The Business Master (3rd Edition)

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=================================================================== <*> Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox <*> Reference Manual Copyright 1983 - 1991 by Marc Perkel All Rights Reserved * Version 2.0 * Release Date: 04-18-91 Computer Tyme * 411 North Sherman Suite 300 * Springfield Mo. 65802 (417) 866-1222 voice * (417) 866-1665 bbs Fax: (417) 866-0135 CompuServe 76505,1120 =================================================================== Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox * Table of Contents Page 1 _______________________________________________________________ License ........................................... 1 Warranty .......................................... 1 Trademarks ........................................ 2 Disclaimer ........................................ 2 Acknowledgements .................................. 2 Introducing the DOS ToolBox ....................... 3 DM Poem ........................................... 3 Backing up your Program Disks ..................... 4 Changing the Prompt ............................... 4 Installing the DOS ToolBox ........................ 4 The Path Command .................................. 5 Directory Master .................................. 5 -- DM's WorkHorse Functions ....................... 6 -- Software Philosophy Behind DM .................. 7 -- Main Screen .................................... 8 -- Help Screen .................................... 10 -- Marking and UnMarking Files .................... 10 -- Single File Commands ........................... 11 -- Marked File Commands ........................... 11 -- General Commands ............................... 12 -- Disk Statistics ................................ 12 -- Extra Functions ................................ 12 -- Exiting DM ..................................... 13 -- Function Key Commands .......................... 13 -- Marking Files .................................. 15 -- Copy a File .................................... 15 -- Copy All Marked Files .......................... 16 -- Move a File .................................... 16 -- Move all Marked Files .......................... 16 -- Delete a File .................................. 17 -- Delete all Marked Files ........................ 17 -- Controlling the Sort Order ..................... 17 -- Renaming Files ................................. 17 -- Viewing Text Files ............................. 18 -- Editing Text Files ............................. 18 -- Patching a File ................................ 18 -- Change File Date ............................... 19 -- The Status Window .............................. 19 -- Disk Free Space ................................ 19 -- Goto Filename .................................. 20 -- Re-Reading the Directory ....................... 20 -- Changing Disk Drives ........................... 20 -- Changing the Path .............................. 20 -- Changing the File Mask ......................... 21 -- Tree Mode ...................................... 21 -- Wildcard Mark .................................. 22 -- Reverse Marks .................................. 22 -- Changing Colors ................................ 23 -- Execute a DOS Command .......................... 23 -- Execute a File ................................. 23 -- Programmable Function Keys ..................... 24 Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox * Table of Contents Page 2 _______________________________________________________________ -- Programming with Variables ..................... 26 -- Saving your Programming ........................ 28 -- The AutoRun Key ................................ 29 -- About File Attributes .......................... 31 -- Changing File Attributes ....................... 32 For New Users ..................................... 33 Technical Support BBS ............................. 39 PD.EXE - Pick Directory ........................... 39 DoList ............................................ 43 -- DoList Shell Mode .............................. 43 -- Internal Dolist Commands ....................... 45 -- DoList in LIST Mode ............................ 46 D.EXE - Sweet Little Directory Program ............ 48 FIND.EXE .......................................... 50 SORT.EXE .......................................... 50 MORE.EXE .......................................... 50 FREE.EXE - Disk Free Space Utility ................ 51 FIXPATH.EXE ....................................... 51 FORK.EXE .......................................... 51 PIPEDIR.EXE ....................................... 52 WHEREIS.EXE ....................................... 52 MOVE.EXE .......................................... 53 ZDEL.EXE - Delete Utility ......................... 54 RAMMAP.EXE - Memory Display Utility ............... 54 INMEM.EXE ......................................... 55 KBD.EXE - Keyboard Utility ........................ 55 PARK.COM - Parks your Hard Disk Heads ............. 57 BATEXIT.BAT - Worlds Smallest Useful Program ...... 57 TESTIF.EXE - Batch File Utility ................... 58 VERSION.EXE ....................................... 61 TEDIT.EXE - Full Screen Text Editor ............... 61 -- Status Line .................................... 62 -- Main Pull Down Menu ............................ 62 -- Quick Keys ..................................... 62 -- File ........................................... 62 -- Block .......................................... 63 -- Search ......................................... 63 -- Print .......................................... 64 -- Editing ........................................ 64 -- Other .......................................... 64 -- Quit ........................................... 64 -- Saving your work ............................... 65 TSR Management Utilities .......................... 65 -- About TurboPower Software ...................... 65 -- Introduction ................................... 66 -- Mark, FMark, and Release ....................... 67 -- MarkNet and RelNet ............................. 72 -- Watch and Disable .............................. 75 -- MapMem, RamFree, and Device .................... 76 -- EatMem ......................................... 81 The Network Survival Kit .......................... 81 XMETER.EXE - Software Metering .................... 81 Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox * Table of Contents Page 3 _______________________________________________________________ LOGOFF.EXE ........................................ 84 BESTNET.EXE ....................................... 84 NS.EXE - NetSmart ................................. 86 Other Computer Tyme Products ...................... 87 Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 1 _______________________________________________________________ LICENSE AGREEMENT LICENSE AGREEMENT LICENSE AGREEMENT Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox - Copyright 1983-1991 - All rights Reserved. You are licensed to use this program on a single CPU or workstation. If you are running on a network, you are required to license a separate copy for each workstation or a file server license for each file server. If you are running on a multiuser operating system such as Concurrent DOS, you are required to license a copy for each workstation. Everyone who uses this menu, must license a copy unless several people share the same workstation. This software is licensed and not sold. The license begins when Computer Tyme receives payment in full. You may not transfer, sell, sublease or rent this software without the written consent of Computer Tyme. You are not allowed to distribute MarxMenu in runtime form with software you developed unless it is in combination with a paid for copy of MarxMenu, or you have made special arrangements in writing with Computer Tyme to do so. Use of this product constitutes your acceptance of the terms and conditions of this license and of my copyright and your agreement to abide by these terms and conditions. WARRANTY WARRANTY WARRANTY The warranty is limited to the diskettes to be machine readable for a period of 30 days after purchase. Although we try hard to write perfect software that has no bugs, we do not guarantee that. We also do not guarantee that this product is fit for every purpose and we are not liable for any damages that might occur from use of this product. This agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Missouri. Computer Tyme 411 North Sherman, Suite 300 Springfield, Mo. 65802 417-866-1222 voice * 417-866-1665 bbs * 417-866-0135 fax Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 2 _______________________________________________________________ TRADEMARKS TRADEMARKS TRADEMARKS MarxMenu, DOS ToolBox, Directory Master, and The Network Survival Kit are trademarks of Computer Tyme. QEdit and TEdit are trademarks of SemWare. Lotus is a registered trademark of Lotus Development. Wordstar is a registered trademark of MicroPro International. Smart Software is a trademark of Informix. MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft. Turbo Pascal is a trademark of Borland International. OPRO and TPRO are trademarks of TurboPower Software Netware and Novell are trademarks of Novell DesqView and QEMM are trademarks of Quarterdeck IBM is a trademark of International Business Machines DISCLAIMER DISCLAIMER DISCLAIMER Use of this program acknowledges this disclaimer of warranty: "This program is supplied as is. Computer Tyme disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties merchanticability and of fitness of this program for any purpose. Computer Tyme assumes no liability or damages direct or consequential, which may result from the use of this program." ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I'd like to thank the following people for making this software possible. Vicki Perkel, for staying up late hours working on this manual, writing the DM poem, and being good to me. The staff at Computer Tyme for their effort and support and being the best employees in the world. Borland International for writing Turbo Pascal and keeping it bug free and well supported. TurboPower Software for their very powerful extensions to Turbo Pascal, and their well written, well supported product. SemWare for their TEdit and QEdit full screen editors. All you users who actually paid for this package so that we may continue to eat. And those of you who have made suggestions to improve our product. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 3 _______________________________________________________________ INTRODUCING THE DOS TOOLBOX INTRODUCING THE DOS TOOLBOX INTRODUCING THE DOS TOOLBOX The Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox contains powerful and simple to use utilities. Some of the programs are written for beginners, others for intermediate and advanced users. The Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox programs come with help screens and on-line documentation which give quick proficiency with each program. The following information briefly explains what each program does and the user level it is best suited for. More complete information on each program is subsequently provided in this reference manual. Computer Tyme invites you to begin using these programs now. Once you begin using Directory Master, DoList, etc., you will not want to be on a computer that doesn't have them. We are continuing to develop and improve the Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox. Our goal is to continue to develop programs that make DOS easier for the novice and more powerful for the professional. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. DM, just a programmer's whim? More than a whim, is new DM Selects, reflects and sorts for you Tags, then nags for more to do. Pick your drive, name your path Up comes your file in nothing flat! To quickly review or execute files Programmable keys will make you smile. Need files copied, moved or deleted? These routine tasks are quickly completed So hack or sack whatever your whim Have yourself a blast with new DM! By: Vicki Perkel Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 4 _______________________________________________________________ BACKING UP YOUR PROGRAM DISKS BACKING UP YOUR PROGRAM DISKS BACKING UP YOUR PROGRAM DISKS You should always make a backup of each of your software disks. The backup, or working copy, is for everyday use. Put the original in a safe place. Then, if something happens to the working copy you can make another copy from the original. 1) Have your "DOS ToolBox" diskette and a blank diskette ready. 2) Bring up the "C>" prompt and type "DISKCOPY A: A:" and then press the Enter key. This tells the computer to copy the disk in drive A to another disk which will later be put in drive A. 3) Follow the instructions on the screen. The "CT DOS ToolBox" diskette is the "source" and the blank diskette is the "target." Note: Your blank disk does not need to be formatted in advance. The "DISKCOPY" command formats the disk at the same time that the files are being copied. CHANGING THE PROMPT CHANGING THE PROMPT CHANGING THE PROMPT Some computers do not display the name of the current subdirectory at the prompt. You may see only the prompt, for example, C> or C:. By typing PROMPT $P: at the DOS command line you will be able to see the name of the current directory at the prompt when you change directories. INSTALLING THE DOS TOOLBOX INSTALLING THE DOS TOOLBOX INSTALLING THE DOS TOOLBOX The Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox may be used on any PC/XT/AT compatible system with a hard disk and at least 384k resident memory. Turn on the system. When "C:" appears, insert the program disk in Drive A. At this point you can either create a new directory for the files or copy them into an existing directory. Whatever you choose, the files need to be in a directory which is "path accessable" (see "The Path Command.") To make a directory, type MD space and the name of the new directory. Then type CD space and the name of the new directory. To put the files in an existing directory, just type CD space and the name of the directory. At this point you are ready to copy the files from the floppy to the hard drive. Next type copy a:*.* and press the Enter key. After the programs are copied, type INSTALL. This will unpack all the ToolBox Programs. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 5 _______________________________________________________________ THE PATH COMMAND THE PATH COMMAND THE PATH COMMAND It is to your advantage to be able to execute the programs from any subdirectory you may be in. To do this, you may have to designate a path in your autoexec.bat file using the DOS "Path" command. When using a hard drive, you may frequently be in a directory other than the one the programs are in. The "Path" command allows you to execute a program when it is not in the subdirectory you are currently in. If you want to execute the programs from any directory, put them in a directory that your PATH is set up to access. If you have not set up a path command, refer to your MS-DOS manual or your friendly neighborhood computer wizard as to how to do this. DIRECTORY MASTER DIRECTORY MASTER DIRECTORY MASTER To execute Directory Master, type "DM". Directory Master "DM", is a powerful utility program for MS-DOS compatible computers. DM was created to allow you to copy, move and delete files quickly and easily. But we didn't stop there. Special features allow you to run programs, execute commands, and view files directly from DM, then return to DM exactly where you left off. DM is streamlined - many tasks can be completed with just one keystroke. DM allows you to maintain order on your disks with a minimum of time and effort. When you use DM, you are able to skim through your directory and mark all the files you want to be moved, copied, or deleted. If you have lots of files to delete, you can delete them all at once. If you want to copy selected files onto a diskette, you can copy them all at once. The Tree Mode allows you to jump from the root directory to any subdirectory and back again with a minimum of keystrokes. Suppose you want to separate your data files from your spreadsheet program files. You can mark all data files, create a subdirectory to hold them and move them all at once. Perhaps you have a lot of old document files in your word processor program and you want to delete the clutter, but you can't remember what's in a certain file. No problem, the Programmable Function Keys allow you to call up the word processor and load the indicated file in one keystroke. After you've looked over the file and exited the word processor, you automatically return to DM, right where you left off. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 6 _______________________________________________________________ DM'S WORKHORSE FUNCTIONS DM'S WORKHORSE FUNCTIONS DM'S WORKHORSE FUNCTIONS Quick backups - copy all or selected files from one diskette to another, or from the hard drive to diskette or vice versa. Maintain order - categorize your files in subdirectories. DM quickly moves your files from one subdirectory to another or from the root directory to subdirectories. Easy disk cleanup - move or delete selected files from any drive. Scan quickly through a hard disk's root directory and subdirectories. Check any drive to see the size of individual files and the amount of free space on the disk. Sort files in a directory for viewing in any order desired: alphabetical by filename, alphabetical by extension, by date, by size, or reverse the sorted order. List only certain files within a directory, such as those with a given extension. Execute a program or view the contents of a file directly from DM, and return to DM exactly where you left off. Rename any file. Change the date on any file. Change the attributes of a file, including: Hidden, System, Read-Only, and Archive. Execute a DOS command directly from DM and return to DM in the same place that you left off. Custom program up to 30 function keys. Get to know DM's Special AutoRun Feature. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 7 _______________________________________________________________ SOFTWARE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND DM SOFTWARE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND DM SOFTWARE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND DM DM was originally written in 1985 to provide the same functions for MS-DOS as a program called SWEEP did for CP/M. The main function of this program is to be able to select files from a list of files, then either copy them, move them, or delete them. Thus the design of this program is such to make these functions as easy as possible. In order to help you decide which files to copy, move, or delete, DM allows you to sort the list by name, date, extension or size, and to reverse the sorted order. This allows you to list files in a directory several different ways. In addition, DM allows you to use a file mask, to work with a group of files rather than the whole directory. The files are displayed in a vertical list. The up and down arrows, page up, page down, home and end keys move you through the list. The "G" (GOTO) command is provided to help you get to a desired place in the list quickly. Files are selected (marked) using the right arrow key, and unselected (unmarked) using the left arrow key. All files can be marked using Ctrl-Right Arrow and unmarked using the Ctrl-Left Arrow. A wild card mark is provided to mark all files that match a particular mask. When files are marked they are simultaneously highlighted for action. Once files are marked (highlighted) they can be copied, moved to another disk drive or subdirectory, or deleted. You can change file attributes on all marked files or run a program on all marked files. Copy, move, delete, and change file attributes can be performed on the file at the pointer. You can rename the file or change the file's date. You can execute the file or run up to 30 predefined programs on a file. To help you move through the directory structure, the Tree Mode is provided which shows you only directories. By using the arrow keys, you can move back and forth between them. DM provides a status window that allows you to see the number of files, the total size of all files, the number of marked files, and the total size of all marked files. It shows the free space on the disk and provides additional information about the file that you are pointing to. Current path, drive, and file mask information are also displayed. DM allows you to execute programs or DOS commands on the file you are pointing to or on all marked files. The Autorun feature has the ability to figure out what program to run on a file by recognizing the name of the file's extension. This would be used if, for example, you are in your spreadsheet directory trying to determine which spreadsheets to delete. In the process you would like to look at them before marking them for deletion. By programming an AutoRun string to load your spreadsheet program and bring up the file at the pointer, DM will let you execute your spreadsheet program and load the file you are pointing to, then return to DM exactly where you left off. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 8 _______________________________________________________________ DM is designed to be as intuitive as possible. If you get confused, press F1 for help. The following one-letter commands work on the file at the pointer. C is for Copy, D for Delete, M is for Move, and A is for Attributes. The following commands have the same functions as described above but work on all marked files: Alt-C for Copy, Alt-D for Delete, Alt-M for Move and Alt-A for Attributes. (Remember to type the letter while simultaneously holding down the Alternate Key.) Other commands include R to Rename a file, T for Change Date, F for Freespace, V for View, E for Edit, P is for Patch, G for Goto, S for Sort, and Q to Quit. Many of the functions of DM are especially helpful to the advanced computer user. If you don't understand all the functions of DM, just stick to the simple ones. As your knowledge of MS-DOS and computers grow, you will find more and more uses for DM. MAIN SCREEN MAIN SCREEN MAIN SCREEN +-------------------------------------------------------------------+ | File Name Date Size | Total * Marked | |>FCPY.BAT 05-20-87 2k | Size of Files: 3716 | 0 Free: 1738k | | FLESYS.EXE 11-30-88 12k | Numb of Files: 236 | 0 Sort: Name | | FIND.EXE 12-21-90 8k | Subs: 20 | | FIXPTH.EXE 12-21-90 6k | Path: C:\ | | FMARK.COM 01-27-90 2k | Size: 26 Mask: *.* | | FORK.EXE 12-21-90 6k | Attributes: Archive | | FORMAT.COM 12-13-90 32k |-----------------------------------------| | GOFILE.BAT 09-29-90 2k | | | HANDW 09-26-90 2k | | | HIMEM.SYS 12-13-90 12k | | | HIRES.COM 07-23-87 2k | | | HYPE.TXT 12-17-87 6k | +----------+ | | ICE.MNU 03-11-90 2k | | F1 Help | | | INMEM.EXE 12-21-90 6k | +----------+ | | INMEM.TXT 11-28-90 2k | | | INST.MNU 12-30-90 18k | | | INSTAL.TXT 04-13-89 4k | | | IO.SYS 02-07-91 34k*| <*> Directory Master <*> | | IPXRX.COM 03-02-91 30k | Computer Tyme | | JIVE.DOC 09-23-87 2k | 411 North Sherman Suite 300 | | JIVE.EXE 10-11-86 36k | Springfield, Mo. 65802 (417) 866-1222 | +-------------------------------------------------------------------+ This is the DM Main Menu Screen. The following is a brief description of each feature on the screen, followed by a text reference. FILE WINDOW (Left Window): FILE NAME - The column of names under this heading lists the files in the current directory. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 9 _______________________________________________________________ DATE - This shows the date the file was created or last modified. SIZE - This tells how many bytes are in the file, in k (1024 bytes). STATUS WINDOW (Upper Right Window): SIZE OF FILES - Under the heading marked "Total" is the total disk space used by files in the current directory. Under the heading entitled "Marked" is the total of all marked files. NUMBER OF FILES - Under the heading marked "Total" is the number of files on the current disk or subdirectory. Under the heading entitled "Marked" is the number of all marked files. FREE - The amount of free space on the current disk, in "k", is shown here. SORT - Displays how the directory is sorted. If "Name" appears files in the directory are displayed in alphabetical filename order. If Name R appears, the files are sorted in reverse filename order. SUBS - This is the number of subdirectories off the current directory. If you enter the Tree Mode, the number of files in the current subdirectory is displayed. PATH - This shows the drive and pathname of the current directory. A letter and backslash, C:\ for example indicates the root directory. A name after the backslash indicates the current drive and subdirectory (Example: Path: C:\WS). SIZE - This is the actual number of bytes in the file next to the pointer. ATTRIBUTES - If the file at the pointer has special attributes, they will be shown here. MASK - The Mask shown here indicates that all or a selected portion of the directory is listed. If *.* appears as the mask, the entire directory will be shown. If for example, *.doc is shown, all .doc (document) files will be listed. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 10 _______________________________________________________________ HELP SCREEN HELP SCREEN HELP SCREEN +------------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | -> Mark File CTRL -> Mark All Files Tab FKey Help | | <- Clear File CTRL <- Clear All Files F1 More Help | | F2 AutoRun | | C Copy File D Delete File F3 AutoRun + Text | | M Move File A Change Attribute F4 Dos Command | | R Rename File T Change Date F5 Change Disk | | L Re-Read Directory W Wildcard Mark F6 Change Path | | S Sort Order G Goto FileName F7 Subdirectories | | F FreeSpace X Extra Functions F8 Edit Commands | | V View File E Edit File F9 Register DM | | P Patch File \ Jump to Root Dir F10 Marked Menu | | Q Quit DM Esc Abort Command | | | | | | For All Marked Files Press TAB key for FKey Definitions | | | | Alt-C Copy Files Programmable Alt-F1 .. Alt-F10 | | Alt-M Move Files Function Ctrl-F1 .. Ctrl-F10 | | Alt-D Delete Files Keys Shift-F1 .. Shift-F10 | | Alt-A Change Attributes | | | +------------------------------------------------------------------+ F1 HELP - Displays Help Screen No. 1. Press Esc to exit help. To display Help Screens 2 and 3, continue to press F1. See lower right hand screen of DM Main Menu for F1 reminder. MARKING AND UNMARKING FILES MARKING AND UNMARKING FILES MARKING AND UNMARKING FILES The following right and left cursor keypad arrows are used to mark and unmark files: -> Marks File CTRL -> Marks All Files <- Unmarks File CTRL <- Unmarks All Files The following is a list of DM Commands. These commands are not listed as they appear on the above screen but rather in the order of most frequent usage. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 11 _______________________________________________________________ SINGLE FILE COMMANDS SINGLE FILE COMMANDS SINGLE FILE COMMANDS C - Copy File - Copies only the file at the pointer to a new name (in the same directory) or to another disk and subdirectory. D - Delete File - Deletes only the file at the pointer. M - Move File - Moves only the file at the pointer. G - Goto FileName - User may search directory for a specific file by typing the filename. Will search on partial name match. V - View File - Displays the contents of the file at the pointer, in ASCII text. E - Edit File - DM is set up to run the program TEDIT which is included in the package, however you may setup DM to run your favorite editor to modify any text or document file. R - Rename File - User may type in a new filename. T - Change Date - User may type in a new date for files or press F2 for today's date. A - Change Attributes - Changes attributes of the file at the pointer. P - Patch File - Setup DM to run your favorite "patch" program to modify a file. Warning: This program is for advanced users only. MARKED FILE COMMANDS MARKED FILE COMMANDS MARKED FILE COMMANDS Alt-C - Copy Files - Copies marked (highlighted) files to the specified path. Alt-M - Move Files - Moves all marked files to the specified path. Alt-D - Delete Files - Deletes all marked files. Alt-A - Change Attributes - Changes the attributes of all marked files. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 12 _______________________________________________________________ GENERAL COMMANDS GENERAL COMMANDS GENERAL COMMANDS L - Re-read Directory - Reads the current disk. Useful for quickly reading a new disk when inserted in the floppy drive, or re-listing the current directory of the hard disk after adding new files. S - Change Sort Order - Changes the order in which the directory is sorted. W - Wildcard Mark - User selects and simultaneously marks several files at once by using wildcards. DISK STATISTICS DISK STATISTICS DISK STATISTICS F - FreeSpace - Gives statistics for any drive specified. EXTRA FUNCTIONS EXTRA FUNCTIONS EXTRA FUNCTIONS Type "X" to display the following menu, then type the desired letter to perform its task. These are not to be confused with F1-F10 Function Keys. R - Reverse all Marks - Reverses highlighting of marked files. \ - Root Directory - Move to the root directory of current drive. T - Root Directory Tree Mode - Quickly display all subdirectories off the root directory. C - Set Colors - (See "Changing Colors on the Screen.") V - Set VIEW Program - Set up DM to run your favorite view program. The default setup is the DOS "View" program. E - Set EDIT Program - TEdit is set up as the default edit program. Type "E" to set up DM to run your favorite editor program. Type CTRL KD to save and then quit and CTRL KQ to quit without saving. Use caution in editing files. Do not edit a file which is not a text file; to do so could result in program or system difficulties. P - Set PATCH Program - Set up DM to run your favorite patch program. S - Save Configuration - Save changes made to the screen colors or the Function Key setups. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 13 _______________________________________________________________ EXITING DM EXITING DM EXITING DM ESC - Press ESC (Escape) once to abort commands, twice to exit DM. Q - Quit DM - Press "Q" to exit the DM program. ALT-X - Quits immediately. FUNCTION KEY COMMANDS FUNCTION KEY COMMANDS FUNCTION KEY COMMANDS The Function Keys are the F1-F10 keys which appear on every keyboard. The DM Function Keys perform a variety of functions. Refer to Help Screen No. 1 for a list of Function Keys and what they do. F1 - Help Screen No. 1 - Press F1 once to display Help on DM commands, marking files, Function Keys and Programmable Function Keys settings. F1 - Help Screen No. 2 - Press F1 twice to read about "What is DM?," the "Special Function Keys and Autorun". There are 30 programmable key combinations available which are user defined; Alternate Functions Keys (Alt F1-F10), Control Function Keys (Ctrl F1-F10) and Shift Function Keys (Shft F1-F10). Press the Tab key to view the Programmable Function Key default settings. You may reprogram these keys and write the help text yourself. (See "The Programmable Function Keys."). The Autorun Key is F2. To reprogram the (F2) Autorun Key press F8. (See "The Autorun Key.") F1 - Help Screen No. 3 - Press F1 three times for DM Copyright, purchase order information and phone numbers. F2 - AutoRun - As discussed in the above paragraph, this key may be programmed by the user by pressing F8 and selecting option 4. Set up AutoRun to execute a program or a DOS command on the file at the pointer. For more information (See "The AutoRun Key.") F3 - Execute File - Executes the file at the pointer if the file is executable (has extension .EXE, .COM, or .BAT). (See "Execute a File.") F4 - DOS Command - Executes a DOS command. (See "Execute a DOS Command.") F5 - Change Disk - Quickly move from one drive to another by typing the drive letter. (See "Changing Disk Drives.") F6 - Change Path - Move to another drive, path by typing new path name or select files by using a particular mask with embedded wildcards. (See "Path and Changing the Mask.") Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 14 _______________________________________________________________ F7 - Tree Mode - Allows scanning of subdirectories. Under tree mode a new set of commands are available: F7 - Return back to file mode. R - Rename subdirectory -> - Jump to subdirectory - move to the subdirectory at pointer <- - Jump to subdirectory toward Root RET - Jump to SubDir and Exit Tree Mode - list files in the subdirectory indicated by the pointer and exit Tree Mode \ - Jump to Root Directory - (See "About Directories and Subdirectories" and "Tree Mode") F8 - Edit Commands - Used to custom program the Alternate Function Keys, Control Function Keys, Shift Function Keys and the AutoRun (F2) Key. (See "The Programmable Function Keys," and "The AutoRun Key".) F9 - Print Order Form - Used to print The Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox purchase order form. F10 Marked Menu - This is an alternate method of copying, moving, deleting, changing the attributes and executing DOS commands on marked (highlighted) files. Use your creativity here. C Copy - Copy marked files. M Move - Move marked files. D Delete - Delete marked files. A Change Attributes - Change attributes of marked files Ctrl, Alt & Shift Function Keys or F4 to Batch execute marked files. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 15 _______________________________________________________________ MARKING FILES MARKING FILES MARKING FILES If you want to copy, move or delete several files at once, you must "mark" the files first. This tells the computer which files you want to copy, move or delete. To mark a file, position the pointer next to that file and press the right arrow -> key. The name of the file will be highlighted to indicate that it has been "marked." Press the left arrow <- key to un-mark a file. You may mark as many files as you wish. Ctrl -> marks all files in the current directory, and Ctrl <- un-marks all files. Caution: If you want to copy, move or delete a single file do not mark the file, just position the pointer in front of the filename and type the desired command. Reason: If you mark a single file the pointer will move down to the next filename. If you then type a command for a single file such as "C", it will copy the file below the one highlighted. COPY A FILE COPY A FILE COPY A FILE If you want to copy a file, use the up arrow and down arrow keys to position the pointer next to the file to be copied. Then press the C key. The message "Press down arrow to copy filename to another filename. To Path:" will appear. Pressing down arrow allows you to copy the file to the same or another filename within the same subdirectory. Typing in the pathname at the above message copies the file to a new subdirectory (path). Type the name of the drive and subdirectory that the file is to be copied to, then press the Enter key. The file will be copied. (New Users: See "Changing the Path.") If you are copying from a disk in Drive A to the hard disk, then type "C:" Enter, and the subdirectory name when "To Path:" appears. If you are copying from the hard disk to a disk in Drive A, then type "A:" Enter, when "To Path" appears. You must have a formatted disk in drive A. When you specify only the drive name such as C:, the file will be copied to the "current directory" on that drive. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 16 _______________________________________________________________ COPY ALL MARKED FILES COPY ALL MARKED FILES COPY ALL MARKED FILES Mark all files that you want to copy, then press the Alt C keys simultaneously. The message "Copy Marked Files. To Path:" will appear. Type the name of the path to which the files should be copied. Press the Enter key. All marked files will be copied to the specified path. The following conventions should be used to type the path. (See "Changing the Path"). A: = Drive A (usually floppy drive) C: = Drive C (hard drive) C:\ = Drive C (root directory of hard drive) C:\NAME = Subdirectories of Drive C (NAME is the name of subdirectory) (New Users see "About Directories and Subdirectories") MOVE A FILE MOVE A FILE MOVE A FILE If you want to move a file, use the up arrow and down arrow keys to position the pointer next to the file to be moved. Then press the M key. The message "To Path:" will appear. Typing in the pathname at the above message copies the file to a new subdirectory (path). Type the name of the drive and subdirectory that the file is to be moved to, then press the Enter key. The file will be moved. MOVE ALL MARKED FILES MOVE ALL MARKED FILES MOVE ALL MARKED FILES You may want to move files from the root directory to a subdirectory or vice versa, or from subdirectory to subdirectory. Mark the files to be moved, then press the Alt and M keys. The message "Move Marked Files. To Path:" will appear. Type in the name of the path (as described above) and press the Enter key. The files will be "moved," which means they will be copied to the directory you specified and deleted from the current directory. Suppose you have just copied a group of files, and you want to immediately copy more files to the same path. DM has a feature that allows you to copy files to the same path without having to type the pathname each time. This is helpful if you are making backups from the hard disk onto several floppy disks. If you have already copied a group of files, and want to copy more files to the same path, mark the files and press Alt C. When the message "To Path:" appears, simply press the Enter key. The files will be copied to the path you specified the last time you copied files. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 17 _______________________________________________________________ DELETE A FILE DELETE A FILE DELETE A FILE To delete a file, use the up arrow and down arrow keys to position the pointer next to the file you want to delete. Then press the D key. The message "Delete (filename)? (Y/N)" will appear. Press Y for yes and the file will be deleted. The DOS ToolBox does not have an undelete function. DELETE ALL MARKED FILES DELETE ALL MARKED FILES DELETE ALL MARKED FILES Mark all the files that you want to delete, then press the Alt and D keys. "Ready to Delete Marked Files? (Y/N)" will appear. Type "Y" for yes. All marked files will be deleted. CONTROLLING THE SORT ORDER CONTROLLING THE SORT ORDER CONTROLLING THE SORT ORDER The order in which the directory is displayed is shown as "Sort:" in the upper right window. If you want the directory listed in some other order, press the S key. Five choices appear. 1) Name - Type 1) or "N" to sort alphabetically by filename. This is the default sort order, which means files are automatically sorted this way unless you change it. 2) Ext - Type 2) or "E" to sort by extension. This is helpful if you want all the files with the same extension to appear together. 3) Date - Type 3) or "D" to sort chronologically. 4) Size - Type 4) or "S" to sort smallest to largest R) Reverse - Type R) to reverse the sorted order. (New Users: see "Files, Filenames and Extensions".) RENAMING FILES RENAMING FILES RENAMING FILES To rename a file, place the pointer at the desired file and press the R (Rename) key. Then type in the desired new name and press Enter. Use the arrow keys to position the pointer, and the Backspace (<--) or Delete (Del) key to erase unwanted characters. You may move up and down the list, changing the names of as many files as desired. Two files cannot share the same name. If you try, you will get an error message "access denied." Press the F3 key if you want to copy the name (not the extension) of the file directly above the one you're working on. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 18 _______________________________________________________________ VIEWING TEXT FILES VIEWING TEXT FILES VIEWING TEXT FILES If you want to view a text file you can set up DM to run your favorite VIEW program on a selected file. DM has been set up to run the DOS VIEW program as the default. The VIEW program must be installed in the same directory as DM or its path must be specified during the setup routine. To change the default and set up your VIEW program, choose X (Extra Functions) and then choose V (Set VIEW Program). The message "Input the Command for your favorite VIEW program" will appear. Type in the name of your program, (and its path, if necessary), same as if were being executed from DOS. (Examples: NW1 or C:\NW\NW1). To view a file, position pointer next to a text or document file and press "V". Program files (those with .COM, .EXE or .BAT extensions), data base files and spreadsheet data files will probably be unrecognizable. You may not revise text using View. EDITING TEXT FILES EDITING TEXT FILES EDITING TEXT FILES If you want to modify a text file you can use TEDIT or MarxEdit, included in this package, or set up DM to run your favorite EDIT program on a selected file. The program must be installed in the same directory as DM or its path must be specified during the setup routine. To set up your EDIT program, choose X (Extra Functions) and then choose E (Set EDIT Program). The message "Input the Command for your favorite EDITOR program" will appear. Type in the name of your program, (and its path, if necessary), same as if were being executed from DOS. (Examples: TEdit or C:\NW\Edit). To edit a file, position arrow at text file and press "E". To save, press "CTRL KS". To save and quit press "CTRL KD". To quit without saving, press "CTRL KQ". Use caution in editing files. Do not attempt to edit files other than text or document files. To do so could result in damage to program or system files. PATCHING A FILE PATCHING A FILE PATCHING A FILE Warning: For advanced users only. If you want to patch a file you can set up DM to run your favorite PATCH program on a selected file. The program must be installed in the same directory as DM or its path must be specified during the setup routine. To set up your PATCH program, choose X (Extra Functions) and then choose P (Set PATCH Program). The message "Input the Command for your favorite FILE PATCH program" will appear. You may replace the name of the existing program or type in another program name (and its path, if necessary), same as if were being executed from DOS. (Examples: Patch or C:\UTIL\Patch) To patch a file, position pointer at desired file and press "P". Patch allows you to change programs in either ASCII or HEX. Do not attempt to patch a file unless you know what you are doing, you could damage a program or system file. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 19 _______________________________________________________________ CHANGE FILE DATE CHANGE FILE DATE CHANGE FILE DATE Position the pointer at the file to be changed and press the T (Change Date) key to change the date. If you want today's date, press the F2 key. (Note: for F2 to insert correct date, make sure your clock calendar is set correctly). If you want the date of the file directly above the one you're working on, press the F3 key. You may move up and down the list, changing the date on any file. Press Enter when finished. THE STATUS WINDOW THE STATUS WINDOW THE STATUS WINDOW Disk statistics for the current drive are in the Status Window. The "Size of Files" and "Free Space" figures are shown in "k." One "k" equals 1024 characters. Therefore, 20k would mean 20,480 characters. Just below "Path", the "Size" of the file currently at the pointer is shown in actual number of characters (bytes). The figure displayed under the "Total" column entitled "Size of Files", shows the total "k" used by all files in the current subdirectory. The same figure under the "Marked" column shows the number of "k" of all marked files. Note: This figure is the actual amount of space required on a floppy if you are copying the marked files to a floppy disk. The "Marked" figure may differ from the "Total" figure when files are marked because a hard disk requires a minimum of 2k clusters for each file, while a floppy disk requires a minimum of only 1k clusters. "Number of Files" under the "Total" column represents the actual number of files in the subdirectory. The same figure under "Marked" represents the total number of files currently marked. "Size:" shows the actual number of characters in the file currently indicated by the pointer. "Free:" shows the amount of space, in "k", still available on the current disk. DISK FREE SPACE DISK FREE SPACE DISK FREE SPACE If you want to know the amount of free space on a disk, press the F (Freespace) key. The message "Disk Statistics for Drive" will appear. Type in the name of the desired drive (A or C), and statistics for the disk in that drive will be displayed. For example, a disk in drive A might read: Total: 354k Cluster Size: 1024 Free: 120k Tot Clusters: 354 Used: 234k Percent Free: 33.8% Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 20 _______________________________________________________________ The "Total" shows the capacity of the disk. When a file is created, space for it is allocated in chunks, called "clusters." Therefore, the "Cluster Size" is the minimum amount of space that may be taken up by a file. (If the cluster size is 1024 bytes, then a file with only 500 bytes will still be considered to take up 1024 bytes, or one cluster.) The Freespace command (F) is very helpful when you need to make sure there is adequate room on a disk intended to receive copied files. GOTO FILENAME GOTO FILENAME GOTO FILENAME Rather than scrolling through a lengthy directory, you may go directly to a specific file using the Goto Filename feature. Press the G key, then type in the name of the desired file. Press Enter, and the pointer will move to that filename. RE-READING THE DIRECTORY RE-READING THE DIRECTORY RE-READING THE DIRECTORY When you change the disk in your floppy drive, let the computer know that there's a different disk in the drive. Press the L key (Re-read Directory) to display the directory of the new disk. CHANGING DISK DRIVES CHANGING DISK DRIVES CHANGING DISK DRIVES The name of the current designated drive is in the Status Window, shown as "Path:". If you want to scan the files on another disk drive, press the F5 (Change Disk) key. Type in the name of the desired disk drive (such as A or C). The new directory will be displayed in the File Window. CHANGING THE PATH CHANGING THE PATH CHANGING THE PATH If you want to display the files in a subdirectory, then you have to change the path. This is similar to changing the disk drive (see above). Press the F6 (Change Path) key. This message will appear: Change drive, path, or mask. Usage: Drive:\Path\Mask (See "Changing the Mask" below). Type in the desired pathname, such as C:\NW then press the Enter key. For more about "mask" (See "About Directories and Subdirectories" and "Changing the Path"). Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 21 _______________________________________________________________ CHANGING THE FILE MASK CHANGING THE FILE MASK CHANGING THE FILE MASK Perhaps you have a big directory and don't want DM to show every file. You may display a partial directory by "changing the mask." The term "mask" is used to refer to a filename with appropriately embedded wildcards. The "mask" or filename determines which files in a given directory will appear in the File Window. Normally, all files are shown, so the default mask is "*.*" (meaning "every filename, and every extension"). Using a mask such as "*.doc" would return all document files with a .doc extension regardless of the filename. The mask currently in use is shown in the Status Window. If you want to change the mask so that only certain filenames or extensions are displayed, press the F6 (Change Path) key. This message will appear: Change drive, path, or mask. Usage: Drive:\Path\Mask Follow the usage example when typing in the drive, path, and the desired "mask". The mask should be a filename with appropriately embedded wildcards. (See "Wildcards"). Example: if you only want to display files with the .COM extension, then press F6, specify *.COM as the mask and press ENTER. TREE MODE TREE MODE TREE MODE The Tree Mode displays a list of subdirectories in the current drive. It may be used instead of the "Change Path" command to jump to a subdirectory. This is an example of how to use the Tree Mode: From the root directory, press the F7 key to enter the Tree Mode. A list of all the subdirectories on the current drive will appear. Position the pointer at the desired subdirectory and press ENTER. All files for that subdirectory will be listed. Want to know if there are additional subdirectories off the current subdirectory? Press F7 once more. Additional subdirectories, if any, will be displayed. To list files in an additional subdirectory, position the pointer and press ENTER. When listing files, you exit Tree Mode. To again enter Tree Mode press F7. The message <Prev Dir> (Date) will appear. Press ENTER to return to previous subdirectory file listing or Right Arrow to enter Tree Mode. The Tree Mode is an alternative to using the "Change Path" (F6) command. F7 Enter and Exit Tree Mode R Rename Subdirectory -> Jump to SubDir - move to the next tier of subdirectories <- Jump to SubDir toward Root - move to the next tier of subdirectories toward the root Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 22 _______________________________________________________________ RET Jump to SubDir and Exit Tree Mode - move to the subdirectory indicated by the pointer and return to the regular mode \ Jump to Root Directory - move to the root directory WILDCARD MARK WILDCARD MARK WILDCARD MARK You may mark (highlight) a group of files at one time with the wildcard feature. Wildcards are useful if you want to copy, move, delete or sort a specific group of files whose filenames have common characteristics. You can substitute the wildcard symbols (* and ?) into a filename, and the computer will choose all files that fit into that category. To use the wildcard feature, press W (Wildcard Mark), then type the filename with the desired wildcard (* or ?) embedded in the proper place. Press Return, and files will be marked. Example: Many word processors create an automatic backup file. Suppose you want to delete all your files that have the .BAK extension. You would press the W key, then type *.BAK. This reads "any file which has the .BAK extension." All BAK files will be marked and made ready for deletion. (New Users: see "Wildcards".) REVERSE MARKS REVERSE MARKS REVERSE MARKS The "Reverse Marks" feature marks (highlights) all files that are not marked, and un-marks all files that are marked. You can use this feature if you want to copy, move or delete all except a few files. First, mark (highlight) only the files you don't want to copy, move or delete. Then press the X key (Extra Functions), and choose option R (Reverse all Marks). You can use a combination of the "Wildcard Mark" and the "Reverse all Marks" features. Suppose you wanted to delete all files except those with the .COM extension. First, you would use the wildcard mark to mark .COM files, then reverse the marks. Then all non-.COM files would be marked, ready for deleting. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 23 _______________________________________________________________ CHANGING COLORS CHANGING COLORS CHANGING COLORS If you have a color monitor, you may change DM's colors. Press the X (Extra Functions) key, then choose option C (Set Colors). The Color Menu will appear: 1 Turn Color Off 2 Background Color 3 Border Color 4 HiVideo Color 5 LoVideo Color Esc Exit DM comes up automatically in color on a color monitor. You can change the colors of the background, the border, the bold or highlighted text (HiVideo), or the regular text (LoVideo). You may choose between 15 different colors. When you have the colors the way you want them, press the Esc key to exit to the Extra Functions menu, then type "S" to save your new configuration to disk. Saving the configuration insures that the program will always come up with your new colors on the screen. EXECUTE A DOS COMMAND EXECUTE A DOS COMMAND EXECUTE A DOS COMMAND You may execute any DOS command directly from DM. Press the F4 (DOS Command) key, and then type the desired command, just as you would from DOS. Press Enter, and the command will be executed. When it is finished, press any key to return to DM, exactly where you left off. Note: For this feature to work, you must have the COMMAND.COM file on your hard disk or the disk that was used to boot the system. EXECUTE A FILE EXECUTE A FILE EXECUTE A FILE You don't have to type the full DOS command to execute a file. Instead, you may position the pointer next to the file that you want to execute, then press the F3 (Execute File) key. If the file is executable, (has an extension of .EXE, .COM or .BAT) the program will run and you will leave DM. When you are finished running the program, you will automatically return to DM exactly where you left off. (If the file is not executable, nothing will happen.) This feature executes a file in the same manner as if you were in DOS. Position the pointer at an executable file. When you press F3, the filename appears in the Popup Help Window. Press the ENTER key to execute the file, or, if you wish, you may type more parameters onto the command line, such as a pathname or the name of the file to be loaded and run. Use standard DOS syntax if you type any additions to the command. For example, suppose you are marking files to be moved or copied to a disk in drive A and you realize you don't have a formatted disk to copy them to. To continue your project you must first format a disk in drive A. (The FORMAT program must be in the current directory on Drive C.) Place the pointer next to the FORMAT file, and press F3. The following message will appear: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 24 _______________________________________________________________ ___k Memory Available. Type Text Into Command Line. FORMAT _ You will have to type A: at the cursor to indicate that you want the disk in drive A formatted, then press ENTER. The line "___k Memory Available" tells you how much resident memory (RAM), in "k," is available to execute the file at the pointer. If the file you've picked is larger than the available memory, you can't execute it. The amount of memory available depends on what kind of computer you have. DM takes up about 100k of memory, so if your computer only has 128k of RAM, don't plan on being able to execute anything except the smallest of files. Computers with 256k may have some difficulty executing large files. Those with 512k or 640k shouldn't have any trouble at all. PROGRAMMABLE FUNCTION KEYS PROGRAMMABLE FUNCTION KEYS PROGRAMMABLE FUNCTION KEYS +-----------------------------------------------------------------+ | +------------------------------------+ | | | Programmable Function Key Settings | | | +------------------------------------+ | | | | Alt-F1 List SubDir Tree Alt-F2 NW Non Doc Mode | | Alt-F3 NW Doc Mode Alt-F4 Run File Patch | | Alt-F5 Smart Spreadsheet Alt-F6 Smart Word | | Alt-F7 Fast Arc Extract Alt-F8 QEdit File | | Alt-F9 Arc File Alt-F10 PkArc File | | | | Ctrl-F1 Chkdsk Ctrl-F2 Pick Directory | | Ctrl-F3 Memory Res Progs Ctrl-F4 Park Hard Disk | | Ctrl-F5 Zip File Ctrl-F6 Ice File | | Ctrl-F7 Type File Ctrl-F8 Programs that Run | | Ctrl-F9 Directory of A: Ctrl-F10 MarxEdit File | | | | Shft-F1 Format A: 360k Shft-F2 Format A: 360k /S | | Shft-F3 Format A: Shft-F4 Format A:/S | | Shft-F5 Format B: 720k Shft-F6 Format B: 720k/S | | Shft-F7 Format B: 1.4m Shft-F8 Format B: 1.4m/S | | Shft-F9 Directory of A: Shft-F10 Directory of B: | | | +-----------------------------------------------------------------+ Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 25 _______________________________________________________________ You may custom program up to 30 key combinations to do special tasks. You can program these keys to execute any program, DOS command or batch file. These keys can be programmed so that you can position the pointer next to a file, press the Function Key combination, and run the appropriate program on that file. The 30 keys which may be programmed are the Alternate Function keys (Alt F1-F10), the Control Function keys (Ctrl F1-F10) and the Shift Function Keys (Shft F1-F10). For help, press the "Tab" key to view the default Programmable Function Key Settings. For information on reprogamming the Keys, go to Help Screen No. 2 by pressing F1 twice. To begin reprogramming press F8 and choose 1) Change Alt Function Keys; 2) Change Ctrl Function Keys or 3) Change Shft Function Keys. Programmable Function Keys allow you to write a command to tell the computer what to do when that key combination is pressed. You will write commands using regular DOS syntax for the command line. (See "About the Command Line") At the same time you write a DOS command for the key combination, (Alt-F1) for instance, you will also need to write the "help text." This will appear on the screen entitled "Programmable Function Key Settings" so that you will remember what the key does. You may want to program a key combination to execute a file that takes up a lot of memory. Since DM takes up about 100k of RAM, be sure that your computer has enough memory to execute your commands. (See "Execute a File"). In the examples below, we will assume that you have a hard disk computer with at least 512k of RAM. Here are a couple of uses for the Programmable Function Keys. The DOS commands and help text are included. Command Help Text Explanation/Use FORMAT A: Format Formats a disk in drive A. This is helpful if you have files marked to be copied to a floppy disk, and have forgotten to format a disk. DIR A:/P Dir A: Reads the directory of the disk in drive A, pausing when the screen is filled. For practice, let's program Function Keys for the two above examples. Press the F8 (Edit Commands) key to pick an option: 1 Change Alt Function Keys 2 Change Ctrl Function Keys 3 Change Shft Function Keys 4 Change AutoRun Commands Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 26 _______________________________________________________________ Don't choose option 4 now. Instructions for the Autorun Key come later. For this practice session, let's program the Alt F1 and Alt F2 keys. Therefore, choose Option 1, "Change Alt Function Keys." The following display will appear in the File Window. ================================ | Esc to Exit Help Line: 1 | Alt F1 .... _ | Alt F2 .... | Alt F3 .... You will type in your help text and DOS commands on these lines. The first line is for the help text for the Alt F1 key. The next line is the DOS command for the Alt F1 key. Use the arrow keys to position the cursor on the desired line. The "line guide" in the upper right-hand corner of the window tells you which line the cursor is on. Using our two examples, type the help text on the help line and the command on the command line for each key, as shown below. ================================ | Esc to Exit Command Line: 2 | | Alt F1 ......Format | FORMAT A: | Alt F2 ......Dir A: | DIR A:/P _ | Alt F3 ...... When you've finished typing in the help text and commands, press the Esc key, then test your newly programmed keys. After testing, you must save the configuration of your newly programmed Function Keys to disk in order for them to be there the next time you use the program. Type "F8" and choose option (6) "Save to DM.COM." PROGRAMMING WITH VARIABLES PROGRAMMING WITH VARIABLES PROGRAMMING WITH VARIABLES The Programmable Function Keys allow you to execute programs and DOS commands on files. This may be accomplished by using variables. The variable {F}, means filename. This tells the computer to perform a command on whatever filename is next to the pointer. Suppose that you want to program the Ctrl F4 key to execute the WORDSTAR Word Processor (filename WS). Position the pointer next to any of your WORDSTAR data files (your letters, reports, etc.) and then, when you press the Ctrl F4 key, the computer executes the word processor and opens the file next to the pointer. Your DOS command for the Ctrl F4 key would read: WS {F} The following are valid variables for DM. Variables used in the command line must be put in brackets {}. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 27 _______________________________________________________________ {F} = FileName {P} = Path {T} = Type in Text {D} = Drive {N} = Name no Ext {E} = Ext no Name {S} = Allow Program to Change Subdirectory {A} = Press Any Key to Return to DM The chart below shows some uses of the Programmable Function Keys using variables. Command Help Text Explanation/Use TREE {A} List Tree Executes the Tree program, which displays all the directories and subdirectories on the disk in a "tree" structure. Pauses before returning to DM. CHKDSK {A} Chkdsk Tells how much space is used up on the disk, and and how much memory is free. Pauses before return- ing to DM. BASIC {F} Basic Executes the Basic program and loads the data file next to the pointer. WS {F} WORDSTAR Executes the WORDSTAR word processor, and loads the data file next to the pointer. To continue the practice programming session, the preceding four commands and help text could be entered for the Alt F3, Alt F4, Alt F5, and Alt F6 keys on the Edit Commands (F8) menu. Press F8 and choose Option 1. ================================ | Esc to Exit Command Line: 2 | | Alt F1 ......Format | FORMAT A: | Alt F2 ......Dir A: | DIR A:/P | Alt F3 ......List Tree | TREE {A} | Alt F4 ......Chkdsk | CHKDSK {A} | Alt F5 ......Basic | BASIC {F} | Alt F6 ......WORDSTAR | WS {F} Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 28 _______________________________________________________________ There are many other possibilities for the Programmable Function Keys. Decide what tasks you would like your keys to do. It might help to make a chart like the ones above. Then enter your commands and help text as shown in the examples. If you are going to be using software in one directory and files in another, you will need to specify the drive and path in your DOS commands. They were omitted from the examples given above for the sake of simplicity. The above commands with pathnames might read: C:\UTIL\TREE {A} C:\UTIL\CHKDSK A: {A} C:\BASIC {F} C:\WS {F} When you're finished, press the Esc key. Then test your newly programmed function keys. You may need to go back and fine tune some of your commands. SAVING YOUR PROGRAMMING SAVING YOUR PROGRAMMING SAVING YOUR PROGRAMMING When you are happy with the way the keys work, then you are ready to "save" the changes. If you don't save them, they won't be there next time you use DM. However, once they're saved, they can't be accidentally changed until you "save" something new. To save your Custom Programmed Function Keys, press the F8 key. Choose option 6 (Save to DM.COM). Your changes will be saved to disk. Since DM takes up about 100k of memory, it uses up space that would ordinarily be used to execute your program. It is not recommended that you use DM to execute files for everyday use. In other words, you should execute your programs directly from DOS to work on your database files, spreadsheet files, or word processor files. The purpose of executing a file directly from DM is to look at a file to see what's in it, not to work on it. DM can only execute DOS commands as they would be entered on the command line. If you can't do something from the DOS command line, you can't do it from DM. Some software programs are written with internal limitations that make them unsuitable for loading with data files directly from DM. DM can't make the function keys do something with your software that your software won't do in the first place. Remember the test: If you can't do it from the DOS command line, you can't do it from DM. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 29 _______________________________________________________________ THE AUTORUN KEY THE AUTORUN KEY THE AUTORUN KEY Just like the Programmable Function Keys, the AutoRun (F2) Key has the capability of executing a program or a DOS command on a selected file in one keystroke. The AutoRun Key is different from the Programmable Function Keys. You can use the same key to run any number of programs, or execute any number of DOS commands. You only have to remember one key (F2). The important difference between the AutoRun (F2) Key and the Programmable Function Keys is that the AutoRun Key looks at the extension of the file at the pointer, and executes a DOS command that you have programmed to run on all files with that extension. Suppose you program the AutoRun Key to run the BASIC program with any file which has a .BAS extension. If you positioned the pointer next to a file named (for example) ALIENS.BAS and pressed the AutoRun (F2) Key, the BASIC program will execute with the ALIENS.BAS file loaded. The AutoRun Key won't automatically work for your software. You must program this key yourself before it will work. If the key isn't programmed, nothing will happen when you press it. When you press the AutoRun Key, the computer will look at the extension of the file next to the pointer and execute the command you have designated for a file with that extension. The first step to custom programming the AutoRun Key is to make a list (on paper) of the extensions of files you want to execute programs on. Next, write a DOS command to correspond with each extension. See examples later in this section. You will need to use variables in the commands, like you did when you programmed the Function Keys (see above). The following are valid variables for DM. {F} = FileName {P} = Path {T} = Type in Text {D} = Drive {N} = Name no Ext {E} = Ext no Name {S} = Allow Program to Change Subdirectory {A} = Press Any Key to Return to DM Suppose you want to program your AutoRun (F2) key to run BASIC, loaded with the file next to the pointer. You may remember the command that we used in the example for the Programmable Function Keys: C:BASIC {F} Since the AutoRun Key looks only at the extension, you will program your commands a little differently than you did with the Function Keys. Use the following format: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 30 _______________________________________________________________ Extension=DOS command So, the command for your BASIC program would be: BAS=BASIC {F} You may program the AutoRun (F2) Key to execute any DOS command. The command will be executed on the file at the pointer. Suppose you have the WORDSTAR word processor. It makes backup files with the extension .BAK. If you don't want to to keep backup copies set up the command: BAK=DEL {F} If you positioned the pointer at a file named LETTER.BAK and pressed (F2), LETTER.BAK would be deleted. Suppose you set up the command COM={F}. What would happen if you placed the pointer next to a file called PACKMAN.COM and pressed F2? That's right, PACKMAN would run. Remember the test that you learned while programming the Function Keys? The rule is: If you can't do it from the DOS command line, you can't do it from DM. Test your commands directly from DOS, so that you will be sure that they work. When you have tested all your commands, and have written them in the "Extension=DOS command" format, you are ready to enter them into DM. For practice, let's enter the three examples given above. BAS=BASIC {F} BAK=DEL {F} COM={F} Press the F8 (Edit Commands) key. Pick option #4 "Change AutoRun Commands." The following will appear on the screen: ==================================== | Edit AutoRun Strings | | | | Type in the commands. Use the arrow keys to move around the screen and the backspace key to correct mistakes. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 31 _______________________________________________________________ ==================================== | Edit AutoRun Strings | BAS=BASIC {F} | BAK=DEL {F} | COM={F} | Press Esc when you are finished typing commands. Test them when you are finished. If the commands do what you want you are ready to save the changes. If you don't save them, they won't be there next time you use DM. However, once they're saved, they can't be accidentally changed until you "save" something new. To save your AutoRun commands, press F8, then choose option "5" (Save to DM.OVL). Your changes will be saved to disk. ABOUT FILE ATTRIBUTES ABOUT FILE ATTRIBUTES ABOUT FILE ATTRIBUTES An attribute is a special characteristic assigned to a file by the computer or the user. If a file has any attributes, they will be listed in the Status Window when the pointer is positioned next to that file. The following briefly explains the four types of attributes. Hidden: A "hidden" file will not be listed in the DOS directory. (If you type the command "DIR" you won't see it.) It will be listed in the DM directory. System: This is a file that the computer uses internally. You should never mess with system files. You do want your system to boot next time you turn it on, don't you? Read Only: A "read-only" file is write protected, which means it can't be changed. It also can't be deleted under DOS. But it can be deleted with DM. You might want to change a file to "read only" if you don't want anyone fooling with it. Archive: When you run the utility program which backs up the hard disk, the program sets an "archive flag" on each file, which tells the system that "this file has been backed up." If you later modify that file, the archive flag is wiped out. Then, the next time the backup utility is run, it skips over files with archive flags, because they've already been backed up. There isn't any reason to change an archive attribute. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 32 _______________________________________________________________ CHANGING FILE ATTRIBUTES CHANGING FILE ATTRIBUTES CHANGING FILE ATTRIBUTES Warning: Do not use this unless you fully understand attributes and have a reason to change one. To change an attribute, place the pointer next to the file to be changed and press A (Change Attribute). The following screen will appear: Hidden System Read-Only Archive S to Set R to Reset |HSRA| Space to Ignore |_ | The letters in the brackets |HSRA| stand for: H=Hidden, S=System, R=Read Only, and A=Archive You will type one of the codes shown on the screen below each of the letters |HSRA|. They mean: S to Set - An S sets that attribute to "on" for the file indicated by the pointer. R to Reset - R sets that attribute to "off" for the indicated file. Space to Ignore - A space leaves the attribute as it is: Example: |HSRA| |S | This would set the hidden attribute for this file. All other attributes would remain as they were. If you want to change the attributes of a number of files at one time, mark (highlight) the desired files, then press Alt A (Change Attributes for Marked Files). Set the attributes as described above. The attributes you choose will be set for all marked files. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 33 _______________________________________________________________ FOR NEW USERS FOR NEW USERS FOR NEW USERS This section is for the novice and provides an introduction to MS-DOS functions and commands that relate directly to DM. If you are familiar with DOS you may wish to skip this section and go directly to "Using "DM" Directory Master." Consult your MS-DOS manual for a more in-depth explanation of DOS functions, or commands. Throughout this manual, you will be asked to press the "Enter" key. On some keyboards, it may be called the "Return" key, and on others it is simply marked with a "<--+ Regardless of how it is labeled, you want to press the key that gives you the equivalent of a carrier return. Also, throughout the manual we refer to the "prompt" as C:. The prompt on your computer may appear as C> or variations thereof. All commands introduced in this section are executed while at the DOS command line. If the prompt is on the screen, you are at DOS. (See Displaying Current Directory at Prompt). Turn on the computer. When the "C:" prompt appears, the computer is ready to accept commands. The hard disk is called drive C, and the drive for floppy disks is Drive A. Drive C is the default drive. If you get stuck and want to start over, you can "reboot" without turning the machine off. Press the CTRL, ALT and DEL keys simultaneously or, on some machines, the reset button on front of the machine. Be careful. Never reboot if you haven't saved your work because it may be lost. When the computer is first turned on, it will search for files on the default drive, for instance C:. If you want it to search for files on another drive, you must know how to access another drive. If Drive C: is the drive you are presently in, then "C>" will be the prompt. To change drives type the letter of the desired drive, followed by a colon, then press Enter. C: (Prompt for current designated drive) C: (to change designated drive to drive A, type "A:" and then press Enter) A: (the new prompt appears, showing that A is now the designated drive) FORMAT A DISK Formatting a blank disk prepares it to be used by your computer. The disk is divided into "sectors" which could be compared to drawing lines on a sheet of paper in preparation for writing a letter. Every disk that you use must be formatted. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 34 _______________________________________________________________ Formatting a disk erases everything on the disk. You must specify Drive A by typing the "A:" after "FORMAT". On hard drive systems, if you forget the "A:" or if you make a mistake and type "A;" then the default drive (Drive C) will be formatted. Since this is the hard disk, this means that everything on the hard disk will be erased! The correct command should look like this: FORMAT A: Read warning above before you do anything. Then put a blank disk in Drive A. Bring up the "C:" prompt and type: FORMAT A: Press Enter, and the disk in Drive A will be formatted. STEPS FOR MAKING A BACKUP You should always make a backup of each of your software disks. The backup, or working copy, is for everyday use. Put the original in a safe place. Then, if something happens to the working copy, you can make another copy from the original. 1) Have your program diskette and a blank diskette ready. 2) Bring up the "C:" prompt and type "DISKCOPY A: A:" and then press the Enter key. This tells the computer to copy the disk in drive A to another disk which will later be put in drive A. 3) Follow the instructions on the screen. The program diskette is the "source" and the blank diskette is the "target." Note: Your blank disk does not need to be formatted in advance. The "DISKCOPY" command formats the disk at the same time that the files are being copied. FILES, FILENAMES, AND EXTENSIONS All programs, text, or data on your disk are contained in files. A letter created by your word processor is in a file, as is a list of names and addresses in a database. A file on a disk can be compared to a file folder in a drawer. Every file has a filename, which allows the computer to keep track of files. Filenames may have two parts: the "name" and the "extension". These are separated by a period. For example, DM.COM is DM's filename. A name may be up to eight characters long but the extension is limited to three characters. The extension is optional. All of the following are valid filenames: LETTER.DOC, DATA.DB, MOMLET, Q, OK.TXT, 123.WS. WILDCARDS Sometimes you may want to give the computer a command that will affect more than one file. For example, you may want to delete all the files with the extension .BAK. Wildcards allow you to do this all at once, rather than going through and deleting them one-by-one. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 35 _______________________________________________________________ Two characters, the question mark (?) and the asterisk (*) may be used as "wildcards" in filenames and extensions. The computer interprets a question mark (?) as "any character" (a wildcard for a single character). If you had a set of files, for example, with the names JONES1.DOC, JONES2.DOC, JONES3.DOC, etc., you could denote the whole set with the name JONES?.DOC. The computer interprets the asterisk (*) as "any set of characters" (a wildcard replaces a whole filename or any part of a filename). Therefore, *.COM would mean "any file with the .COM extension." FUN.* would mean any file with the name FUN with any extension. *.* means "all files, all extensions." Wildcards (? and *) may not be used in filenames. Rather, they are only used in commands to select a group of files for moving, deleting, copying, etc. An example of usage for wildcards is shown below. DEL MAIL.* (all files named MAIL would be deleted) DIR TEST?.DOC (a directory will be displayed for all files starting with TEST with the .DOC extension.) COPY *.COM A: C: (all files with the .COM extension would be copied from drive A to drive C.) ABOUT DIRECTORIES AND SUBDIRECTORIES A directory and a subdirectory are different names for the same thing. A directory keeps track of your files on a disk. The directory has information about the name, size, location, and date of creation (or last updating) of all the files on a disk. The root is normally referred to as the root "directory" and all directories branching off the root are referred to as "subdirectories". DISPLAYING A DIRECTORY USING DOS "DIR" is the DOS command to display the directory of the current designated drive. Other commands to show a directory are: DIR B: (Shows directory of Drive B: or whatever drive is specified) DIR/P ("Page mode" causes the scrolling of directory to stop when the screen is filled. DIR/W ("Wide Display" shows directory of the current drive in several columns across the screen. Only filenames are displayed.) Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 36 _______________________________________________________________ DM's main purpose is to help keep track of directories better than is possible with DOS alone. You probably won't need to use the DOS directory display commands often after you learn DM. (See also "D", a sweet little directory program.) SUBDIRECTORIES If you have several different projects, each with its own files, or if many people are using the same computer, the directory may become long and unwieldy. You may want to categorize your files or keep them separate from another person's. "Subdirectories" allow you to group files separately, much as you would group files in separate drawers of a filing cabinet. Subdirectories are most commonly used on a hard disk, but diskettes may also have subdirectories. For the purpose of this discussion, we will assume that your subdirectories are on Drive C:, the hard drive. Any directory may have subdirectories. This creates a "tree" structure. The "root" is the first level of directory system, and is the trunk of the tree. Subdirectories (off the root directory) may be thought of as a limbs on the tree. Files within a subdirectory are branches on the limb. An example of a typical directory structure or "tree" is shown below: --ROOT---+-PROGRAMS----+-PROCOMM | |-TWIN | |-BASIC | |-WORDSTAR | +-USERS-------+-TOM | |-DICK | |-HARRY--+-GAMES | |-ACCOUNTS +-MUSIC +-GOODIES +-UTIL PATHS AND PATHNAMES You can access any file in any subdirectory on your disk. To do this, you must tell the computer where in the "tree" that the file is located. Starting with the root directory, you must give the "path" to the desired file. The "pathname" is one or more directory names separated by one or more backslashes (\). In the tree above, the pathname for the subdirectory named TWIN would be written as: C:\PROGRAMS\TWIN Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 37 _______________________________________________________________ The symbol for the root directory is "\", so the root directory on Drive C is written as "C:\". A subdirectory's name is written as "C:\NAME" (NAME is whatever name you gave to the subdirectory). ACCESSING A SUBDIRECTORY If you want the computer to search for files in another subdirectory, you must change directories. At the DOS command line, the command for "change directory" is CHDIR or CD, followed by the pathname. Suppose that Harry, who uses the computer with the "tree" shown above, wants to play games. He must type the change directory command, plus the pathname, to get to his UTILITIES subdirectory. From the C: prompt, he will type: C:CD USERS\HARRY\UTIL (change directory command) C:\USERS\HARRY\UTIL (prompt in new directory) The symbol for the root directory is "\". So, to return to the root directory, he will type: C:\USER\HARRY\UTIL: CD\ (command to return to root) To create a subdirectory, type the command "MD" (make directory) and the name that you choose for the directory. Suppose you wanted to name your directory "TEST." From the C: prompt, type: MD TEST Perhaps you want to make a subdirectory within the directory TEST that you just created. You want to call it NEXTTEST. First, change to the TEST subdirectory by typing CD TEST then from the C:\TEST prompt, type: MD NEXTTEST. (See also "Displaying Current Subdirectory at Prompt"). To change to new subdirectory type CD NEXTTEST and the current directory should be displayed as C:\TEST\NEXTTEST:. Directory names are limited to eight characters. The entire pathname is limited to 64 characters. REMOVING A SUBDIRECTORY RD is the "remove directory" command. The command must be followed by the pathname, using the same syntax as for making a directory or changing directories. You cannot be in the subdirectory you are trying to remove and you can only remove a subdirectory if it is empty. ABOUT THE COMMAND LINE DOS commands are typed next to the prompt. This is called the command line. Commands are executed when you press the Enter key. Commands are used to execute DOS commands or to execute application programs. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 38 _______________________________________________________________ Format 1: Executing a DOS Command COMMAND SYNTAX - [C:][\PATHNAME][\FILENAME] COMMAND is the actual DOS command, such as DEL, DIR, CD, etc. [ ] indicates that this part of the command is optional C: is the name of the required drive, either A:, B: or C: \PATHNAME is the pathname where the command should execute \FILENAME is the name of the file on which the command should be executed. If you typed the command: DEL C:\GAMES\SOLITAIR you would then delete the SOLITAIR file in the GAMES subdirectory on drive C:. If you were already in the GAMES subdirectory, your prompt would be C:\GAMES and it would not be necessary to specify the drive and pathname. You would only have to type "DEL SOLITAIR". Format 2: Executing a File. COMMAND SYNTAX - [C:][\PATHNAME\]FILENAME1 [FILENAME2] [ ] indicates that this part of the command is optional C: is the name of the required drive \PATHNAME is the pathname where the command should execute FILENAME1 is the name of the file (program) that should be executed. It must be an "executable" file (have the extension .COM, .EXE, or .BAT.) FILENAME2 is the name of a data file that may be loaded (transferred into memory) using the program in (FILENAME1). Using our sample "tree" shown earlier, suppose the WORDSTAR subdirectory contained the following files: WS.COM (the WORDSTAR word processing program) LETTER (text file for WORDSTAR) If you typed the command: C:\PROGRAMS\WORDSTAR\WS LETTER Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 39 _______________________________________________________________ the WS file would be executed with the LETTER file loaded. If you were already in the WORDSTAR subdirectory, you would only have given the command: "WS LETTER". And, if you didn't want to load the LETTER file, your command would simply be "WS". a) WS is the command used to execute the program (File #1) named WS.COM; and b) LETTER is the data file (File #2) which will be loaded into memory. Some of the control characters used by the WORDSTAR word processor and other programs may be used in DM. These characters are valid for scanning or marking files in a directory: Ctrl E - cursor up Ctrl R - screen Ctrl X - cursor down Ctrl C - screen down Ctrl D - mark file Ctrl S - un-mark file The following characters are valid in the edit mode: Ctrl D - cursor left Ctrl S - cursor right Ctrl G - erase character TECHNICAL SUPPORT BBS TECHNICAL SUPPORT BBS TECHNICAL SUPPORT BBS Computer Tyme has set up a bulletin board dedicated to supporting our software users. The number is 417-866-1665, and it's open 24 hours a day. You will need a 1200, or 2400 baud modem, and terminal software to support ANSI graphics. PD.EXE - PICK DIRECTORY PD.EXE - PICK DIRECTORY PD.EXE - PICK DIRECTORY This program allows you to change directories as quickly as possible. "PD" "Pick Directory" (also called "PickDir"), written for all user levels, allows you to change directories as quickly as possible. It also allows you to rename directories, delete directories, make directories, and hide directories. Pick Directory has two modes of operation; the graphic tree mode, and the one directory at a time mode. In the graphic tree mode you get to see all subdirectories "the tree" displayed as a picture on your screen. This graphic "tree" allows you to "look" at the directory system in your computer. In the graphic tree mode you can use your arrow keys to move freely about the directory tree. Pick Directory allows you to rename any of the directories, make new ones, delete them, or hide them. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 40 _______________________________________________________________ In order to display and use the graphic tree mode a file must be created which contains a list of the directories on your system. The file is called PD.PIC and MUST BE PATH ACCESSABLE. In this file is a list of all directories you want Pick Directory to choose from. An example is as follows: C:\ C:\GOODIES C:\HELP C:\TURBO5 C:\TURBO5\BONUS C:\TURBO5\DOC C:\TURBO5\TURBO3 D:\ D:\GEMAPPS D:\GEMAPPS\FONTS D:\GEMAPPS\GEMPAGES D:\GEMAPPS\GEMPAGES\PAGENBRS Note that the list can span several drives. The list is created the first time you run Pick Directory. The program will ask you which drives you want to include in your list. Don't include floppy drives A: or B:. If you only have one hard disk just type C. If you have several hard drives or logical drive partitions, you might type CDEF. Pick Directory will then create the PD.PIC file and display the graphic tree. Once in the graphic tree you can move around using your arrow keys. Remember that F1 is for help in case you forget what to do. The + and - keys allow you to move up and down in the same column you're in. When you get to the directory you want all you have to do is press ENTER and you're there. If you want to go back to the original directory instead, just press ESC. As you move through the graphic tree, you'll notice an alphabetical listing on the right side of the screen that tracks the directory you're in. By pressing the TAB key, the up and down arrows allow you to move through the alphabetical list. While moving alphabetically, each subdirectory highlighted on the alphabetical list will also be highlighted on the full screen graphic tree. Also, above the sorted list is the position meter. This meter lets you know where you are in relation to all the other directories in your computer. You can use "GOTO" to quickly get to a directory while in the alpha list. Just type "G" and the first few letters of the subdirectory you want to go to. The cursor will move to that directory. As you type, Pick Directory will move to the first directory that contains the characters you typed in. The "F" key shows you the free space on the current drive. It also shows you how many directories are in the system and how many levels deep they are. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 41 _______________________________________________________________ You can rename a directory by pressing the "R" key. A cursor will appear and you just type over the old name. You can also delete a whole directory by pressing the "D" key. If the directory isn't empty, it will ask if you want to delete it anyway. If you answer "Y" then it will delete that directory and all directories branching off from it and all the files in them. Be careful! Remember to make regular backups. You can also make directories using the "M" key. Just type in the name and Pick Directory will create the directory off of the current directory. The "H" key is used to hide and unhide directories. A hidden directory will not show up if you type DIR. It's still there, just hidden. Directories can be created and deleted without the PD.PIC file being updated. This means that the graphic tree may show directories that are no longer there, or not show new directories that are. The "S" key will scan the hard drives and re-create the list. If while moving around, you come to a directory that no longer exists, Pick Directory will automatically update the list for you. The "L" key is used to limit the number of directory levels to be displayed. This is used on very large systems to make it easier to see the directories close to the root. If you set a limit of 2, Pick Directory will only show directories that are 2 or less levels deep. Setting a level of 0 includes all directories. Just type "L" to set limit. In order for Pick Directory to work the program PipeDir must be in a directory that can be executed from the current path. (See the PATH command in your DOS manual.) PipeDir is another Computer Tyme program that creates the PD.PIC file and allows Pick Directory to delete directories with files in them. Pick Directory's other mode is the one directory at a time mode. In this mode, only the directories that are accessable from the current directory are listed. You choose the directory by pressing the letter next to the directory you want. A lower case letter will select the directory and let you choose from the list of it's directories. Upper case selects and exits. Pressing the CTRL key with a letter selects that drive. "\" selects the root directory and a "-" selects the previous directory. Press ENTER when you get to where you want to go. ESC to abort. Even though the one directory at a time mode is not as powerful as the graphic tree mode, it has its place. It doesn't use the PD.PIC file so it doesn't have to be updated. It works on drives that you may not want to wait to scan, such as CD roms. And, if you are running computers remotely over a modem, this mode works. If the directory or drive you are on is not in the PD.PIC file, then the one directory at a time mode will be selected. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 42 _______________________________________________________________ Pick Directory has several command line options. Many of them are for the sophisticated user and can be ignored by the novice user. Pick Directory, like other Computer Tyme products, is easy to use for the novice and small system user; but has powerful features for the professional programmer and for use on large network drives. PD <directory> This is a quick way to change directories. Pick Directory will scan the list for the closest match and switch you to that directory. A partial directory name is all you need. The directory doesn't even have to be on the same drive. PD /S <drives> This creates the PD.PIC file without entering the graphic tree mode. PD /F This freshens the PD.PIC file without entering the graphic tree mode. PD /M <directory> This makes the directory and updates the PD.PIC file. PD /R <directory> This removes the directory and updates the PD.PIC file. PD /Z Selects the "one directory at a time" mode. PD /O This option can be used only with the /Z option. It forces the use of the standard output device. You loose color and speed, but it will work remote over a modem. PD /$ <filename> This allows you to use another file than C:\PD.PIC. PD /! <program> <parameters> Pick Directory normally runs PIPEDIR to create its pick file. If you are a programmer and want to use your own program to create the pick file, this command will make Pick Directory run your software instead. The <parameters> is passed on to your program. Use of environment strings: Default options can be selected by use of the SET command to set you DOS environment strings. This is done by typing SET PD.EXE=<string>. The string will be interpreted as if it had been typed on the command line. You are the sysop of a BBS system and are running it remote. In your AUTOEXEC.BAT file you include: SET PD.EXE=/Z/O This allows you to type PD from remote and enter the one at a time mode with the standard output device selected. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 43 _______________________________________________________________ You are the supervisor of a large novell network and a programmer. You want Pick Directory to only show the users the directories they can access. You have written a program that compiles a pick file based on who they are. Your program name is called PICKGEN. You want each user to have their own pick file. SET PD.EXE=/!PICKGEN /$F:\SYSTEM\USER1.PIC This selects the file F:\SYSTEM\USER1.PIC to be the default pick file for station 1 and will execute PICKGEN to regenerate and update the pick file. DOLIST DOLIST DOLIST DoList is a dual purpose program. It acts as a DOS SHELL, allowing the easy and convenient entry of commands. This DOS SHELL is designed to provide an improved user interface with DOS since DOS can be slow, cumbersome and sometimes difficult to use. DoList gives you the editing power of a word processor when typing your commands at the command line. Using the up arrow allows you to recall previously executed commands. DoList also allows you to execute commands on a LIST of files. Filenames can be in a text file or can come from the standard DOS pipes. DOLIST SHELL MODE: DOLIST SHELL MODE: DOLIST SHELL MODE: To put DoList in the shell mode, type: DOLIST <cmd> ;the <cmd> is optional. DoList then produces a prompt and awaits your commands. Instead of the crippled line editor that DOS provides, you now have a powerful word processor like line editor. Left and Right Arrows move you back and forth. INS toggles you between insert and overwrite modes. HOME takes you to the beginning of the line, END takes you to the end. The ESC key deletes the line. Also, the line editor responds to the standard WORDSTAR command set. By using the UP and DOWN arrows DoList allows you to scroll back the last 40 or so commands. This allows you to Re-Execute commands that you already have used. DoList also remembers what directories that you have been to. By pressing the TAB key, DoList scrolls back to directories you have previously visited. DoList SHELL Mode Editing Commands: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 44 _______________________________________________________________ Left Arrow .......... Left one Character Right Arrow ......... Right one Character Ctrl Left Arrow ..... Left one Word Ctrl Right Arrow .... Right one Word Home ................ Beginning of Line End ................. End of Line Ins ................. Toggle Insert On/Off BackSpace ........... Delete Character Left Del ................. Delete Character Right Ctrl Del ............ Delete Word Esc ................. Delete Line Up Arrow ............ Select Previous Command Line Down Arrow .......... Select Next Command Line Tab ................. Select Last Accessed SubDirectory Shift-Tab ........... Reverse of TAB Alt-Tab ............. Remove Directory from Scroll List When you type a command in the SHELL mode, DoList first tests to see if it is an internal DoList command. If not, it looks for *.COM, *.EXE *.BAT files to execute. If this fails, DoList attempts to see if it is a directory name. If it is, DoList changes directories. Otherwise DoList will load COMMAND.COM and execute the command line. With DoList, you can change directories by just typing the directory name. The CD is not necessary unless there is an executable program with the same name as the directory. Typing the "-" command or ".." changes to the parent directory. A "\" jumps you to the root directory. When DoList starts up it looks for several Dos ToolBox utilities to enhance its features. If it finds them DoList becomes more powerful. These utilities include PICK DIRECTORY, PIPEDIR, and MARXMENU. If you have PICK DIRECTORY on your system, whenever you try to change to a directory that isn't there, DoList will load Pick Directory and will let you change directories with a partail name match. The RD or remove directory command is capable of removing a directory with files in it. Both RD and MD update the pick list that Pick Directory uses. The DEL command supports multiple wild cards. CD FONT might change to C:\WINDOWS\FONTS Since DoList is loading PipeDir to delete files, several PipeDir switches work with the DEL command. DEL/H Includes hidden and system files. DEL/Q Asks before deleting each file. DEL *.BAK *.BWS Deletes all the BAK and BWS files. DEL *.BAK/S Deletes all BAK files and in subdirectories. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 45 _______________________________________________________________ DoList can execute more than one command on the same command line. This is done by separating the commands with a double bar. || Examples: Free C:||Free D:||Free E: Format A:||Sys A:||Copy Command.com A: INTERNAL DOLIST COMMANDS: INTERNAL DOLIST COMMANDS: INTERNAL DOLIST COMMANDS: DoList has several internal commands that can be executed from the command line. These commands all start with the '@' symbol. @RC ON/OFF @Trace ON/OFF @Path DoList can display MS-DOS exit return codes. This feature is controlled by typing "@RC ON/OFF". If a subprogram terminates with anything other than a return code of zero, DoList displays it. DoList will also display if the program was terminated by a Ctrl-Break or if the program remains memory resident. The @Trace command will display how DoList interprets the command line. This will show you the whole path and file that DoList actually loads when you type a command. The @Path command lets you edit your path environment variable using DoList's line editor. When DoList loads, it looks for a configuration file called DOLIST.CFG. This file is a text file that allows you to customize DoList. It also contains instructions and examples. It allows you to set up programmable function keys. These programmable keys allow you to make any unused function key or Alt key into any command. Examples: AKey F9 DM ;programs the F9 key to run DM AKey SF8 DEL *.BAK ;programs the Shift-F8 key to delete the BAK files BKey AF5 DIR ;programs the Alt-F5 key to run DIR Note: The AKey command forces an Enter at the end. The BKey command forces a space at the end. Thus the BKey command allow you to type in additional parameters. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 46 _______________________________________________________________ DOLIST IN LIST MODE: DOLIST IN LIST MODE: DOLIST IN LIST MODE: Did you ever want to execute a program on a LIST of files? DoList will execute a command line and substitute text from the standard input device in the command line. Suppose you had a file name BAK.LST that contained the following list of files: NOTES.BAK JOBS.BAK AUTOEXEC.BAK CONFIG.BAK If you want to delete all the files in the list you type: DOLIST DEL @L < BAK.LST or TYPE BAK.LST|DOLIST DEL @L DoList will then execute the following commands: DEL NOTES.BAK DEL JOBS.BAK DEL AUTOEXEC.BAK DEL CONFIG.BAK DoList reads each line from the standard input device and executes the command for each line read. The @L causes DoList to insert the next input line into the command. Thus the command DEL @L is executed for each line from the standard input file which in this case is BAK.LST. Suppose you want to copy all your .BAT files on you hard disk to a floppy. This can be done by typing: WHEREIS *.BAT|DOLIST COPY @L A: Adding @T to the command (WHEREIS *.BAT|DOLIST COPY @L A: @T) will cause DoList to type the commands instead of executing them. This output can be redirected into a file for later execution. Summary of DoList Commands for LIST mode: @L ;substitute next input line @1 .. @9 ;substitute field 1 thru 9 @T ;output commands as text instead of executing them @Q ;query mode, displays command and asks for confirmation @[ ;substitutes < in command line @] ;substitutes > in command line @]] ;substitutes >> in command line @! ;substitutes | in command line {} ;commands in {braces} are not interpreted but passed as text In addition to the @L command which substitutes the whole line, DOLIST can look at the lines as fields that can be substituted individually. The individual fields are substituted by @1 thru @9. In the text line: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 47 _______________________________________________________________ 456,NOTES.TXT "Marc Perkel" @1 = 456 @2 = NOTES.TXT @3 = Marc Perkel The rule is that commas and spaces are delimiters unless you start with a quote. If you start with a quote, the next quote is the delimiter. If you don't want DoList to actually execute the commands, the @T command will cause DoList to output the text that it would have executed. This text can be redirected to a BAT file for later execution. The @Q command makes DoList ask before executing each command line. This allows you to skip the command or abort DoList. Example: PIPEDIR *.BAT >BAT.LST Creates BAT.LST with list of all *.BAT files. DOLIST COPY @IBAT.LST @L@T A: @OTEST.BAT Reads each line of BAT.LST and creates the command COPY <line> A: and writes these commands to a file named TEST.BAT. Using braces '{}' suspends interpretation of @ commands allowing the @ to be part of the command. The outermost pair of braces are removed from the command. This is useful when using DoList recursively. That means using DoList to run DoList. When a command line is presented to DOS, the redirection and piping commands, < > | are interpreted and removed. In order to pass these commands to a program that DoList can run, we must use other codes that DOS won't remove. The @[ is translated into <, the @] is translated into >, the @]] is translated into >> and the @! is translated into |. Using DoList Recursively: Lets say we have a file named X.LST that contains the lines: 1 2 3 And a file named Y.LST that contains the lines: A B C The following command produces the following results: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 48 _______________________________________________________________ DOLIST DOLIST @L{@L@T}@[x.lst <y.lst A1 A2 A3 B1 B2 B3 C1 C2 C3 In this example, the outer DoList causes the inner DoList to be executed three times. It executes the lines: DOLIST A@l@t<x.lst DOLIST B@l@t<x.lst DOLIST C@l@t<x.lst Notice that the outer DoList caused the first @L to be translated into A,B,C from Y.LST and that @[x.lst was translated into <x.lst. Also note that the braces {} were removed but the interpretation of what was inside the braces is preserved for the inner DoList. D.EXE D.EXE D.EXE D is Marc Perkel's sweet little directory program. It allows you to quickly and easilly list your directory in a variety of different ways. Usage: D <path\mask, (path\mask ...)> /E/D/S/U/B/I/R/A/L/W/O/P/F/+/-/1/2/3/4/5/6 /E Sort by Ext /D Sort by Date /S Sort by Size /U Unsorted /B Sort Backwards /I Identify Directory /R Programs that can Run /A Files with Archive Set /L Long Display, no Pause /W Wait for Keypress at End /O Use Standard Output Device /P Output to Printer /+DATE Files after Date /-DATE Files before Date /F File Names Only /1/2/3/4/5/6 Controls Number of Columns and Information Displayed Normal sort is subdirectories first, then hidden and system files, then by name alphabetically. Subdirectories, hidden and system files are displayed in lower case. Files with hidden, system, or read only attributes have an * next to them. The display is a vertical sorted display with the width automatically adjusting by the number of files. Page break is automatically adjusted for output to different devices. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 49 _______________________________________________________________ Default options are sort by name, 4 columns, direct video with color. The /R option shows files that can run. (.EXE, .COM, .BAT) The /6 give you a 6 column display of names only. /5 shows just names with and "*" next to the read-only, system, and hidden files. /4 shows names and file size in K. /3 shows names and file size in bytes. /2 shows file size in bytes and date and time. /1 shows all of the above and file attributes. The /I option will cause the directory name to be displayed at the top of the display: *-*>> Directory of: C:\TURBO5\*.COM The /O option sends output to the standard output handle instead of directly to screen memory. You would use this option if you are running this program over a modem, or if you're using a color card with a composite monitor. The /O strips all color. Output redirection is automatically detected and output is sent to the DOS standard output handle, (/O) and no pause, (/L) is automatically selected. Using /O will allow this program to work correctly over a modem. Default options can be set using the Environment Strings. SET D.EXE=/O/I selects Standard Output and Identify Directory. This program will handle up to 16000 files in a single directory. More than one filespec can be specified. D *.PAS *.INC Will list all the files that end with with the extension of either .PAS or .INC. D does not have a multiple subdirectory mode. You can get the same effect as if it did using DoList and Whereis. Suppose you want a list of everything on your hard disk. WHEREIS/T|DOLIST D @L /I/1 >DIRLIST Whereis/T lists all subdirectories on the current drive. This list is piped into DoList which executes D on each of the directories. Output is sent to DIRLIST, a text file, for later printing or editing. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 50 _______________________________________________________________ FIND.EXE FIND.EXE FIND.EXE Find replaces the FIND utility that comes with DOS. This find utility is much more versatile. Usage: FIND "String" <File File File> /V/C/N/L/P/I /V Displays all lines that do not contain String. /C Counts lines that contain String. /N Adds line numbers to output. /L List only names of files that contain String. /I Ignore Case. /P Pauses display every 24 lines. SORT.EXE SORT.EXE SORT.EXE SORT is just like DOS SORT except that it is only limited by memory size instead of 64k and it is 100 times faster. SORT also has a /I option to ignore case and will accept optional file names on the command line for input and output. Usage SORT <file> <file> /R/I/+N Optional filenames for input and output files. /R Reverse Sort. /+N Start sorting with column N. /I Ignore Case. MORE.EXE MORE.EXE MORE.EXE MORE is just like DOS MORE except a lot slicker. It erases its prompts and gives you a pause at the end of the text stream. Pressing the space bar advances a page at a time and pressing the return key advances a line at a time. Usage: DIR|SORT|MORE or TYPE DOLIST.DOC|MORE Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 51 _______________________________________________________________ FREE.EXE FREE.EXE FREE.EXE FREE shows free disk space, DOS memory, EMS memory, EXT, memory, and Environment space. Usage FREE <drive> Total Disk Space: 126,464,000 Used Disk Space: 92,258,304 73.0% Free Disk Space: 34,205,696 27.0% Cluster Size: 4096 Sector Size: 512 Total DOS Memory: 655,360 bytes Free DOS Memory: 620,096 bytes Total EMS Memory: 3,653,632 bytes Free EMS Memory: 2,998,272 bytes Total ENV Space: 400 bytes Free ENV Space: 149 bytes FIXPATH.EXE FIXPATH.EXE FIXPATH.EXE This program reads your path environment variable and checks to verify that all referenced directories actually exist. Any directory that doesn't exist, or is inaccessable is removed from the path. This program is particularly handy after logging off a network to avoid DOS errors. If more than one command processor is in memory, FixPath will affect only the last one. Usage: FIXPATH FORK.EXE FORK.EXE FORK.EXE This program is used in DOS piping commands to either display what is going through the pipe or to capture what is going through the pipe to a file. Text going through the pipe may be routed to two command lines. Usage: |FORK| or |FORK <filename>| or |FORK /<cmd>| Optional filename will capture text to a file. Examples: DIR|FORK|SORT DIR|FORK UNSORT.TXT|SORT >SORT.TXT DIR|FORK /MORE|SORT|MORE Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 52 _______________________________________________________________ PIPEDIR.EXE PIPEDIR.EXE PIPEDIR.EXE Output from PIPEDIR is suitable for piping filenames and directory names into other applications. PIPEDIR is also handy for finding and cataloging files on a hard disk. Using /F will give you a detailed display. The /D and /R options are useful for deleting files and removing directories. Usage: PIPEDIR <filespec> [filespec ... ] /S/W/H/T/P/X/A/N/F/D/R/Q/+/- /S includes all subdirectories below Path. /W WHEREIS mode, assumes /S and root directory. /H include hidden and system files. /T gives only directory names. /P same as /T but adds a \ to the end. /X exclude current directory. /A files that have been modified since last backup. /N names only, no path. /F full display, size, date, time, attributes. /D deletes files. /R remove directory, all files, and all subdirectories. /Q ask before delete. /+DATE all files after date. /-DATE all files before date. This program becomes a WHEREIS program by copying it to WHEREIS.EXE. At the command prompt type: COPY PIPEDIR.EXE WHEREIS.EXE Then run it as WHEREIS. WHEREIS.EXE WHEREIS.EXE WHEREIS.EXE Output from WHEREIS is suitable for piping filenames and directory names into other applications. WHEREIS is also handy for finding and cataloging files on a hard disk. Using /F will give you a detailed display. The /D and /R options are useful for deleting files and removing directories. Usage: WHEREIS <filespec> [filespec ... ] /W/H/T/P/A/N/F/D/R/Q/+/- Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 53 _______________________________________________________________ /W PIPEDIR mode. /H include hidden and system files. /T gives only directory names. /P same as /T but adds a \ to the end. /A files that have been modified since last backup. /N names only, no path. /F full display, size, date, time, attributes. /D deletes files. /R remove directory, all files, and all subdirectories. /Q ask before delete. /+DATE all files after date. /-DATE all files before date. MOVE.EXE MOVE.EXE MOVE.EXE Moves files to other names, subdirectories or drives. Usage: MOVE <file> <path> /Q/O/A/R/H/C/D WildCards are Allowed. /Q ;Quiet mode, no messages are displayed while moving. /O ;OverWrite existing files without asking. /A ;Always ask before overWriting existing files. /R ;Include Read-Only files. /H ;Include Hidden, System, and Read-Only files. /C ;Copy instead of move. /D ;Delete files. The thing that makes this MOVE program better than other move programs is that this one is done right! It first attempts to move by renaming. If this fails, it copies the files and then deletes the originals. MOVE will normally overwrite existing files if the source file is newer than the destination file unless you use the /A or /O switches. Examples: MOVE XYZ.DOC \SUBDIR ;Moves XYZ.DOC to subdirectory SUBDIR MOVE XYZ.DOC D: ;Moves XYZ.DOC to D: MOVE *.DOC \SUBDIR ;Moves all .DOC files to SUBDIR MOVE ABC.DOC XYZ.DOC ;Renames ABC.DOC to XYZ.DOC MOVE A:*.* /D/H ;Deletes all files on A: in root MOVE *.DOC \SUBDIR\*.TXT ;Moves all .DOC files to SUBDIR and changes names to .TXT Pipes and redirection are also allowed: TYPE MOVE.LST|MOVE C:\UTIL ;Moves all files in MOVE.LST to C:\UTIL Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 54 _______________________________________________________________ ZDEL.EXE ZDEL.EXE ZDEL.EXE This Program is used to delete files. It gives you more options than the DEL command in DOS. Usage: ZDEL <file> (<file> ...) /Q/R/H/N/S/D /Q ;Prompts you before deleting each file. /R ;Include Read-Only Files. /H ;Include Hidden, System, and Read-Only Files. /N ;Deletes files without asking for permission. /S ;Delete files from lower subdirectories. /D ;Delete directory and all lower directories. Pipes are also allowed! TYPE DEL.LST|ZDEL The /S and /D options require PIPEDIR.EXE to run. RAMMAP.EXE RAMMAP.EXE RAMMAP.EXE RamMap has several functions. It displays what is in memory, and it is able to free up some wasted memory blocks. It can also return an error level code to a batch file to indicate what TSRs are in memory. Usage: RAMMAP RAMMAP Free RAMMAP InMem SK.COM RAMMAP InMem MARX.BAT When loading TSRs, each program has it's own environment space. Generally, this is wasted memory. Running RAMMAP FREE after each TSR load can recover this memory. It won't gain you a lot, but in some situations, every byte counts! The command InMem tests to see what TSRs are loaded in memory. If the program is found, it returns errorlevel 1. Otherwise it returns errorlevel 0. Besides finding TSRs, InMem will also find BATCH files that are running. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 55 _______________________________________________________________ Blk Own Size Program Name Type Parent Program Command Line Para ---- ---- ------ ------------ ---- ----------------- ----------------- 0254 0008 5968 03CA 0008 64 03CF 4448 command.com Prog 03CF command.com 04E6 64 -- free -- 04EB 03CF 400 - Master - MEnv 0505 03CF 80 MARX.BAT Bat TYME 050B 03CF 112 DROPTO.BAT Bat 0500 F:\TMPFILES\$MX.. 0513 07C8 208 command.com data 0521 10848 ?? Prog 03CF command.com 07C8 2368 command.com Prog 07C8 command.com 085D 07C8 400 - Master - MEnv 0877 0886 224 RAMMAP.EXE Env 0886 620448 RAMMAP.EXE Prog 07C8 command.com INMEM.EXE INMEM.EXE INMEM.EXE Usage: INMEM <program> Example: INMEM SK.COM InMem tests to see what TSRs or batch files are loaded in memory. If the program is found, it returns errorlevel 1. Otherwise it returns errorlevel 0. KBD.EXE KBD.EXE KBD.EXE This program is used to control several keyboard functions. It is typically used in BATCH files. It can control the Caps Lock, Num Lock, and Scroll Lock. It can also lock and unlock the keyboard preventing users from interrupting programs. It can stuff up to 16 characters into the DOS keyboard buffer or clear the keyboard buffer. It can turn the Print Screen on and off. KBD commands are as follows: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 56 _______________________________________________________________ CapsOn - Turns Caps Lock On. CapsOff - Turns Caps Lock Off. NumOn - Turns Num Lock On. NumOff - Turns Num Lock Off. ScrollOn - Turns Scroll Lock On. ScrollOff - Turns Scroll Lock Off. PrtScrOn - Turns Print Screen On. PrtScrOff - Turns Print Screen Off. Clear - Clears all Characters from the Keyboard Buffer. Lock - Locks the Keyboard. UnLock - Unlocks the Keyboard. Show - Shows Keyboard Codes that can be Stuffed. 0..31 - Sets Keyboard Repeat Rate. 0 = Fastest ,0..3 - Sets Keyboard Repeat Delay. 0 = Quickest * Default = 1. Examples: KBD CapsOn NumOn ;Turns both the Caps Lock and Num Lock on. KBD Clear Lock ;Clears the buffer and locks the keyboard. KBD 6,1 ;sets repeat rate to 6 and delay to 1. Stuffing the keyboard buffer is accomplished by putting strings in either single or double quotes. Putting a "^" in front of a letter sends the control character to the keyboard buffer. Putting a "$" in front sends the keyboard value to the buffer. There are a few key words that stuff characters into the buffer. F1..F10, SF1..SF10, AF1..AF10, CF1..CF10 Alt-A..Alt-Z, Alt-1..Alt-0, CR, ESC, TAB, LF, FF Examples: KBD "Dir" CR ;Stuffs the buffer with the DIR command and a carriage return. KBD "Dir" ^M ;Same as above. KBD $3B00 ;Stuffs F1 key into the buffer KBD ALT-X F1 6 NumOn "Free" CR PrtScrOff This stuffs AltX, F1, "Free", and a carriage return in the keyboard buffer. It sets Num Lock to On and sets the keyboard repeat rate to 6, and disables the Print Screen key. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 57 _______________________________________________________________ PARK PARK PARK PARK allows the user to park the heads on the hard disk drive before turning the machine off to protect the heads from getting scratched. We suggest that you always "park" the heads before turning your machine off as part of your daily routine. The protection is especially useful should your computer be moved. To park the heads just type "PARK" before turning the machine off. When you turn the machine on again it will operate normally. If your hard disk is equipped with self parking heads, or if you are running a diskless workstation on a network, you need not run this program. BATEXIT.BAT BATEXIT.BAT BATEXIT.BAT BatExit is the worlds smallest useful program. It is a zero k batch file. If you put BATEXIT in your batch file, It will cause your batch file to exit at that point. Example: LOTUS.BAT --------- CD\ 123 CD\MENU BATEXIT * This Batch file can now be commented as much as you want * without REM statements WORDSTAR.BAT ------------ CD\WORDSTAR IF NOT EXIST WS.EXE BATEXIT WS Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 58 _______________________________________________________________ TESTIF.EXE - Batch File Utility TESTIF.EXE - Batch File Utility TESTIF.EXE - Batch File Utility This program tests the system and returns DOS error codes that can be used to control the execution of .BAT files. Usage: TestIf VideoMode Example: TESTIF VideoMode IF ERRORLEVEL 7 GOTO MONO This program tests the system and returns DOS error codes that can be used to control the execution of .BAT files. Error codes range from 0 to 255. Within this program are commands for reading system parameters and processing them mathematically into useful error codes. REM This checks to see if selected screen is MONO or COLOR TESTIF VideoMode IF ERRORLEVEL 7 GOTO MONO :COLOR .... .... GOTO END :MONO .... .... :END VideoMode is a Testif command that returns the current video mode. If the current mode is MONO then VideoMode returns a 7. With this command, if you have both MONO and COLOR screens on your computer, and you want to set up a .BAT file to bring up a piece of software that is installed different for mono and COLOR, Testif makes it easy. Testif has the capability to test results to see if a command equals a value. TESTIF VideoMode = 7 Returns error code 1 if true and 0 if not true. A 1 is always returned to indicate TRUE and 0 is returned to indicate FALSE. Operators include =, [], [, ], [=, ]=. Note the square brackets replace the normal greater than and less than symbols. That is becuase MS-DOS filters these characters and therefore can't be used. TESTIF (Year = 88) and (Month = May) Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 59 _______________________________________________________________ Testif supports all logical operators such as AND, OR, XOR, NOT. Multiple conditions can be used. Year returns the year part of the system date. Month returns the month part. May is a constant equal to 5. The error code result will be 1 for true or 0 for false. TESTIF MemSize / 10 MemSize returns the total memory size in K. Since this number is usually larger than 255, (the maximum error code), we devide by 10. On a 640k machine, the return code is 64. Notice that division is supported. Testif supports the mathematical operators +, -, *, /, MOD, SHL, SHR, AND, OR, XOR. All numbers are processed as signed 32 bit integers. It is up to you to keep the result between 0 and 255 for meaningful results. TESTIF 5*(9+3) Interpretation is from left to right. Parentheses can be used to alter this order. The above example returns 60. TESTIF FreeSpace(0) ] 4000000 This checks freespace on the current drive (0). Other drives can also be checked. The result is 1 if more than 4,000,000 bytes are free. TESTIF FileSize TESTIF.EXE / 1000 This returns the file size of TESTIF.EXE in K. To test your formulas, start the line with an @ sign. Testif will print the return code on the screen. TESTIF @DosVersion Return Code: 3 TESTIF Commands: SUN Constant = 0 MON Constant = 1 TUE Constant = 2 WED Constant = 3 THU Constant = 4 FRI Constant = 5 SAT Constant = 6 Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 60 _______________________________________________________________ JAN Constant = 1 FEB Constant = 2 MAR Constant = 3 APR Constant = 4 MAY Constant = 5 JUN Constant = 6 JUL Constant = 7 AUG Constant = 8 SEP Constant = 9 OCT Constant = 10 NOV Constant = 11 DEC Constant = 12 MONO Constant = 7 CO80 Constant = 3 BW80 Constant = 2 CO40 Constant = 1 BW40 Constant = 0 VideoMode Returns Current Video Mode VideoPage Returns Current Video Page ScreenWidth Returns Current Screen Width Year Returns System Year (88=1988) Month Returns System Month Day Returns System Day DayOfWeek Returns System Day of week (0=SUN) Hour Returns System Hour Minute Returns System Minute Second Returns System Second WriteVerify Returns if Write Verify is on DosVersion Returns Dos Version Number MinorDosVersion Returns Minor Dos Version Number CurrentDrive Returns Current Drive Number (A: = 0) Drives Returns Number of Drives Floppies Returns Number of Floppy Drives SerialPorts Returns Number of Serial Ports ParallelPorts Returns Number of Parallel Ports CapsLock Tells if Caps Lock is on (1=True) NumLock Tells if Num Lock is on (0=False) ScrollLock Tells if Scroll Lock is on MemSize Returns Total Memory Size in K Random Returns a Random Number from 0 to 255. SectorsPerCluster(n) Returns Number of Sectors per Cluster (0=Current Drive) BytesPerSector(n) Returns Number of Bytes per Sector (1=A:) FreeClusters(n) Returns Number of Free Clusters (2=B:) TotalClusters(n) Returns Total Number of Clusters (3=C:) FreeSpace(n) Returns Free Space in Bytes (4=D:) TotalSpace(n) Returns Total Space in Bytes Exist <FileName> Tells if File Exists FileSize <FileName> Returns File Size in Bytes FileAttr <FileName> Returns File Attribute FileDate <FileName> Returns Date and Time as 32 bit Number Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 61 _______________________________________________________________ Mem(A:B) Returns Byte at A:B MemW(A:B) Returns Word at A:B Port(A) Returns Byte at Part A = True if A = B [] True if A <> B [ True if A < B ] True if A > B [= True if A <= B ]= True if A >= B + Returns A + B - Returns A - B * Returns A * B / Returns A / B MOD Returns A mod B AND Returns A and B OR Returns A or B XOR Returns A xor B SHL Returns A shl B (Shift Left) SHR Returns A shr B (Shift Right) NOT Returns not A VERSION.EXE VERSION.EXE VERSION.EXE This program allows you to fake any DOS version number so that you can avoid the "Incorrect DOS Version" error. Usage VERSION 3.3 <program> <tail> EXAMPLE: VERSION 3.3 C:\RESTORE A: C: TEDIT TEDIT TEDIT TEdit is a general purpose full screen editor. It is used to create and edit text files and batch files. It is not a word processor but it is powerful enough to write letters. The main thing you need to know about TEdit that will help you more than anything else is that F1 is help and F10 is the Pull Down Menu. TEdit is not a Computer Tyme product but is licensed to Computer Tyme by Semware Inc. TEdit is a simple version of QEdit Advanced. If you like TEdit but want more, you may want to get QEdit. See enclosed flyer. You can enter TEdit by just typing TEDIT or you can type TEDIT <filename>. If you select a file that is in the current subdirectory, TEdit will edit that file. If the file is not in the current subdirectory, you must type in the path, for example: C:\WS\BOB.DOC. If you select a name that is not on the disk, TEdit will create a new file. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 62 _______________________________________________________________ Once you have TEdit up on your screen just use the arrow keys to move around. TEdit also uses the WORDSTAR commands, so if you know WORDSTAR, you know TEdit. The Home key moves you to the beginning of the line. The End key takes you to the end. Ctrl-Home takes you to the beginning of the file, Ctrl-End takes you to the end of the file. STATUS LINE STATUS LINE STATUS LINE TEdit has a highlighted bar at the top of the screen. This is the status line. The L (number) and C (number) show you the line and column number you are on. To the right you will see the letters IAW. You may not see all three of these letters. The I indicates you are in the insert mode. The A indicates you are in the auto-indent mode. The W indicates you are in the word wrap mode. Press the Ins key on your keyboard several times and you will see the I appear and disappear. This indicates that the insert mode is being switched on and off. The next thing on the status line is the filename you are editing. If there is an '*' next to it, it means that the file has been changed since the last time it was saved. MAIN PULL DOWN MENU MAIN PULL DOWN MENU MAIN PULL DOWN MENU After the file is displayed, pressing the F10 key turns on the pull-down menu system. You can select one of the items by moving the bar with the arrow keys and pressing ENTER or by pressing the first letter of your selection. Once you've selected a main topic then a vertical pull down menu will appear. You then can move up and down with your arrow keys or just press the first letter of the selection you want. Press ESC to abort command. QUICK KEYS QUICK KEYS QUICK KEYS For quick key alternatives to the following pull down menu commands refer to F1 help. FILE FILE FILE This is the first option on the pull down menu. Choosing File will cause the program to save the current document and exit to TEdit's opening screen. Save will save current document. Quitfile will exit to TEdit's opening screen without saving. Change name brings up a rectangular box. Type in new filename at cursor. Be sure to include extension if you want one. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 63 _______________________________________________________________ BLOCK BLOCK BLOCK TEdit has the ability to copy, move or delete blocks of text. Before this can be done the block has to be marked. Mark block Begin indicates the point at which a block of text is to be marked for later copying, moving or deleting. Position cursor at the beginning of text to be marked as a block and then choose this option. Press ENTER. Move cursor to end of desired block and then choose command mark block End. Press ENTER to highlight block. To copy block and move block position cursor at point in document where highlighted (blocked) text should be inserted and choose the appropriate option. Delete block is self-explanatory. Unmark removes highlighting and returns text to normal mode. You can also mark a block by moving the cursor to the beginning of a block and pressing F7. Then you move the cursor to the end of the block and press F8 to highlight. Now you can delete this block by pressing Alt-D. Or, if you want to copy the block, just move the cursor to where you want to copy to and press Alt-C. Alt-M will move the block. SEARCH SEARCH SEARCH Here you are allowed to search for a word or phrase and replace it with a different word or phrase. Choose Search and a popup menu appears. Type the word or phrase you want to search for and press ENTER. Replace allows you to search for a word or phrase and then replace it. The popup menu asks for the text you want to search for and then asks you for the replacement text. The following search options will appear: "ignore" means TEdit will find matches on both upper and lower case; "words" means search for whole words only; "backward" begins to search from the point of cursor, backwards toward beginning of document and "no ask" will search and replace without asking you each time whether you want to replace a word or not. Again repeats the previous search or search and replace. F5 is an alternate means of search and replace. Normally the search is forward from where you are. Selecting B allows you to search backwards. When a match is found, Ctrl-L will allow you to continue the search for the next match. Pressing F6 will start search and replace. It starts just like search but then asks you for text to substitute. Then it gives you a few more options. The N option tells TEdit to replace all of the matches in the file from where you are until the end. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 64 _______________________________________________________________ PRINT PRINT PRINT Print allows you to print text. Print All prints the entire contents of current file. Print Block Prints entire contents of a marked block. The marked block must be in the current file. Use Block marking command for marking block. send Formfeed allows you to force a pagebreak. Simply insert a formfeed character in the text at beginning and end of text needing to be printed on a separate page. The formfeed character is "CTRL P" followed by "CTRL L". Set Left margin specifies the number of blank spaces to be used as a left margin. Set Page size specifies the number of lines to be printed on each page. EDITING EDITING EDITING Add line is simple to use and self-explanatory as is Delete line; delete to End of line; Insert line; Join line; Split line and Undelete line OTHER OTHER OTHER Other represents a variety of other options available in TEdit. Set Autoindent OFF If auto-indent mode is on, (indicated by the A on the status line), when you go to the next line it will begin just under the beginning of the previous line rather than all the way to the left. To set auto-indent on or off toggle the appropriate menu selection "Other" on the main menu bar. Set Insert OFF When you type you can select whether you are going to type over what's there or insert new text. This is controlled by the insert mode. The insert mode can be turned on and off by the Ins key on the keyboard or toggled on or off from the "Other" menu. The I on the status line indicates insert mode on. Set Wordwrap On means that when you get close to the right side of the screen while you are typing, TEdit will automatically wrap to the next line. This is handy for writing letters or documentation files. You would normally turn it off for programming. The column where word wrap occurs is set by the right margin command. Toggle this menu option on or off. Set Right margin sets the right margin for word-wrap and paragraph reformatting. QUIT QUIT QUIT Quit Terminates the program. Save-eXit saves the current document and exits to DOS. Quit brings up option of saving and quitting or quitting without saving. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 65 _______________________________________________________________ SAVING YOUR WORK SAVING YOUR WORK SAVING YOUR WORK As you type you should press F2 periodically to save your work to disk. This way, if power should fail, your work is saved. The F4 key will save your work and exit TEdit. TSR MANAGEMENT UTILITIES TSR MANAGEMENT UTILITIES TSR MANAGEMENT UTILITIES The TSR Utilities are copyright (c) 1986,1987,1989 by Kim Kokkonen. All Rights Reserved. The TSR Utilities were written by Kim Kokkonen, with thanks to Neil Rubenking for the original idea behind MARK and RELEASE. Special thanks to Richard Wilson and Barry Simon at CalTech for the idea that lead to FMARK, and for much useful correspondence about the TSR Utilities. Marc Perkel, owner of Computer Tyme Inc., has purchased the rights to distribute the TSR utilities written by Kim Kokkonen of TurboPower Software on a commercial basis. These programs are fully compatible with MarxMenu and the Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox. They can be used with MarxMenu to load and unload TSR programs under menu control. These programs are tools for the experienced DOS user. If you are a novice user, this is not the place to start. Get familiar with the rest of the software packages first and then come back here. These utilities are provided for the advanced user who needs to be able to do memory management. ABOUT TURBOPOWER SOFTWARE ABOUT TURBOPOWER SOFTWARE ABOUT TURBOPOWER SOFTWARE TurboPower Software writes programmers tools mostly for Turbo Pascal programmers. These tools include B-TREE FILER, TURBO ANALYST, TURBO PROFESSIONAL , and OBJECT PROFESSIONAL. I personally use these products and can say with certainty that anyone who is doing any serious work with Turbo Pascal should buy these packages. My software uses them extensively and it wouldn't be the same without it. You can reach Kim Kokkonen at: TurboPower Software P.O. Box 66747 Scotts Valley, CA 95066-0747 408-438-8608 (voice only, Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM) Compuserve: 76004,2611 Turbo Power Software now has it's own area on Compuserve. You can get there by typing GO PCVENB at any prompt. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 66 _______________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION The TSR Utilities are a collection of programs useful for managing DOS memory, particularly for managing memory-resident programs, also known as TSR's. TSR stands for "Terminate and Stay Resident". The most popular use of these TSR utilities is for removing TSR's from memory without rebooting the PC. There are many other uses, however, especially if you are a software developer. The TSR Utilities have grown to include 11 programs. Here's a quick overview of each one: MARK marks a position in memory above which TSR's can be released. RELEASE removes TSR's from memory. FMARK performs the same function as MARK but uses less memory. MARKNET like MARK, but saves a more complete picture of system status. RELNET removes TSR's marked with MARKNET. WATCH a TSR itself, it keeps records of other TSR's. DISABLE disables or reactivates TSR's, leaving them in memory. RAMFREE shows how much RAM memory is available. MAPMEM shows what memory resident programs are loaded. DEVICE shows what device drivers are loaded. EATMEM uses up memory for controlled program testing. These programs are described in detail in the following sections. If you haven't used them before, be sure to read the documentation: All of the programs are command line driven, and unexpected events may occur if you just start typing the program names at the DOS command line. The documentation for version 2.8 has been revised substantially. If you're familiar with previous versions of the TSR Utilities, the most important change in v2.8 is the addition of MARKNET and RELNET. These new programs allow marking and releasing the Novell NetWare shell, as well as other "problem TSR's" that could not be released successfully in previous versions. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 67 _______________________________________________________________ MARK, FMARK, and RELEASE MARK, FMARK, and RELEASE MARK, FMARK, and RELEASE MARK.COM and RELEASE.EXE are used to remove TSR's from memory, without requiring a system reboot. In their simplest form, MARK and RELEASE are used as follows: 1. Run MARK before installing your TSR(s). This marks the current position in memory and stores information that RELEASE will later need to restore the system. A common place to call MARK is in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. 2. Install whatever TSR's you want, using the normal method for each TSR. 3. To remove those TSR's from memory, run RELEASE. This will release all of the memory above (and including) the last MARK, and will restore the system to the state at the time the MARK was made. There are a number of variations of this simple method. First, MARKs can be stacked in memory, as shown in the following hypothetical batch file: MARK TSR1 MARK TSR2 MARK TSR3 Each call to RELEASE releases memory above and including the last MARK. In this example, the first call to RELEASE would remove TSR3 and the last MARK from memory, the second call would remove TSR2 and its MARK, and so on. MARK and RELEASE may be called using a command line parameter. The parameter specifies a "mark name" and allows releasing TSR's to a specific point in memory. Consider the following example: MARK TSR1 TSR1 MARK TSR2 TSR2 MARK TSR3 TSR3 This loads the three TSR's just as in the previous example. However, if RELEASE were called like this: RELEASE TSR2 Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 68 _______________________________________________________________ Then both TSR2 and TSR3 would be removed from memory. Note that the use of such a name does not allow just a single layer of TSR's to be removed (just TSR2, for example). RELEASE always removes all TSR's including and beyond the one named. A mark name is any string up to 126 characters long. The name may not include white space (blanks or tabs). Case (upper or lower) is not significant when matching mark names. When named marks are used as in this example, calling RELEASE without specifying a mark name will still remove the last TSR from memory. Assuming that TSR1, TSR2, and TSR3 are still in memory, typing just RELEASE would remove TSR3 and the last mark. It is possible to change this behavior by using "protected marks", which can be released only by explicitly specifying their names. A protected mark is placed by giving it a name that starts with an exclamation point, '!'. Consider the following: MARK TSR1 TSR1 MARK TSR2 TSR2 MARK !TSR3 TSR3 Here !TSR3 specifies a protected mark. Typing just RELEASE would produce an error message "No matching marker found, or protected marker encountered". The same error would occur after entering the command RELEASE TSR2. When this error occurs, RELEASE does not remove any TSR's from memory. The only way to remove TSR3 in this case is by entering: RELEASE !TSR3 Each time a MARK is placed in memory, it consumes about 1600 bytes of RAM space, which is used to store a copy of the system interrupt vector table and other information with which RELEASE can later restore the system. Although 1600 bytes isn't very much, we can reduce this memory usage by storing the information in a disk file rather than in memory. FMARK.COM is a variation on MARK that does just that. You can call FMARK at any time that you would call MARK. FMARK uses only about 150 bytes of memory. All calls to FMARK must include a command line parameter to specify the name of the file: FMARK [d:][directory]filename Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 69 _______________________________________________________________ You should generally specify a complete pathname for the mark file. When you later call RELEASE, you must give it the identical pathname, regardless of what the current directory happens to be at the time. For example, if you specified the following file mark: FMARK C:\TEST\TEST.MRK then the following calls to RELEASE would generate an error: RELEASE TEST.MRK RELEASE C:TEST.MRK Even if the current directory on drive C: was \TEST. The only way to call RELEASE is with RELEASE C:\TEST\TEST.MRK or release c:\test\test.mrk RELEASE can use either type of mark: in-memory or on-disk. Note that RELEASE treats marks placed with FMARK just like protected marks. That is, they can be released only by explicitly naming them. (This is a change in behavior from versions of RELEASE prior to 2.8. The change is especially important when net marks, described below, are also in use.) Consider the following example: MARK TSR1 FMARK C:\MARKS\TSR2.MRK TSR2 Typing just RELEASE in this situation generates the warning message "No matching marker found, or protected marker encountered", because the file mark is treated like a protected mark. TSR2 can be removed from memory by entering RELEASE C:\MARKS\TSR2.MRK RELEASE deletes the mark file when it has finished. RELEASE has several command line options to modify its behavior. The following table lists the options, which must start with a slash, '/'. /E do NOT access EMS memory. /K release memory, but keep the mark in place. /S chars stuff string (<16 chars) into keyboard buffer on exit. /? write this help screen. None of the options is required for normal use of RELEASE. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 70 _______________________________________________________________ /E is made available for systems running early, buggy EMS (expanded memory) drivers which don't correctly implement all of the EMS 3.2 system calls. Don't use it unless you have an EMS-related problem during or after running RELEASE. /K is useful when you will be releasing and reloading a TSR repeatedly. With it, you avoid the need to replace the mark each time the TSR is released. Using /K in combination with a file mark also prevents RELEASE from deleting the mark file. /S followed by at least one space and then a short string (15 characters or fewer) tells RELEASE to stuff this string into the keyboard buffer just before exiting. RELEASE automatically adds a carriage return to the end of the string. To explain why the /S option is important, we must digress a moment. Let's assume that you normally keep SideKick loaded, but that you must unload it in order to have enough memory free to run Lotus 1-2-3. It would seem reasonable to write a little batch file like this: RELEASE SK LOTUS MARK SK SK This would remove the previously loaded SideKick from memory, run Lotus, and then load SideKick again. Unfortunately, this won't work! The reason is complicated to explain. It must suffice here to say that DOS batch files trap memory, and the memory freed by a call to RELEASE does not truly become available until the current batch file ends. Now perhaps the need for the /S option becomes clear. We can split the previous batch file into two: batch1: RELEASE SK /S BATCH2 batch2: LOTUS MARK SK SK The first batch file releases the memory and stuffs the characters 'BATCH2<Enter>' into the keyboard buffer. When the batch file ends, the released memory becomes available. DOS automatically reads the keystrokes waiting in the buffer and starts up the second batch file, which runs Lotus and later reloads SideKick. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 71 _______________________________________________________________ To keep things simple, the /S option pokes the specified keystrokes directly into the system keyboard buffer. As a result, the number of keystrokes is limited to 15 (not counting the <Enter> key, which RELEASE adds automatically). This always allows enough keys to start another batch file, however, and the new batch file can take over from there. RELEASE detects when it is releasing memory within a batch file. It writes a warning message to that effect, but continues processing anyway under the assumption that the batch file is about to end. You can ignore the warning if you've already taken account of DOS's memory management behavior within batch files. MARK and RELEASE are capable of removing many, but not all, TSR's from memory. The TSR's that cannot be released fall into two categories: those that cannot be released without specific internal knowledge of the TSR, and those that can be released by storing additional general information about the system. The most common examples of TSR's that we can't be released without internal knowledge are those that cooperate with other TSR's in memory. Examples include Microsoft's MOUSE driver and its associated MENU program; and the program CED with its "user-installed commands" such as KEYIN, HS, RAW, and others. These programs can be released, but only if all the cooperating partners are released at the same time. CED is well-behaved in that it provides a built-in command (KILL) to release its partners. MOUSE is not so flexible, though. Other TSR's modify well-defined areas of DOS memory that MARK and FMARK simply don't record. Examples of such TSR's include the Novell NetWare workstation shell and certain DOS utilities like MODE and SHARE. To deal with these programs we've written the MARKNET and RELNET utilities, described in the next section, which store just about every imaginable DOS data area, including some that are undocumented by MicroSoft. If you have trouble removing a particular TSR with MARK/RELEASE, try using MARKNET/RELNET instead. WARNING: you should not use either RELEASE or RELNET to try to release most disk cacheing programs. If you do so, part of the information that should be stored on disk will never make it, and you may end up with a corrupted disk as a result. If you know that the disk cache uses a "write-through" algorithm (which guarantees that all writes immediately go to disk), or if the disk cache has a "flush the cache" command, then it may be safe to release the cache. WARNING: you cannot release the DOS 3.3 FASTOPEN or APPEND TSR's. These TSR's patch internal DOS data areas that cannot be reliably located by even MARKNET and RELNET. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 72 _______________________________________________________________ MARKNET and RELNET MARKNET and RELNET MARKNET and RELNET Use of these utilities is very similar to that described in the preceding section. MARKNET is analogous to FMARK, and RELNET is like RELEASE. Because MARKNET stores so much information about the system, it writes it to a disk file in order to reduce its own memory usage. Command line syntax for MARKNET and RELNET is: MARKNET [d:][directory]filename RELNET [d:][directory]filename [options] The main command line parameter to each program specifies the name of the file where the mark information will be stored. We refer to this file as the net mark file. A complete pathname should be specified for the net mark file. RELNET's pathname must exactly match that passed to MARKNET, with the exception of case. Note that MARKNET and RELNET may be used in almost any situation where FMARK and RELEASE are used. MARKNET saves all of the same system information as does FMARK, but it goes further to store information such as the device driver chain, DOS internal variable areas, DOS system file tables, DOS environment, communications port status, and other information. Nevertheless, MARKNET and RELNET were written primarily because of the large demand to release the NetWare shell. We'll refer to NetWare specifically in the following and provide an example of how to load and release it. The only new restriction for using MARKNET is that the system must be running DOS version 3.0 or later. MARKNET depends on the format of certain internal DOS data structures that were quite different in DOS version 2. Like FMARK, MARKNET leaves a small (144-192) byte mark in memory, and writes a disk file to store the system status. MARKNET's file varies in size, but is typically 3-4K bytes. The size depends on the number of device drivers, the value of the 'FILES=' directive in CONFIG.SYS, and other implementation details of DOS. Do not attempt to redirect the output of MARKNET. Doing so will waste at least one file handle that cannot be recovered later by RELNET. Marks placed with MARK, FMARK, and MARKNET may be mixed in the same system. RELEASE treats all marks placed with MARKNET as protected; such marks may be released only by calling RELNET explicitly. Consider the following example: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 73 _______________________________________________________________ MARK TSR1 FMARK C:\MARKS\TSR2.MRK TSR2 MARKNET C:\MARKS\TSR3.MRK TSR3 Entering RELEASE by itself would generate a warning and do nothing else. Entering RELEASE C:\MARKS\TSR2.MRK would generate the same warning. The only way to get all three of these TSR's out of memory would be to enter the following commands in sequence: RELNET C:\MARKS\TSR3.MRK RELEASE C:\MARKS\TSR2.MRK RELEASE RELNET has options to control how much of the system state it restores. Several of the options match those of RELEASE; new ones are needed because of the additional information that MARKNET stores. RELNET accepts the following options: /C do NOT restore the communications ports. /E do NOT access EMS memory. /K release memory, but keep the mark in place. /P do NOT restore DOS environment. /R revector 8259 interrupt controller to powerup state. /S chars stuff string (<16 chars) into keyboard buffer on exit. /T do NOT reset the system timer chip. /V verbose: show each step of the restore. /? write help screen. None of these options is required in order to release the NetWare workstation shell. /C keeps RELNET from restoring the communications state of the system (as encoded in the 8250 async chip and the 8259 programmable interrupt controller). Because both of these chips provide readable registers, MARKNET is able to store an accurate picture of the communications state when the mark is stored; RELNET can restore the state to exactly what it was. Therefore, the /C option should be needed rarely, perhaps only on newer PS/2 models that don't use the 8250 as a communications controller. (We haven't tested MARKNET and RELNET on a PS/2 model 50z. Use caution if you have such a system.) Note that MARKNET stores information only about COM1 and COM2. /E is made available for systems running early, buggy EMS drivers that don't correctly implement all of the EMS 3.2 system calls. Don't use it unless you have an EMS-related problem during or after running RELNET. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 74 _______________________________________________________________ /K is useful when you will be releasing and reloading a TSR repeatedly. With it, you avoid the need to replace the mark each time the TSR is released. Using /K prevents RELNET from deleting the net mark file. /P keeps RELNET from restoring the DOS environment, which it normally does because NetWare modifies the DOS PATH. In some cases, other changes to the environment should not be undone; use the /P switch only when such changes must be preserved. /R may be useful for unloading task-switching utilities that "revector" the hardware interrupt controller. Use it only if it solves a problem. /S followed by at least one space and then a short string (15 characters or fewer) tells RELNET to stuff this string into the keyboard buffer just before exiting. RELNET automatically adds a carriage return to the end of the string. See the discussion of /S in the preceding section for more details. /T keeps RELNET from resetting the system timer chip to its default rate, which it does by default. /V activates additional status reporting during the release and may provide useful information in cases when RELNET isn't working. The following is a simplified version of a NetWare LOGIN.BAT file with support for releasing the shell: rem place the mark marknet C:\NET\NETWARE.MRK rem load the NetWare shell TSR's ipx net3 rem optional portions of the shell rem netbios rem int2f rem switch to login drive and log in F: login USERNAME The items in uppercase, at least, will need to be customized for a given user and workstation. NetWare could then be released with the following batch file: rem let the server know we're leaving z:\public\logout rem restore the workstation relnet C:\NET\NETWARE.MRK Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 75 _______________________________________________________________ WATCH AND DISABLE WATCH AND DISABLE WATCH AND DISABLE WATCH.COM is a resident program that keeps track of other memory resident programs. As a TSR goes resident, WATCH updates a data area in memory that contains information about what interrupt vectors were taken over. This information can later be used by MAPMEM and DISABLE to show more details about interrupts than normally available. Installation of WATCH.COM is optional. All of the TSR Utilities except DISABLE can be used whether or not WATCH is installed. If you want to use it, WATCH.COM should be installed as the first TSR in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. WATCH uses about 4000 bytes of memory when it is installed. Most of this memory holds various information about the TSR's installed in the system -- it includes two copies of the interrupt vector table, and a data area containing a list of the interrupt vectors taken over by each TSR. This information is used by DISABLE to deactivate and reactivate TSR's without removing them from memory. With DISABLE.EXE, you can disable and re-enable specified memory resident programs without removing them from memory. Its function is analogous to that performed by REFEREE from Persoft, although DISABLE has neither a fancy user interface nor an option to work from within other programs. DISABLE can allow conflicting TSR's to coexist, and it can let you run applications whose keystrokes conflict with those of TSR's already loaded. DISABLE also provides a small bonus in that it can be used to detect the presence of a particular TSR in memory, thus allowing the design of semi-intelligent batch files. In order to use DISABLE, you must install WATCH.COM as the first memory resident program in your system. WATCH keeps the detailed information about each memory resident program that DISABLE uses to later control them. Like the other TSR Utilities, DISABLE is operated from the command line. You specify a single TSR by its name (if you are running DOS 3.0 or later) or by its address as determined from a MAPMEM report (described below). If you specify an address, immediately precede the address with a dollar sign "$" and specify the address in hexadecimal. The name specified for a TSR is the one reported by MAPMEM in the "owner" column. If the owner column reports "N/A", then you must instead specify the address from the "PSP" column. DISABLE accepts the following command line syntax: DISABLE TSRname|$PSPaddress [options] Options may be preceded by either / or -. Valid options are as follows: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 76 _______________________________________________________________ /A reactivate the specified TSR. /C check for the presence of the specified TSR. /? write a help screen. If no option is specified, DISABLE will disable the named TSR. Examples of usage: DISABLE SK disables SideKick DISABLE SK /A reenables SideKick DISABLE SK /C checks for the presence of SideKick DISABLE $2F2E disables the TSR at address 2F2E (hex) DISABLE sets the DOS ERRORLEVEL in order to return status information to a batch file. It uses the following values of errorlevel: 0 success: TSR is present, was disabled, or was reenabled. 1 TSR is present, but no action was required to enable or disable it. 2 TSR is not present in memory. 254 invalid command line. 255 severe error. WARNING: you cannot use DISABLE to deactivate SideKick Plus, whose swapping technique is incompatible with DISABLE. MAPMEM, RAMFREE, AND DEVICE MAPMEM, RAMFREE, AND DEVICE MAPMEM, RAMFREE, AND DEVICE These three utilities provide status information about DOS memory usage. They don't make active changes to the system like RELEASE and DISABLE do. MAPMEM.EXE displays a map of DOS memory. It shows the resident programs, how much memory they use, and what interrupt vectors each one controls. MAPMEM also shows information about expanded and extended memory when available. MAPMEM writes to the standard output -- hence, the output can be printed or stored to a file by using DOS redirection. Here is an example of MAPMEM output: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 77 _______________________________________________________________ PSP blks bytes owner command line chained vectors ----- ---- ----- -------- ------------------- ------------------- 0008 1 34240 config 1228 2 3536 command 1315 2 3888 WATCH TSR WATCHER 16 21 27 140A 2 22128 CED N/A 1B 21 64 1973 1 144 N/A C:\MARK\PS.MRK 197D 2 736 PSKEY S3 09 15 19AD 2 68400 PS /B:0 /E:1 /R:0 /... 01 03 06 0D 2A62 2 1504 MARK test 00 3F 2AC2 2 10384 EATMEM 10 2D4D 2 469808 free block bytes (Expanded Memory) ----- ------ 1 1048576 free 1048576 total 2097152 (Extended Memory) total 379240 "PSP" stands for Program Segment Prefix. This is the physical address, specified in hexadecimal, where the program was loaded. If you're running DOS 2.x, you'll need to use an address from this column to pass to DISABLE. "Blks" is the number of memory blocks DOS is using to manage the program. This will typically be two: one for the program itself and another for the environment that stores the program name, the DOS path, and other environment variables. "Bytes" is the number of bytes of memory, specified in decimal, allocated to the program. The "owner" column shows the name of the program that allocated the block. An "N/A" in this column means either that the program deallocated its environment to reduce memory usage (as shown on the fifth row of the report) or that the system is running DOS 2.x, where the owner names are simply not available. "Command line" shows the command line entered when the TSR was originally loaded. Some TSR's overwrite their command line with other code or data in order to save memory space. MAPMEM can usually detect this behavior and will display "N/A" in the command line column when it does. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 78 _______________________________________________________________ The last column will be titled with either "chained vectors" or "hooked vectors". When WATCH is loaded, "chained" will appear; otherwise, "hooked" will. The numbers in this column indicate what interrupt vectors the TSR has grabbed. Without WATCH, MAPMEM must use a heuristic technique to identify the owner of each vector; don't be surprised if you see some ridiculous looking vector numbers. With WATCH, MAPMEM should report an accurate list for each TSR, and should show the complete chain of control for each interrupt. MAPMEM indicates disabled TSR's by displaying the word "disabled" in the interrupt vector column of the report. The expanded memory report shows each allocated block of expanded memory, as well as the free and total EMS space. When extended memory is available, MAPMEM shows just the total amount available. The extended memory report is not highly reliable because of the lack of a standardized method for allocating extended memory space. Some applications that use extended memory allocate the space by making it appear that the memory is no longer in the system. MAPMEM shows the various types of marks so that you can examine them prior to a releasing them. As shown in the example, MAPMEM reports a call to MARK with the owner name "MARK", and the mark name (if any) in the command line area. The result of a call to FMARK or MARKNET will show "N/A" in the owner column (due to the minimal memory kept by an FMARK), and the name of the mark file in the command line area. MAPMEM offers the following command line options: /V verbose report. /? write a help screen. The verbose report shows each individual memory block rather than just one for each program. It also adds two new columns of information. "Mcb" stands for Memory Control Block. This is a physical address, expressed in hexadecimal, of the DOS data structure used for managing each block of memory. The MCB address is typically one less than the address of the program. "Files" reports the number of files kept open by the TSR. In most cases this will be zero. When it is non-zero, the maximum number of files opened by the rest of the programs (including the foreground application) is reduced accordingly. RAMFREE.COM is a tiny program with a single purpose: to tell you how many bytes of memory are free for the next application. The number it reports is the same as that reported by the DOS CHKDSK utility. RAMFREE's advantage is that you don't need to wait for your hard disk to be analyzed before you find out how much memory is free. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 79 _______________________________________________________________ DEVICE.EXE reports on device drivers installed by the CONFIG.SYS file. It shows the memory used by DOS itself, any additional drivers installed in CONFIG.SYS, and the space used for DOS file handles and buffers. Here is a simple example of DEVICE output: Address Bytes Name Hooked vectors --------- ------ -------------- -------------- 0070:0BB3 - CON 0070:0C68 - AUX 0070:0C7A - COM1 0070:0D17 - PRN 0070:0D29 - LPT1 0070:0E15 - CLOCK$ 0070:0EE5 - 3 Block Units 0070:2071 - LPT2 0070:2083 - LPT3 0070:2095 - COM2 0000:2C58 37712 NUL 08 0A 0C 0D 0E 13 25 26 29 73 74 75 76 77 09A5:0000 3488 0 Block Units 0A7F:0000 18 EMMXXXX0 0A7F:0012 46 386MAX$$ 20 0A83:0000 768 1 Block Unit 19 0AB3:0000 768 1 Block Unit 0AE3:0000 18256 DOS buffers The devices up to and including NUL are all part of DOS. DEVICE lumps their memory usage into a single value next to the NUL device. The memory usage associated with NUL does not include the interrupt vector table, the BIOS data area, or the low-memory DOS data area. If you wish to add this memory to the total, just take the hexadecimal segment of the first driver you see (in this case CON) and multiply it by 16 decimal. When the segment is 0070 as shown, that adds 1792 bytes to the total space for DOS. Don't expect the sum of the DEVICE bytes to match the bytes reported by MAPMEM in the row labeled 'config'. MAPMEM's report shows what DOS thinks has been allocated, but that number isn't complete since some of the memory was used before DOS was truly loaded. However, you should find that the sum of the DEVICE bytes, plus all of MAPMEM's memory excluding the 'config' row, equals the total normal RAM in the system. DEVICE also lumps all of the drivers up to NUL into a single block when it comes to reporting hooked interrupt vectors. Because WATCH can't be installed prior to these device drivers, DEVICE must use an empirical technique to detect which vectors each driver controls. Therefore, some meaningless vectors may appear in the list. Any vectors that are grabbed by another program after the driver is loaded will not appear. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 80 _______________________________________________________________ "Block units" typically refer to disk drives. Any drivers that appear after the NUL device are in the order that you've entered them in CONFIG.SYS. Drivers loaded for non-standard hard disks, like SpeedStor, sometimes make odd entries in the DEVICE report, as shown with "0 Block Units" above. RAM disks appear more logically: each of the "1 Block Unit" entries above is a VDISK with the data stored in extended memory. Devices like 386MAX may also cause odd-looking entries: 386MAX puts most of its code in extended memory, and leaves just a bit behind in normal memory. DEVICE offers the following command line options: /R raw report. /? write a help screen. The raw report shows more information about the device drivers, but in a less convenient format. Here's an example, taken on the same system as the previous report. Starting Next Strategy Interrupt Device Address Hdr Addr Attr Entry Pnt Entry Pnt Name --------- --------- ---- --------- --------- -------- 0000:2C58 0AB3:0000 8004 0000:14C6 0000:14CC NUL 0AB3:0000 0A83:0000 0800 0000:00A9 0000:00D4 1 Block Unit 0A83:0000 0A7F:0012 0800 0000:00A9 0000:00D4 1 Block Unit 0A7F:0012 0A7F:0000 C000 0000:0036 0000:003B 386MAX$$ 0A7F:0000 09A5:0000 8000 0000:0036 0000:003B EMMXXXX0 09A5:0000 0070:0BB3 2000 0000:0012 0000:001D 0 Block Units 0070:0BB3 0070:0C68 8013 0000:00C6 0000:00D1 CON 0070:0C68 0070:0D17 8000 0000:00C6 0000:00D7 AUX 0070:0D17 0070:0E15 A040 0000:00C6 0000:00E6 PRN 0070:0E15 0070:0EE5 8008 0000:00C6 0000:010C CLOCK$ 0070:0EE5 0070:0C7A 0840 0000:00C6 0000:0112 3 Block Units 0070:0C7A 0070:0D29 8000 0000:00C6 0000:00D7 COM1 0070:0D29 0070:2071 A040 0000:00C6 0000:00EC LPT1 0070:2071 0070:2083 A040 0000:00C6 0000:00F4 LPT2 0070:2083 0070:2095 A040 0000:00C6 0000:00FC LPT3 0070:2095 0070:FFFF 8000 0000:00C6 0000:00DD COM2 In this report, the drivers are listed in DOS priority order rather than the order in which they are loaded in memory. Additional columns describe how DOS treats each driver. Ray Duncan's book "Advanced MS-DOS" is a good place to learn more about these details. The DEVICE program assumes that all device drivers are loaded in the CONFIG.SYS file. That is not the case with the NetWare shell, which patches itself into the device driver chain. DEVICE will write a warning message and terminate before reporting the first patched-in driver. The raw device report will still show all of the devices even in this case. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 81 _______________________________________________________________ EATMEM EATMEM EATMEM EATMEM is a small program that is useful only to software developers. It is a TSR that consumes a specified amount of memory. Developers can use it to simulate a system with less memory, or to create a buffer zone between an application and programs preceding it. The memory used by EATMEM can be freed only by using MARK and RELEASE. Call EATMEM with a single command line parameter, specifying the (decimal) number of KILOBYTES to eat up: EATMEM KiloBytesToEat EATMEM will allow you to eat up all available memory, leading to a system crash when COMMAND.COM cannot be reloaded. Be sure to calculate how much memory to use before calling EATMEM. THE NETWORK SURVIVAL KIT THE NETWORK SURVIVAL KIT THE NETWORK SURVIVAL KIT The following programs are part of the Computer Tyme Network Survival Kit and are not part of the DOS ToolBox. They are in this manual because this manual is shipped with the Network Survival Kit and I needed a place to put it. If you do not have a copy of the NSK, the remaining part of this manual does not apply to you. XMETER.EXE XMETER.EXE XMETER.EXE This program is used to control access to programs on a Novell network and limit the number of users that can run a program at the same time. Usage: XMETER <Semaphore> <MaxUsers> /O/C/U/L Semaphore is any name you want to give a semaphore. MaxUsers is the maximum number of users allowed to use the semaphore or the name of a meter list file. /O Open Semaphore. /C Close Semaphore. /U Return Number of Semaphore users. /L Outputs status line for log file redirection. Example: XMETER TEST 10 /O This opens semaphore TEST if less than 10 users have it open, otherwise to returns DOS ErrorLevel 1. Example: XMETER TEST /C This closes semaphore TEST allowing others to use it. Example: XMETER TEST METER.LST /O/L >> USAGE.LOG Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 82 _______________________________________________________________ This opens semaphore TEST if less than the number of users specified in METER.LST have it open, otherwise to returns DOS ErrorLevel 1. Log information is redirected to append log file USAGE.LOG. XMETER is a software metering program for Novell Networks. Its simple, uses NO RAM, and does no require any VAPs or NLMs running on the server. XMETER uses Novells semaphores to monitor program usage. What you do is create a BATCH file to load your software. You open a semaphore on the way in and close it on the way out. The batch file must be programmed to restrict access to the program. XMETER returns DOS errorlevel codes to control batch files. Example BATCH file for WordStar limited to 12 users: @Echo Off XMETER WORDSTAR 10 /O if ErrorLevel 1 goto deny cd\wordstar ws rem Close Semaphore when done. XMETER WORDSTAR /C goto e :deny cls Echo Access Denied! All copies of WORDSTAR are in use. rem Exit Here :e USING A METER LIST FILE: XMETER can use a special text file to limit semaphore access. To use this method, substitute the name of the list file for the MaxUsers parameter as follows: XMETER Lotus METER.LST /O METER.LST Lotus 10 Wordstar 15 dBase 9 This allows you to maintain the number of copies of each program in a single list. USAGE TRACKING: Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 83 _______________________________________________________________ XMETER provides usage tracking by outputting a comma delimited ascii line for each semaphore open and close. You must select the /L switch to activate this feature. The line must be redirected to a usage log file and you must write your own reporting program. Example: XMETER TEST METER.LST /O/L >> USAGE.LOG This command appends the following line to the file USAGE.LOG. "MARC","254:41","2","LOTUS","1","O","Y","08-26-90","17:43:22" The line contains 9 fields as follows: 1) User Name 2) Semaphore Name 3) Number of Semaphore users after execution 4) Command, O=Open C=Close 5) Success Status, Y=Success N=Failure 6) Date 7) Time 8) Internet Address of WorkStation 9) Logical Connection Number TRICKS: When XMETER creates semaphores, it adds the letters XM- to the front of the semaphore name. So semaphore TEST is really XM-TEST. The idea here is so that all XMETER semaphores can be indentified from other Netware semaphores. Whenever a workstation first uses XMETER it creates a semaphore named XM-XMETER. This can be used to see how many users are using XMETER software. This semaphore can be cleared by using the command: XMETER XMETER/C If a user turns off their computer while running an application, Novell will release their semaphores after 15 minutes. All semaphores are also released when the user logs out. If a user reboots within 15 minutes, the semaphores are cleared upon login. This software package is not the best program out there. It is designed around being a simple 'just works' solution to software metering. It is flexible and uses no memory on the workstation. I am looking for feedback on this product. For more sophisticated software metering use MarxMenu. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 84 _______________________________________________________________ LOGOFF.EXE LOGOFF.EXE LOGOFF.EXE This program works like LOGOUT that comes with Novell except that it modifies your PATH by removing drives you can no longer access. It also will hunt up a new COMSPEC if necessary. If you're running Pick Directory it will hunt up a new PD.PIC file. If you don't want to see any messages when running LOGOFF in a batch file you can redirect the output to nul as follows: LOGOFF > NUL After running LOGOFF you will need to run Attach to log back in. This is a FREE Program. Distribute any way you like as long as you include this DOC file with it. We hope you will try our other software products. LogOff also displays: MARC logged out from server MARX connection 2. Removing Path: Z:. Removing Path: Y:. Removing Path: X:. Removing Path: W:. Removing Path: P:. Removing Path: U:. Removing Path: S:. PATH=C:\TURBO5;C:\; Changing COMSPEC to: C:\COMMAND.COM Setting Pick Directory File to: C:\PD.PIC BESTNET.EXE BESTNET.EXE BESTNET.EXE This program sets an environment variable NET to the best network shell based on the DOS version and the presence of either EMS or XMS memory. You can then load the net shell by putting %NET% in your batch file. If both EMS and XMS are available, EMS is selected. Usage: BESTNET (/I/X/L) BESTNET > NUL ;This stops BestNet from writing to the screen. /I Ignore XMS and EMS Shells. /X Selects XMS over EMS where both exist. /L Includes QEMM LoadHi command if LOADHI.COM is available. Setting NET=EMSNET3.EXE Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 85 _______________________________________________________________ This program helps take some of the pain out of booting up into Netware. One of the problems on a network is that some people are running different versions of DOS than others. Some have EMS memory and some have XMS memory. Novell provides several shells for different computer environments. BestNet helps choose the best net for your machine to load. Thus making installation easier. Here's how you use it. Your AUTOEXEC.BAT might look like this: @Echo Off IPX SET COMSPEC=X:COMMAND.COM BESTNET %NET% SET NET= F: LOGIN The SET COMSPEC command has nothing to do with BestNet. It's a trick I learned that eliminates DOS going back to the floppy for Command.com. Setting the comspec before loading the net shell fixes this problem. Another trick is to create a file called LOADNET.BAT as follows: BESTNET %NET% SET NET= F: STARTUP AUTOEXEC.BAT ----> LOADNET.BAT ----> STARTUP.BAT The idea here is that each AUTOEXEC.BAT on the net ends with the command LOADNET. This causes the AUTOEXEC to jump to LOADNET. LOADNET is exactly the same for all workstations. You also put LOADNET in the LOGIN directory. LOADNET loads the best shell and then branches to a batch file called STARTUP which does your login. The reason for three batch files is as follows. If you are booting from a boot rom, you can have different AUTOEXEC for each user. These branch to LOADNET which makes the transition from rom to the login directory. As soon as the net shell loads the rom disappears and the LOADNET file continues in the login directory. The idea is that LOADNET never changes. You can change the AUTOEXEC and the STARTUP bat files any way you want and still make a smooth transition from your boot drive to the network. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 86 _______________________________________________________________ NS.EXE - NETSMART NS.EXE - NETSMART NS.EXE - NETSMART This program helps make network dumb programs run better on a network. It does this by allowing you to use filenames that contain references to environment variables. These referrences are allowed in BATCH files but not DOS programs. NetSmart solves this problem. NetSmart also intercepts file access calls and translates compatibility mode (or network dumb mode) to the more advanced sharing modes. The /L option allows for liberal translation which could be somewhat dangerous but is handy for very dumb programs. By it's nature, this program isn't going to work with everything. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, then don't use it. Usage: NS (/L) <Command Line> Example: SET USERNAME=MARC NS XCOPY F:\HOME\%USERNAME%\*.* A: In this example, NS will translate the %USERNAME% into a file name that DOS can handle. When installing network dumb software, you can use environment variable references for things like path names for configuration files. Thus, a program that normally only gives you one filename option need not be installed in every users directory. NS is not exactly a TSR. It unloads itself each time it is run so you have to use the NS command each time you use it. This way, NetSmart only takes up memory with programs that need to use it. Thank you for using our products. Computer Tyme provides a Fast Update Service for all users for $125.00. This service provides the user with automatic upgrades, priority tech support access on the Computer Tyme BBS and product support for one year. To order Priority Support Service, call 417-866-1222. Computer Tyme DOS ToolBox Users Manual Page 87 _______________________________________________________________ OTHER COMPUTER TYME PRODUCTS OTHER COMPUTER TYME PRODUCTS OTHER COMPUTER TYME PRODUCTS THE NETWORK SURVIVAL KIT The Network Survival Kit contains over 40 utilities that make life on a network easier. Includes a Zero k Menu Language, MarxMenu with over 450 commands used to create an "intellegent" user interface. MarxMenu offers total screen control, pre-written customizable menus, accesses environment variables, conditionals, math & string functions, screen-blanking and password security on any level. A must for the network supervisor. Also included in the Network Survival Kit is software metering, TSR management, file management for varying user levels, DOS shells, and much more. MARXMENU MarxMenu - The single user version has many of the same features as the Network version mentioned above. MarxMenu is a must for consultants, computer dealers, programmers, and anyone interested in developing a custom user interface for clients, employees or for your own personal use. MarxMenu lets you design menus to look any way you want! Lots of pre-written menu templates included which provide menus easy enough for the novice but powerful enough for the demanding jobs of professionals. A powerful menu toolkit. Other Computer Tyme Software: ====================================================== The Computer Tyme Dos ToolBox... Makes DOS easier for the novice, more powerful for the professional. DIRECTORY MASTER is a powerful hard disk managment utility. It brings up your hard disk files and allows you to mark selected files so you can copy them, delete them, or move them. It also allows you to rename files, change dates, and change attributes. You can also run programs or set up your function keys to run programs on selected files. DOLIST makes being at DOS easier. It gives you full line editing, like a word processor, for your commands. It also stores commands so that you can re-execute them. It remembers subdirectories and allows you to go back to them by pressing the TAB key. It offers programmable function keys, DOS extensions, multiple execution, and many more features you have got to have. PICK DIRECTORY allows you to move through the directory system by displaying a graphic tree and letting you use your arrow keys to move around. It also lets you create, delete, rename, and hide directories. TEDIT (from SemWare) is a powerful, easy to use full screen editor. MARXTSR is a set of memory and TSR management utilities that let you load and unload TSRs (Terminate and stay resident programs) from memory. Utilities to list menory allocation and turn TSR's on and off. And many more ... Also includes is D, a fancy directory listing program; WHEREIS, for finding stuff on you hard disk, SORT, MOVE, FIND, FREE, PIPEDIR, VERSION, and many more. The Dos Toolbox sells for $59.95. ====================================================== We are also selling QEdit from Semware. QEdit is a professional editor from Semware. TEdit is a mini version of QEdit. If you like TEdit, You'll love QEdit. 1-800-548-5353 Order Line 1-417-866-1222 Voice Line 1-417-866-1665 BBS Data line * 1200/2400 * 8N1 * ANSI or VT100 MarxMenu comes with MarxEdit and MARXTSR manager and a few goodies out of the DOS ToolBox. The Network Survival Kit is a network version of almost every utility I've ever written. It's sold on a per fileserver basis. _______ ____|__ | (tm) --| | |------------------- | ____|__ | Association of | | |_| Shareware |__| o | Professionals -----| | |--------------------- |___|___| APPROVED VENDOR ========================================== Make Check Computer Tyme Order Form Payable To: 411 North Sherman Suite 300 Springfield Mo. 65802 (417) 866-1222 (800) 548-5353 Please send me Computer Tyme Software. ============================================================= Name: ________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________ City/St/Zip: ________________________________________________ Phone: ________________________________________________ Computer: ________________________________________________ Got From: ________________________________________________ Comments: ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ Single User Version: ___ Enclosed is $59.95 for MarxMenu. ___ Enclosed is $35.00 for the DOS ToolBox. (Special Reg. $59.95) ___ Enclosed is $75.00 for MarxMenu, the Dos ToolBox and DM3. Network Version (1 per file server): ___ Enclosed is $495 for Network Survival Kit. ___ Add $3.00 for Shipping and Handling. ___ I need 3 1/2 Inch Media. Credit Card Number: _______________ Expiration Date: ________ Master Card __ Visa __ Discover __ * We do not take American Express * =============================================================