syntax: CLS[(Color,MonoColor)] Example: CLS(48,112) The CLS command will clear the screen. If you do not pass it parameters then the current screen color is used. Otherwise, you can pass it COLOR and MonoColor values that will be used depending if the caller is in graphics mode or not. Command: COLOR Syntax: COLOR[(Color,MonoColor)] Example: COLOR(48,112) The COLOR command will set the current screen colors to the parameters passed to the command. If the caller is in graphics mode then the "color" value is used. Otherwise, the "monocolor" value is used instead. 11 Function: COMPARE Syntax: COMPARE(Variable1$,Variable2$) Example: IF COMPARE(Choice$,1) THEN GOTO ... The COMPARE function will compare any two variable (or even text) values and will set the function to TRUE if the strings are equal. Note that upper/lower case does not matter with this function. Command: COPY Syntax: COPY(FileSpec1$,FileSpec2$) Example: COPY(Manual$,"C:\1ST") The COPY command will copy one file to another file location. You can specify variables or text in this function. Command: COUPON Syntax: COUPON <Product> Example: COUPON "1ST" The COUPON command will generate a Sparkware "electronic coupon". The <Product> name must be passed to the command and be eight characters or less in size. If the command is successful then a <Product>.CPN file is created. Command: DCHECK Syntax: DCHECK Variable$ Example: DCHECK Target$ The DCHECK command is used to make sure that a subdirectory entry has a trailing '\' character. If Variable$ does not end with a '\' then one is added to the variable. Function: EOF Syntax: EOF(FileNum) Example: IF EOF(1) THEN GOTO ... The EOF function returns TRUE if FileNum has reached the "End of File" position while reading the file. 12 Function: EXIST Syntax: EXIST Variable$ Example: IF EXIST "1ST.CPN" THEN GOTO ... The EXIST function returns TRUE if Variable$ file exists. Command: EXIT Syntax: EXIT Example: EXIT The EXIT command has no parameters. It will exit the current script and either return to the CALLing script or exit to DOS. Command: FILLSCRN Syntax: FILLSCRN(ULRow,ULCol,LRRow,LRCol,ASCII Char,Color [,MonoColor]) Example: FILLSCRN(1,1,25,80,32,48,112) The FILLSCRN command fills a portion of the screen with an ASCII character. ULRow, ULCol, LRRow and LRCol describe the screen boundaries. COLOR and MONOCOLOR are the two attributes to choose from (depending if the caller is in graphics mode or not). ASCII CHAR is an ASCII character between 0 and 255 to use to fill the screen. Command: GETKEY Syntax: GETKEY(Variable$[,ChoiceList]) Example: GETKEY(Choice$,"ABCDE") The GETKEY command will poll the keyboard for a keystroke. The keystroke is loaded into Variable$. You can also specify an optional list of acceptable keystrokes to the GETKEY command. If you do pass a list of keystrokes then Variable$ is loaded with the NUMBER of the character received. For example, in the above example, if "C" had been pressed then Variable$ would have been loaded with "3" since "C" is the third item in the list. 13 Command: GOSUB Syntax: GOSUB <label> Example: GOSUB PrintIt The GOSUB command will transfer control of the script to the <label> routine (if <label> is found). The script will continue until a RETURN command is found. Then, execution is returned to the next line after the GOSUB command. You can nest up to 20 GOSUBs at one time. Command: GOTO Syntax: GOTO <label> Example: GOTO Done The GOTO command will transfer control of the script to the <label> routine (if <label> is found). Unlike GOSUB, GOTO will not return back to the next instruction following the GOTO command. Function: GREATER Syntax: GREATER(Variable1$,Variable2$) Example: IF GREATER(Choice$,1) THEN GOTO ... The GREATER function compares two variables (or text strings) and will return TRUE if Variable1$ is greater than Variable2$. Command: HANGUP Syntax: HANGUP Example: HANGUP The HANGUP command will disconnect the caller. Function: INSTR Syntax: INSTR(Start,Variable$,Find$) Example: IF INSTR(1,Name$,"1ST") THEN GOTO ... The INSTR function searches Variable$ for Find$ (or text strings). START is the starting position in Variable$ to use when looking for Find$. If Find$ is found in Variable$ then the function returns TRUE. 14 Function: KEYHIT Syntax: KEYHIT Example: IF KEYHIT THEN GOTO ... The KEYHIT function tests to see a keystroke was pressed by the user. You can use it to test for certain values and transfer control based on those values. Command: KILL Syntax: KILL Variable$ Example: KILL "TEMP" The KILL command will delete a file from the disk. Function: LASTKEY Syntax: LASTKEY Example: IF LASTKEY 27 THEN GOTO ... The LASTKEY function returns the last keystroke pressed by the user. You can use it to test for certain values and transfer control based on those values. Function: LESS Syntax: LESS(Variable1$,Variable2$) Example: IF LESS(Choice$,1) THEN GOTO ... The LESS function compares two variables (or text strings) and will return TRUE if Variable1$ is less than Variable2$. Command: LOCATE Syntax: LOCATE(Row,Col) Example: LOCATE(12,40) The LOCATE command positions the cursor to the ROW and COLumn specified in the argument list. 15 Command: MKDIR Syntax: MKDIR Variable$ Example: MKDIR "C:\1ST" The MKDIR command will create a subdirectory. You can use a variable or a text string to hold the subdirectory name. Function: MONO Syntax: MONO Example: IF MONO THEN GOTO ... The MONO function will return TRUE if the caller is in non-graphics mode. Otherwise, the function returns FALSE. Command: MREAD Syntax: MREAD(FileNum,Lines[,Find$]) Example: MREAD(1,20,":START") The MREAD command will display text through the ANSI interpreter. The FILENUM is the number of the file buffer opened using the OPEN command. LINES is the number of lines to read before returning control back to the script. You can also add a third parameter (either a variable or text string) that tells MREAD to begin displaying text after FIND$ was read. If MREAD reads the line of text "@EXIT@" it will exit the current read. Note that you will need to use the EOF() function to test and see if you are finished reading the file. Command: NAME Syntax: NAME Variable1$ AS Variable2$ Example: NAME "DEALER.DOC" AS "DEALER.TXT" The NAME command renames a file to another filename. Function: NULL Syntax: NULL(Variable$) Example: IF NULL(Answer$) THEN ... The NULL function lets you check to see if a variable is "empty" and does not contain a value. 16 Command: ON Syntax: ON Variable$ GOTO ... Example: ON Choice$ GOTO Label1,Label2,Label3,.... The ON command assumes that Variable$ contains a numeric value. If Variable$="1" then ON will transfer control to the label "LABEL1". If Variable$="2" then ON will transfer control to "LABEL2", etc. Command: OPEN Syntax: OPEN(Variable1$,FileNum,Variable2$) Example: OPEN("I",1,"DEALER.DOC") The OPEN command will open a file for input or output mode. The mode is determined by the first variable (or text string) parameter. Valid values are: "O" Opens Variable2$ for OUTPUT "A" Opens Variable2$ for APPEND "I" Opens Variable2$ for INPUT "B" Opens Variable2$ for BINARY FILENUM contains the file number to assign to this file. Command: PAUSE Syntax: PAUSE [seconds] Example: PAUSE 10 The PAUSE command will pause execution of the script until a key has been pressed. If you include the optional [seconds] parameter then PAUSE will wait [seconds] for a keystroke and if a key was not pressed then execution continues with the next statement. Command: PLAY Syntax: PLAY Variable$ Example: PLAY "T120O2G8G8G8G8A8A8G16E16C8C8C16C16D16C16" The PLAY command plays a ANSI music string to your PC's speaker. 17 Command: PRINT Syntax: PRINT Variable$ Example: PRINT "This is a test" The PRINT command displays Variable$ on the screen at the current cursor location. Command: QPRINT Syntax: QPRINT(Variable$,Row,Col,Color[,MonoColor]) Example: QPRINT("This is a test",12,33,-1) QPRINT writes a text string to the ROW and COLumn positions on your screen. Variable$ can either be an assigned variable or text. COLOR is the color to display Variable$ on the screen. Setting color to '-1' tells QPRINT to use the current color found at ROW,COL. Passing QPRINT a COLumn value of '-1' tells QPRINT to center Variable$ on your screen. You can also pass a fifth parameter to QPRINT. The fifth parameter is the color to use if displaying the text on a monochrome system. If you do not include the fifth parameter QPRINT always uses the COLOR attribute. You can also call QPRINT once with a full list of parameters and then call QPRINT passing only the text to print. Example: QPRINT ("This is a test",12,20,-1) QPRINT ("--------------") When you omit the extra parameters QPRINT will increment the last ROW value by one and use the last COLumn and COLOR values. The main difference between QPRINT and APRINT is that QPRINT displays Variable$ through direct screen writes while APRINT displays Variable$ on the caller's screen as well. 18 Command: QUIT Syntax: QUIT Example: QUIT The QUIT command will close the current script and return the caller back to the bulletin board system. It does not disconnect the caller like the HANGUP command. Command: READ Syntax: READ(FileNum,Variable$[,UPPER,TRIM]) Example: READ(1,Name$,TRIM) The READ command will read one line of input from a previously OPENed file into Variable$. You can also use the parameters UPPER (to convert the input to upper case) and TRIM (to trim spaces from the left and right of the string). Command: RETURN Syntax: RETURN [label] Example: RETURN The RETURN command will return control back to the script at the next command *after* the calling GOSUB command. You can optionally return control to a label by placing the label's name on the same line. Command: RUN Syntax: RUN ScriptName$ Example: RUN "SCRIPT2.SCR" The RUN command will transfer control to another DEALER script command. Unlike the CALL command, RUN does not return back to the calling script once execution is complete. 19 Command: SEEK Syntax: SEEK(FileNum,<Byte Position|Variable$>) Example: SEEK(1,4000) The SEEK command will position the file pointer for FILENUM to BYTE POSITION in the file. You can also specify a string Variable$ instead of a byte position and DEALER will scan the file to locate Variable$ from the current position. If the string was not found the file pointer is restored to the previous position. Command: SET_FILE Syntax: SET_FILE Variable$ Example: SET_FILE "1ST.CPN" The SET_FILE command will set an internal variable in the DEALER system that is used whenever the @FILE@ variable is encountered. This lets you set a filename and use it later in a DOS command. Command: SET_PROT Syntax: SET_PROT Variable$ Example: SET_PROT "Z" The SET_PROT command is used to define a file transfer protocol to use within the DEALER system. You may either pass a letter (A-Z) or a number (1-26) that corresponds with the protocol you wish to use. It is up to you to make sure that the protocol being selected is defined in SETUP under "Transfer protocols". Command: SHELL Syntax: SHELL(Variable$) Example: SHELL("1ST") The SHELL command will execute a DOS program or batch file from inside DEALER. 20 Command: SHOW_FILE Syntax: SHOW_FILE Variable$ Example: SHOW_FILE "LOGO" The SHOW_FILE command will display a text file to the caller. DEALER will pause every 23 lines for a MORE? prompt to be displayed. The SHOW_FILE command will honor these @variables in the text file itself: @PAUSE@ Pauses display of the text and asks for "More?" @MORE@ Same as @PAUSE@ @POFF@ Turn off the 23 line checking so displays do NOT pause. @PON@ Turns 23 line checking on. Command: WRITE Syntax: WRITE(FileNum,Variable$) Example: WRITE(1,"This is a test") The WRITE command will write information to a previously OPENed file. If you are writing to a file that was opened for BINARY mode then a CR/LF is not added to the file. If you wish to write out hexadecimal values you can use the "X'nn" format where "nn" is the value (in hex) to write. 21 @Variables supported -------------------- These @variables are supported by the DEALER system. You may use them anywhere you wish within a script or text file. @BAUD@ Connect rate of the caller @BBSNAME@ The name of your bulletin board system @CLS@ Clears the screen @DATE@ Today's date in MM-DD-YY format @DEALER@ Your Sparkware Dealer ID @FILE@ Replaced with file used in SET_FILE @FILESIZE(<Filename>) Displays size (in bytes) of <Filename> @PORT@ Serial port @PROT_DL@ Protocol download command @PROT_NAME@ Protocol upload command @PROT_UP@ Protocol description @SYSDATE@ Today's date in MM-DD-YY format @SYSDIR@ The DEALER system directory @SYSOP@ Your name (as sysop) @SYSTIME@ Current system time in HH:MM format @TIME@ Current system time in HH:MM format @TIMELEFT@ Time caller has left on this call @YEAR@ Current year (in YYYY format) 22 Questions and answers --------------------- Q: What happens if I just install this dealer system but do not obtain a dealer ID from Sparkware? A: Your callers will be able to download the electronic coupon that is good for $3.00 off the 1stReader registration price. However, you are not entitled to receive the $5.00 dealer commission for each copy sold through this door until you receive a dealer ID from us. Q: Why can't I just generate one 1ST.CPN coupon file and insert it into my copy of 1ST-112.ZIP so that when anyone downloads this file from my system the coupon is already there and ready to use? A: This won't work because each coupon generated by the door includes a unique serial number. Once a caller redeems this serialized coupon with us, the serial number is 'retired' and is not able to be used again. This means that you will only earn your $5.00 dealer commission on the *first* use of the coupon and loose it for all other sales made with the same coupon. In other words, don't do this... Q: Is there a Sparkware support conference that my system can carry for our callers? A: Yes! We provide support through our 1stReader support conference and we do echo this conference with any dealer who wishes to receive the conference from us in QWK format. Registered dealers also have access to conference #21 on our customer support system. This is where you can find the latest updates to this system as well as ideas and tips to help introduce your callers to the 1stReader system. Q: Can I use Sparkware's dealer system for any other products I wish to sell? A: No. This is a violation of our license agreement to use this software. If you wish to insert any text files or scripts that do not directly support our products please contact us first for permission. Hints, tips or text about our products are ok to use with our system. 23 Q: Can I request my Sparkware Dealer ID over the Internet? A: Yes! Send a message to our Internet address (contact us at sparky@rodent.raider.net) with the following information completed: Your name......... Address line #1... Address line #2... City.............. State............. Zip code.......... Home telephone.... Work telephone.... BBS software used. Name of BBS....... BBS telephone..... We will send your Sparkware Dealer ID back to you so you can begin using The DEALER System immediately. Please note that we cannot send ORDERS.NEW via the Internet. 24