KIT.IFO ·
IFO ·
48.6 KB ·
1987-09-21 ·
from WhatMicro_Business-Productivity-Kit_1987
|InfoFile 1.0
|PWelcome|
|H|CW E L C O M E !|
|H
Welcome to the What Micro? Business Productivity Kit. This disk contains
over 20 useful programs to make your PC faster, easier and more fun to use.
You're now using the first program, INFO, along with a file called KIT.IFO.
This is your on-screen manual and help system and you'll soon be able to
call up just the information you need on any program on the disk.
To select a topic to read next, use the arrow keys to highlight
one of the buttons below and then press your RETURN, ENTER or INS key.
We hope you find your free software both useful and entertaining!
|BUsing INFO|How to use this program (Read this if you're new to INFO)
|BBackup your disk|IMPORTANT: How to make a security copy of your disk
|BSetting Up|How to set up the software for your particular computer
|BProgram Index 1|The programs
|BSoftware Details|Background Information
|H|CHold down the key marked CTRL or CONTROL and press Q to stop now|
|H
|.
|PProgram Index 1|
|H|CWhat Micro? Business Productivity Kit|
|H
|BWMKITSET|WMKITSET Setup program for INFO and CSET
|BINFO|INFO Create your own electronic books and help systems
|BCSET|CSET Quick reference to ASCII and IBM PC characters
|BSWEEP|SWEEP Find those files fast...
|BWCX|WCX Word counting with extras!
|BCALC|CALC All purpose calculator
|BTEST|TEST The What Micro? Computer Speed Test program
|BPTEST|PTEST The What Micro? Printer Speed Test program
|BS|S See files on screen the easy way
|BPRINTSET|PRINTSET Easy control over your printer's special features
|BGOSLOW|GOSLOW Go slow for games and demos on fast compatibles
|BKEYSPEED|KEYSPEED Fast action for AT and Enhanced keyboards
|BProgram Index 2|More programs...
|BWelcome|Done
|.
|PProgram Index 2|
|H|CWhat Micro? Business Productivity Kit|
|H
|BCMDATE|CMDATE Correct your AT's clock without running Setup
|BPUTKEY|PUTKEY Simulate keystrokes in batch files
|BNUMLOCK|NUMLOCK Control your NUMLOCK key from batch files...
|BCAPSLOCK|CAPSLOCK ... and your CAPSLOCK key
|BSCRLLOCK|SCRLLOCK ... and your SCRLLOCK key
|BPRTSC|PRTSC Enable or disable the Print Screen key
|BRESET|RESET Enable or disable the CTRL-ALT-DEL sequence
|BREBOOT|REBOOT Restart your computer under software control
|BMEMFREE|MEMFREE Quick check on free memory
|BDISKFREE|DISKFREE Quick check on disk free space
|BWARBLE|WARBLE Audible alarm for batch files
|BProgram Index 1|First page of index
|BWelcome|Done
|.
|PWMKITSET|
Two of the programs on this disk can run in colour, with windows and
pop-up menus - INFO (which you're using now) and CSET. Normally,
each program will pick the colours it thinks best for your type of
computer. However, you may have an unusual monitor or may just want to
try some different colours. WMKITSET lets you do this - once done, both
programs will use your new settings until you change them again.
|HUsing the program
|H
Command format: WMKITSET
|BUsing WMKITSET|Using WMKITSET
|BWMKITSET video options|Setting for your display type
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PUsing WMKITSET|
WMKITSET provides a simple screen with a menu permanently shown on the left
of the display. The rest of the screen shows the same characteristics as
an INFO or CSET screen - there's a sample window with both normal
and highlighted text, a title bar and so on.
WMKITSET, like the other programs, will start with the current
settings if there are any or else provide what it thinks will be the
best combination for your machine. You can change any setting by using
the arrow keys to move the menu selection bar to the setting and pressing
INS or RETURN. For colour settings, WMKITSET gives you a menu of colours -
use the cursor keys to move to the one you want and press INS or RETURN.
When you make each change, WMKITSET instantly shows you the result
so you can carry on until everything is set correctly.
Other options on the menu let you revert to the current settings
(useful if you set everything so you can't see - press ESC R RETURN or
ESC D RETURN to get the screen back), set WMKITSET's suggested default
colours, save your settings ready for use by the other programs
and quit WMKITSET.
|BUsing WMKITSET /cont...|More
|BWMKITSET|Done
|.
|PUsing WMKITSET /cont...|
The order in which you choose your options is important: you
should first set the type of display you have (in most cases, WMKITSET
will already have picked the right one for you) and then choose the
colours. Obviously, if you have a monochrome (MDA) display selected,
WMKITSET won't let you choose any colours!
Once you have made your settings, choose Save Settings to keep
them. This will create a file called WMKIT.INI containing your choices.
You must make sure that a copy of this file is in the current drive and
directory when you start INFO or CSET - otherwise the programs will not
be able to find the settings and will revert to the standard values.
WMKIT.INI is a normal text file - you can move it about with
the DOS COPY command and examine (or even change) its contents directly
with TYPE, S, a text editor or word processor.
|BWMKITSET video options|Choosing different displays
|BUsing WMKITSET|First page of Using WMKITSET
|BWMKITSET|Introduction to WMKITSET
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PWMKITSET video options|
It is important to choose the correct video options in WMKITSET. Most
of the time you can ignore them as WMKITSET will automatically suggest
the best choice. Do not choose options for equipment that is not
installed in your computer! If you do set the wrong options, restart
your computer, delete any WMKIT.INI file that you've created and try
again.
|HMDA/Herc/EGA with mono screen
|HFor IBM Monochrome Display Adapter, Hercules card or IBM Enhanced Graphics
Adapters attached to monochrome screens. Check that your contrast controls
are set so that you can distinguish between normal and highlighted text.
|HCGA/EGA with colour screen
|HChoose this for machines fitted with an IBM Colour/Graphics Adapter, IBM
Enhanced Graphics Adapter or equivalent (including Amstrad PC1512).
|HCGA with mono screen
|HThis option turns colour off so that the display is more readable on
monochrome monitors attached to Colour/Graphics Adapters or equivalent.
|BWMKITSET Snow Control|The snow control option
|BWMKITSET|WMKITSET introduction
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PWMKITSET Snow Control|
Some CGA standard displays show annoying 'snow' whenever the screen
display is updated quickly. If yours is one of these machines and
the problem is serious, turn the Snow Control on. This reduces the
speed of display updates but should cure the problem.
|BWMKITSET video options|WMKITSET video options
|BWMKITSET|WMKITSET introduction
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PINFO|
INFO is the program you're using now - it's an electronic book and an
on-line help system. What's more, it's not just for this manual for the
Kit disk - if you have a text editor or word processor that can produce
ASCII or unformatted text files, you can create your own INFO files like
this one. Use them to present on-disk material nicely to bureau services
and colleagues or as your own DIY help system for the people in your
office. You can even E-mail INFO files to people far away (remember,
you're welcome to include a copy of INFO.EXE along with your document).
To help you understand INFO, we've split the documentation into
two parts - the first bit is about using INFO with a finished INFO file,
the second about writing your own files. If you're planning the latter,
please read the first part in detail and experiment with all the
program's features - it'll make learning a lot easier!
|BUsing INFO|Using INFO
|BINFO Authoring|Writing your own INFO files
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PUsing INFO|
If you've got this far, you already know a lot about INFO. To browse
through a file, just highlight any of the small buttons with the
arrow keys and press INS or RETURN. A number of other options are
available to you to help you find the material you want to read.
They're called up either by pressing particular keys or by pressing
the ESC key and then choosing them from a pop-up menu.
|BINFO Basic controls|Basic controls
|BINFO Menu options|Menu options and shortcut keys
|BINFO Starting up|Starting up and using INFO for help
|BWelcome|Back to Welcome page
|BProgram Index 1|Program Index
|.
|PINFO Basic controls
Arrow keys -- select various buttons
RETURN or INS -- activate a button
PgUp or PgDn -- move up or down one page (this is in the order the
pages are in the file and may not be the order you
actually went through to get to a particular page)
ESC -- call up the menu (press ESC again to cancel it)
|BINFO Menu options|Menu options and shortcut keys
|BINFO Starting up|Starting up and using INFO for help
|BUsing INFO|INFO Introduction
|BProgram Index 1|Program Index
|.
|PINFO Menu options
To use INFO's menu, press the ESCAPE key. The menu appears in the top
left of the screen. You can select an option with the arrow keys and
press INS or RETURN to activate it. Press the ESCAPE key to put the
menu away without doing anything.
Additionally, all the menu options can be quickly called up
by pressing the CTRL or CONTROL key in combination with a letter key.
Start -- back to the first page of the file (CTRL-S skips menu)
Backtrack -- go back one page the way you came (CTRL-B skips menu)
Find -- find a particular page. Enter the title or part of
the title to find (CTRL-F skips menu)
Again -- repeat the last find command (CTRL-A skips menu)
Quit -- leave INFO and return to DOS (CTRL-Q skips menu)
|BINFO Basic controls|Basic controls
|BINFO Starting up|Starting up and using INFO for help
|BUsing INFO|Info introduction
|.
|PINFO Starting up
When you start using your Kit programs you'll be dipping into this file
quite frequently. Fortunately, INFO lets you go straight to the
particular page of your choice from the DOS prompt. To start INFO,
use the command:
INFO <filename> [<title>]
where <filename> is the INFO (.IFO) file to read and <title> is an
optional page title or part of a page title. For example, to find
this page straight from DOS, you might use the command:
INFO KIT INFO STARTING
(KIT is the name of this file and INFO STARTING is in the title of this
page). If the first page INFO finds for you is not the one you want, use
the Again menu command to try again until you find it.
|BUsing INFO|INFO introduction
|.
|PINFO Authoring|
To create your own INFO files, you just need to create an ordinary text
file with the extension .IFO. The lines in this file should not be longer
than 77 characters and each one should have a carriage return after it.
INFO works by detecting a number of special commands placed in the file
preceded by the || symbol - it is these commands that tell INFO what
pages are called, where buttons are, where they lead to and so on.
Read the following pages to learn || commands. After that, you might like
to take a look at the KIT.IFO file with your text editor or word processor
to see an example of them working together.
|BINFO Page Commands|||P and ||. basic .IFO format
|BINFO Buttons|||B making buttons
INFO files can be no longer than 50000 characters total so write
sparingly. Finally, always check your work by trying it out in INFO -
if you misuse a command or miss something off, INFO will report the
problem - it's better if you see these messages and fix the problem
than if you let them frighten the people who eventually read your
work!
|BINFO|Introduction to INFO
|.
|PINFO Page Commands|
An INFO file begins with the line:
||InfoFile 1.0
This line indentifies that the file is in .IFO format. After that, the file
is broken into pages like this:
||P<page title>||
(contents of page)
||.
||P<next page title>|| ... and so on
||P must appear at the start of a line. The text following it is the title
of the page and will appear at the top of the screen when the page is
displayed. Subsequently, you also use this title text to indicate which
pages particular buttons should lead to.
|BINFO Buttons|Next
|BINFO Authoring|Done
|.
|PINFO Buttons|
An INFO button is created using the ||B command wherever you want the
button to appear. The button simply gives the title of the page that it
should lead to, followed by a second || and the text that will appear next
to the button.
For example:
||BWelcome||Go back to Welcome page
would create a button that leads to a page called 'Welcome'. You must
give the page title exactly or else INFO will complain 'Can't find
requested page' when someone tries to use the button!
|BINFO Buttons|Next
|BINFO Authoring|Done
|.
|PCSET|
CSET stands for 'character set' - it's a purely informational program
that will let you quickly find characters in the PC character set
and the standard ASCII character set. It'll save you reaching for
manuals when you need to do such jobs as look up ASCII codes for
your printer or codes for foreign symbols when you're word processing.
CSET displays a full PC character set when you start it. You
can get more detailed information on any character by pressing ESCAPE
to call up the menu, highlighting Detailed Display and pressing INS or
RETURN. You can move around either display with the cursor pad but in
most cases it will be quicker to use the Search command. This lets you
press a key and then highlights that particular character - you can find
any ASCII character in seconds!
Additionally, CSET provides a Graphics Display showing the IBM
line drawing and block characters and their codes.
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PSWEEP|
SWEEP does a sweep of a disk looking for all the files you're after, no
matter which directories they're hiding in - it works on floppies but is
especially useful for machines with hard disks. Two different reports are
available - the first just quickly telling you where certain files are
and the second giving full details of each file SWEEP finds. The latter
is very useful if you have several versions of a file or document with
similar names and want to find out which is the most recent and so on.
|HUsing The Program
|H
Command format: SWEEP <filespace> [/F]
Looks for the files matching <filespec> in all directories on the
current drive. If you add /F to the end of the command, SWEEP
gives full details of each file it finds. Otherwise, it simply
tells you the directories they are in.
Examples: SWEEP REPORT.* -- looks for all files called REPORT
SWEEP A:*.DBF /F -- gives full details of all the .DBF
files on the disk in drive A:
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PWCX|
WCX is a word counting and analysis program - it works with ordinary
text (ASCII) files or with WordStar(TM) format files. As well as counting
words, WCX reports the total number of lines, characters and visible
characters in the file. Additionally, you can ask it to list the
number of times a word appears in the file - this is useful as a
style check (see if you're overly fond of particular words) and a
proofing aid (check that all the unique words are real words!).
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: WCX <filename> [/<options>]
where <filename> is the file to count and <options> is any of the
following letters and possibly a number indicating the minimum length
of words to count.
/N -- don't count numbers as words
/W -- counts WordStar format files, ignoring
dot commands and control codes
/F -- list word frequencies
|BWCX examples|Some examples
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PWCX examples|
The following examples show the various features of WCX and how they can
be used in conjunction with the DOS MORE, SORT and FIND commands.
WCX SAMPLE.WS /W -- count a WordStar file
WCX DOC.TXT /N4 -- count only words four characters
or longer and ignore numbers
WCX ARTICLE.TXT /F || MORE -- show word frequencies in
ARTICLE.TXT a page at a time
WCX ARTICLE.TXT /F || FIND "00001" -- list the unique words in
ARTICLE.TXT
WCX ARTICLE.TXT /F || SORT -- list the words in ARTICLE.TXT
in order of frequency
Note - you must have the DOS MORE, FIND and SORT commands available for
the last three examples to work.
|BWCX|WCX Introduction
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PCALC|
It's funny that doing calculations isn't something most PCs are very
good at - quite often you have to keep a pocket calculator handy or
go to the trouble of loading up a spreadsheet for a simple calculation.
Keeping a copy of the CALC program on your working disks can help.
CALC has normal maths precedence (you can use brackets if
you need to make your expression evaluate in a different way) and
can handle more than one calculation in one command (just separate
them by spaces). It also has variables - simply think of a name
for a value and equate it to an expression. You can then use that name
to stand in for the number on any following expressions and change its
value just like the memory on a pocket calculator.
Examples: CALC 34+26 -- adds 34 and 26
CALC SIN(PI/2) -- computes the SIN of PI/2
CALC r=4 r^2 r^3 r^4 -- shows 4 to the powers 2,3 and 4
CALC 99.95*1.15 >RESULT.TXT -- adds VAT onto £99.95 and
puts the result in a file
called RESULT.TXT
CALC -- prints a list of CALC features
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PTEST|
This is the What Micro? Speed Test program, a professional standard
benchmark that What Micro? uses to test the performance of the computers
it reviews. The program uses a special mix of microprocessor instructions
that reflect the balance of instructions used in a real application
program on your computer, such as a word processor or spreadsheet. It
then reports a test time, an accurate rating for the performance of a
machine (it may vary from well over 600 for an ordinary PC compatible to
under 150 for the latest 386 computers). The program also calculates
the speed of the computer relative to a standard IBM PC.
Please note that in order to get an accurate measurement, you
should not have any device drivers, such as MOUSE.SYS or ANSI.SYS loaded
before you start TEST.
|HUsing the program
|HTo start the program, type TEST. Press the R key to run the test. You
can, if you like, file the results by pressing F - these are kept in
a file called SPEEDS.WM which you should have in the current directory
when you start TEST. You can look at the SPEEDS.WM file from the
program by pressing the V key or, alternatively, you can use TYPE, S,
a text editor or word processor. Press Q to finish with TEST.
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PPTEST|
PTEST is a practical printer speed test program that lets you get a
realistic figure (in characters per second - CPS) for your printer.
The CPS figures usually quoted by manufacturers are theoretical
maximums that are rarely achieved in practice. PTEST also works out
the time it takes for the computer to become free from printing the
test text (a random collection of characters). This data will reflect
well on printers with large 'buffers'.
|HUsing the program
|HTo start the program, enter PTEST. Make sure your printer is connected
switched on and 'on-line' then press R. After a while, you'll be invited
to press any key when the printer actually stops printing - do this
the moment the printer stops. The results of the test can be filed and
viewed later in a similar manner to the TEST speed test program - in
this case, a file called PRINTERS.WM is used to record the data.
Just like TEST, you should not have any device drivers, such as
MOUSE.SYS or ANSI.SYS loaded to ensure that timings are accurate.
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PS|
S, short for 'show', is simply a way to look at files on your disk. Like
the DOS TYPE command, all you do is give the command S followed by a
filename. However, S has a number of advantages apart from a short name -
it will show WordStar(TM) format files correctly and can be used to
convert them to ASCII format and it pauses and restarts at the press of any
key (no more fumbling for CTRL-NUMLOCK or CTRL-S.
|HUsing the program
|H
Command format: S <filename>
where <filename> is the file to show (like TYPE, S is not designed to
show binary files such as programs and graphics files and will produce
strange characters on screen if you ask it to). Press any key to pause
and restart the display or CTRL-BREAK or CTRL-C to abort it.
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PPRINTSET|
Many printers have a range of special features and typefaces. Often, these
are invoked by special control codes which you must somehow send to the
printer. PRINTSET gives you a simple DOS command that will let you send
any codes you like to your printer - in either decimal, hexadecimal or
ASCII format so you can use whatever is in your printer manual without
having to translate it first.
Even better, because codes are hard to remember, PRINTSET lets
you create a special text file containing the ones you use often with
memorable command names. You can therefore, for example, use PRINTSET
CONDENSED or PRINTSET LETTERS.
|HUsing the Program
|H
|BPRINTSET with codes|Using PRINTSET with normal codes
|BPRINTSET.INI|Teaching PRINTSET your own commands
|BSAMPLEPS.INI|A sample PRINTSET command file
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PPRINTSET with codes|
To send control codes to your printer, make sure the printer is switched
on, on-line (its 'ready', 'selected' or 'on-line' light is on) and that
it is loaded with paper. Then give the PRINTSET command followed by any
number of codes separated by spaces. The codes you need will be in
your printer's manual.
|HTo send decimal codes:
|HJust give the codes, like this PRINTSET 15 72 73 32 84 72 69 82 69 13 10
|HTo send hexadecimal codes:
|HGives the codes preceded by a $ sign, like this: PRINTSET $0A $0A $0A $0A
|HTo send ASCII codes:
|HGive the characters in single quotes, like this: PRINTSET 'a' 'b' 'c'
You can mix codes in the same command. This is useful because some codes
can't be sent as ASCII (those you cannot see). So, for example, you could
print a message with PRINTSET 13 10 'H' 'e' 'l' 'l' 'o' 13 10.
|BPRINTSET|PRINTSET introduction
|BPRINTSET.INI|How do I remember those codes?
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PPRINTSET.INI|
You can teach PRINTSET the codes you use often, giving them meaningful
names. Once you've done this for your particular printer, you'll be able
to quickly call on any of your printer's features.
To teach PRINTSET commands, create an ordinary text file with
a text editor (such as EDLIN supplied with MS-DOS) or your word
processor if it can save in 'unformatted' or 'ASCII' format. The file
must have the name PRINTSET.INI so that PRINTSET can find it when it
loads. In the file, each line is either a comment (a line beginning
with a ; symbol) or a command definition, consisting of the command name,
an equals sign and the codes that that command should send.
For example, if your printer does condensed type in response to
the code 15 decimal, then the line CONDENSED=15 will define a CONDENSED
command that will put the printer in this mode whenever you enter the
command PRINTSET CONDENSED. Please note that the first few letters of
a command is all PRINTSET needs (enough to distinguish one command from
another) so PRINTSET COND or even PRINTSET C will work. You can also
mix codes and commands at the same time, for example PRINTSET ESCAPE 23 67.
|BPRINTSET|PRINTSET introduction
|BSAMPLEPS.INI|A sample PRINTSET.INI file
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PSAMPLEPS.INI|
On your What Micro? Kit disk, you'll find a file called SAMPLEPS.INI.
This is a demonstration file for use with PRINTSET that shows you
how a PRINTSET.INI file should look and the sort of things you can do.
|HTo try out the file with PRINTSET:
|HUse the command COPY SAMPLEPS.INI PRINTSET.INI to make a copy of the
file that PRINTSET can read. The PRINTSET.INI file must be in the
current drive and directory when you use PRINTSET. If you have an Epson
or compatible printer, try these commands:
PRINTSET RESET
PRINTSET EMP HELLO 13 10 COND HELLO 13 10
|HTo see what's in the file:
|HUse the command TYPE SAMPLEPS.INI or, better still, S SAMPLEPS.INI
(S is another program on the Kit disk).
|HTo change the file:
|HUse a text editor or word processor, saving the file as 'unformatted'
or ASCII. Remember that for your file to work, it must finally be
called PRINTSET.INI and be in the current drive and directory.
|BPRINTSET|PRINTSET introduction
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PGOSLOW|
Having a PC that's faster than the standard IBM PC is simply great ...
well, almost all of the time. A common problem is that the machine is just
too fast - programs which don't take account of higher speeds, go too
quickly for you to read their screens properly! In particular, games
simulations, demonstrations and training programs are adversely affected.
GOSLOW helps by wasting a certain amount of your PC's time at regular
intervals - you simply experiment to find a value that's right for the
program you want to slow down, load GOSLOW first and then run your
program. You can put your PC back to normal speed with GOSLOW 0.
|HUsing the Program
|HCommand format: GOSLOW <delay>
where <delay> is from 0 to 65535, with 0 being no delay and 65535 being
enough to paralyse any currently available PC.
Example: GOSLOW 30000 -- makes an 8Mhz AT run like a standard PC
|BGOSLOW Warning|IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE USING GOSLOW
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PGOSLOW Warning|
GOSLOW may be a real help in many situations. The technique it uses is
the most reliable and effective we know of: but it isn't foolproof.
Messing about with your PC's normal operation in this way may cause
trouble - use GOSLOW in test situations before going near valuable files
and programs with it and always keep backup copies of anything important.
When working out a suitable setting for GOSLOW, start with low
settings and progressively set higher ones until you find the one that's
right for the program you are running. If you GOSLOW too much, your PC
ceases to be able to operate and will 'hang' (or at least go so slowly
you can't even type on it). The highest settings on GOSLOW (anything over
about 40000) can only be used with the latest very fast PCs (those with
386 microprocessors) and will simply knock out a normal PC. If you do
crash your machine in this way, you'll have to reset it or switch it
off and on before you can use it again.
GOSLOW may not be compatible with all the programs you have -
this is simply bad luck. We also suggest that you DO NOT attempt to use
GOSLOW with programs that perform time critical operations, such as fast
backup programs, copy-protected programs or communications programs.
|BGOSLOW|YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PKEYSPEED|
KEYSPEED sets the keyboard repeat rate and the delay before the
keyboard repeats on AT-style (84 key) or Enhanced-style (101-key)
keyboards. You can set any rate and delay supported by the keyboard
but in practice, you need only place the command KEYSPEED 0 0 in
your AUTOEXEC.BAT file to experience a dramatic boost in keyboard
performance in all your programs. This program will not work on PC
keyboards.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: KEYSPEED <rate> <delay>
where <rate> is the repeat rate from 0 to 31, with 0 the fastest and
<delay> repeat delay from 0 to 3, with 0 the fastest.
Example: KEYSPEED 0 0 -- sets the keyboard at its fastest
|BProgram Index 1|Done
|.
|PCMDATE|
IBM PC/ATs and compatibles (including IBM PS/2 models 50,60 and 80) have
a built-in clock and calendar in special 'CMOS' memory. On many machines
setting the DOS clock and calendar with TIME and DATE does not update
the CMOS setting. The TIME and DATE will therefore be wrong again next
time the machine is restarted. You can set the CMOS clock with the SETUP
program supplied with some machines but it is fiddly and time-consuming.
CMDATE will let you check what the CMOS settings are and quickly set them
to match those set in DOS.
To correct your CMOS clock, all you need to do is use TIME and DATE
to make sure your DOS clock is set correctly and then enter the command
CMDATE SET.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: CMDATE SET||SHOW
Example: CMDATE SET -- sets the CMOS clock to match the DOS clock
CMDATE SHOW -- shows the current CMOS clock settings
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PPUTKEY|
PUTKEY is a little cheat to get round programs that ask you for input
or to press any key to continue. Normally, you can't use these programs
as part of a batch file because they stop and ask the user to type
something. PUTKEY works by letting you simulate the keystroke, putting it
in the keyboard buffer so it's ready when the program asks for it.
PUTKEY will let you simulate any keystroke by giving IBM keyboard
scan codes (similar programs which only let you specify ASCII characters
will not let you simulate a function key or cursor key). A useful list
of common scan codes is available by typing PUTKEY on its own.
Command format: PUTKEY <scanlo> <scanhi>
where <scanlo> and <scanhi> are the low and high scan codes of the key
to simulate in decimal.
|BPUTKEY example|A PUTKEY example
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PPUTKEY example|
Suppose you wanted to create a batch file to show the time and date.
The following, using the DOS commands TIME and DATE, looks as though
it might work:
TIME
DATE
However, both commands offer the opportunity to set the time and date
and therefore the batch file pauses twice. You might as well have typed
the commands. With PUTKEY, you can simulate two RETURNs so
that the batch file runs without stopping. The code for RETURN is 13 28.
The batch file would therefore look like:
PUTKEY 13 28
TIME
PUTKEY 13 28
DATE
|BPUTKEY|Introduction to PUTKEY
|BProgram Index 1|Index
|.
|PNUMLOCK|
NUMLOCK lets you set the state of the Num Lock key from a batch file.
You can therefore set it on or off automatically depending on your needs.
It is intended mainly for users of 'IBM Enhanced' style keyboards which are
now being supplied with all IBM models and many compatibles. These
keyboards start with Num Lock on instead of the normal off and therefore
confuse both programs and users alike. To fix this, put NUMLOCK OFF in
your AUTOEXEC.BAT file on your startup disk.
Please note that although the program will work with all keyboards, there
is no standard for LED indicators on PC compatibles because the original
IBM PC didn't have them. Using this program on such a keyboard may therefore
set the state of Scroll Lock without changing the corresponding LED. To get
the LED indicator set right, simply execute SCRLLOCK ON or OFF to match
its current setting.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: NUMLOCK ON||OFF
Example: NUMLOCK OFF -- sets Num Lock off
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PCAPSLOCK|
CAPSLOCK lets you set the state of the Caps Lock key from a batch file.
You can therefore set it on or off automatically depending on your needs.
Please note that although the program will work with all keyboards, there
is no standard for LED indicators on PC compatibles because the original
IBM PC didn't have them. Using this program on such a keyboard may therefore
set the state of Caps Lock without changing the corresponding LED. To get
the LED indicator set right, simply execute CAPSLOCK ON or OFF to match
its current setting.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: CAPSLOCK ON||OFF
Examples: CAPSLOCK ON -- sets Caps Lock on
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PSCRLLOCK|
SCRLLOCK lets you set the state of the Scroll Lock key from a batch file.
You can therefore set it on or off automatically depending on your needs.
Please note that although the program will work with all keyboards, there
is no standard for LED indicators on PC compatibles because the original
IBM PC didn't have them. Using this program on such a keyboard may therefore
set the state of Scroll Lock without changing the corresponding LED. To get
the LED indicator set right, simply execute SCRLLOCK ON or OFF to match
its current setting.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: SCRLLOCK ON||OFF
Examples: SCRLLOCK ON -- sets Scroll Lock on
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PPRTSC|
All PCs have a PrtSc or Print Screen key which when pressed, produces
a handy dump of whatever is on-screen at that time. However, on many PCs,
if you press it while no printer is attached and ready to print, the
computer will 'hang' and you may lose your recent work by being forced
to reset or switch off the computer. If yours is such a PC and you don't
have a printer attached or don't want the facility, you can disable it
with the PRTSC program.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: PRTSC ON||OFF
Example: PRTSC OFF -- stops the PrtSc key from working
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PRESET|
Pressing CTRL, ALT and DEL together restarts any PC compatible. While
it's obviously a necessary facility, particularly for getting out of
program crashes, it means that you can't put your PC on public display
in an exhibition or shop front. Some bright spark will always come along
and destroy whatever program you are running, be it a demonstration,
scrolling sign or whatever. RESET gets round this by letting you disable
the CTRL-ALT-DEL sequence. Be warned that if you do disable CTRL-ALT-DEL
then you won't be able to reset the machine yourself. But for those times
when you want your PC to earn its keep in public, it can be quite handy...
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: RESET ON||OFF
Example: RESET OFF -- stops CTRL-ALT-DEL from working
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PREBOOT|
REBOOT lets you restart your computer under software control. You can
choose either a warm reboot (equivalent to pressing CTRL, ALT and DEL
together) or a cold reboot (almost as effective as switching your machine
off and then on again). The first option is useful in batch files,
where some procedure may have altered the computer's startup files and
the new values need to be invoked without having to ask the user to
do it manually. The second option achieves much the same effect as
switching off but without the wear and tear caused by switching a
machine off and on quickly (you should always allow a few seconds before
switching back on again - or from now on, you can use REBOOT COLD).
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: REBOOT WARM||COLD
Example: REBOOT WARM -- does a warm reboot
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PMEMFREE|
MEMFREE reports on the total amount of memory available to MS-DOS/PC-DOS
and how much of it is remaining (the amount remaining will be the total
minus the space occupied by MS-DOS/PC-DOS itself and any resident programs
you have loaded into memory). This information is essential when you're
trying to work out how to load several resident programs together or
whether or not you really can run a particular database alongside your
favourite word processor and so on.
Usually the only way to find out this information is with the DOS
CHKDSK command - this can take an overly long time because CHKDSK always
checks a disk in detail before it reports on free memory. Please note that
the definition of "free memory" under MS-DOS is debatable and some versions
of CHKDSK and other memory free programs may report a slightly different
result.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: MEMFREE
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PDISKFREE|
DISKFREE reports the total disk capacity and amount of free space on a
disk or disks. In effect, it is just like the DOS CHKDSK command but
is much faster because it doesn't carefully check over the disk before
it prints these basic statistics. The program can also report on any
number of disks in different drives in one go - useful when you're
figuring if you can squeeze the contents of one disk onto another.
|HUsing the program
|H
Command format: DISKFREE [<d>[:]...]
where <d> is the drive letter of the disk to check. This can be followed
by a colon (:) just like other DOS commands but DISKFREE doesn't mind if
you don't include it. If no drives are specified, DISKFREE reports the
capacity and free space of the current drive.
Examples: DISKFREE A C -- reports space on drives A: and C:
DISKFREE B: -- reports space on drive B:
DISKFREE -- reports space on current (default) drive
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PWARBLE|
Warble? Why not try it? Warble simply produces an alarm sound to attract
your attention or to signal an error in long batch files. Simply include
the command WARBLE (there are no parameters) at the appropriate points
in your batch programs.
|HUsing the Program
|H
Command format: WARBLE
|BProgram Index 2|Done
|.
|PBackup your disk|
As with all new software, the first thing you should do is make a copy of
your original (master) disk. You can then work from your copies, safe in
the knowledge that should they be damaged or lost, you can always go
back to the original and make another copy to work from.
The software on this disk is not protected in any way so please make a
copy as soon as you can (even if it's only while you're trying out the
programs).
You can use your normal procedure for copying floppy disks or copying
the disk onto your hard disk. If you don't know how to do it and your
computer manual doesn't help, the following pages describe appropriate
procedures...
|BSingle Drive Copy|Copying on a single drive machine
|BDual Drive Copy|Copying on a dual drive machine
|BHard Disk Copy|Copying onto a hard disk
|BCopying Programs|Getting individual programs where you want them
|BWelcome|Done
|.
|PSingle Drive Copy|
If you only have a single floppy disk drive, use the following procedure
to copy your disk:
1. Start with your MS-DOS or PC-DOS master disk in the drive (A:)
2. Enter DISKCOPY A: A:
3. Take out your DOS master disk when prompted and insert your
original What Micro? Kit disk. This is your 'source' disk.
4. Press a key when prompted.
5. Take out the Kit disk and insert a blank floppy disk to copy the
software onto. This is the 'target' disk.
6. Press a key when prompted.
7. Repeat steps 3 to 6 as many times as DISKCOPY asks you to.
8. When DISKCOPY says the copy is complete, reinsert your MS-DOS or
PC-DOS master disk and enter N <RETURN> in answer to the question
"Copy another?".
9. Put your original Kit disk somewhere safe and label the new one.
|BBackup your disk|Done
|.
|PDual Drive Copy|
If you have two floppy drives, you can either use the DOS DISKCOPY
program or the normal DOS FORMAT and COPY commands. The procedure for
DISKCOPY is described below:
1. Start with your MS-DOS or PC-DOS master disk in the drive (A:)
2. Enter DISKCOPY A: B:
3. Take out your DOS master disk and place your original What Micro? Kit
disk in drive A:
4. Put a blank floppy to copy the disk onto in drive B:
5. Press a key to start copying.
6. When DISKCOPY says the copy is complete, take out both disks and
put your MS-DOS or PC-DOS master disk back in drive A:. Enter N
<RETURN> in answer to the question "Copy another?".
7. Put your original Kit disk somewhere safe and label the new one.
|BBackup your disk|Done
|.
|PHard Disk Copy|
If you have a hard disk, you only need to copy the programs on the Kit disk
onto it. Eventually, you may want to copy them to different directories on
your hard disk so that particular programs are available all the time or
only in certain directories. At first, though, it's best just to put them
all in one new directory so that you can try them out:
1. Start with your computer as normal.
2. Make sure you're in DOS (a C> or similar prompt is showing)
3. Make a new directory with the command MKDIR \WMKIT
4. Place your What Micro? Kit disk in your floppy drive (normally A:)
5. Copy it into the WMKIT directory with the command:
COPY A:*.* C:\WMKIT
6. Put your original Kit disk somewhere safe.
7. To use the programs move into the WMKIT directory with the command:
CD \WMKIT
Later, you may want to add \WMKIT to your DOS path or copy some or
all of the programs into your \BIN or \DOS directory. Your DOS manual
will explain further.
|BBackup your disk|Done
|.
|PCopying Programs|
Once you know the programs on this disk, you'll want to split them up
to put the ones you want to use onto your appropriate working disks.
For example, suppose you wanted to put the WCX word counting program
onto your word processor master disk. Put your working copy of the Kit
disk in drive A: and find the filename of WCX with:
DIR WCX
This will tell you it's called WCX.EXE. Now put your word processor disk
in drive B and copy WCX across with:
COPY WCX.EXE B:
All of the programs can be copied in this way. Please note that if you
have set up a WMKIT.INI file for INFO and CSET or a PRINTSET.INI
file for PRINTSET then you must remember to copy it along with the program.
|BBackup your disk|Backing up your disk
|BSetting Up|Setting up
|.
|PSetting Up|
All the What Micro? Kit programs come ready to use. However, once
you know them, you can make life easier by making sure your system
is set up appropriately.
|BBackup your disk|Have you made a copy of your disk yet?
|BWMKITSET|Installing INFO and CSET
These three programs can be setup to use the screen colours
you prefer by running the WMKITSET program. If you have a monochrome
screen attached to an IBM Color/Graphics adapter or similar, then
this program will also turn the colour off so that the screen is
readable. If you have more than one display adapter fitted, you
can also use WMKITSET to specify which display you'd prefer for
these programs.
|BCopying Programs|Putting programs on individual disks
|BDOS setup|Making sure your system is set up correctly
|BHard disk setup|Special notes for hard disk users
|BWelcome|Done
|.
|PDOS setup|
You can ensure maximum performance from your system for the Kit programs
(and indeed any programs) by having an appropriate CONFIG.SYS file
on your startup disk. Your DOS manual will tell you more about this
subject if it is new to you.
Make sure your startup disk, be it a floppy or hard disk, has
a CONFIG.SYS file in its root (\) directory containing the commands:
BUFFERS=10
FILES=10
If higher values are already there, don't change them as they may be
required by other software (if you've 640K memory or a hard disk, you
may want to set them higher in any case).
If the CONFIG.SYS file contains the command DEVICE=ANSI.SYS and none of
your software specifically requires it, then remove the line. It is not
needed for the Kit programs and slows the system down.
|BSetting Up|Done
|.
|PHard disk setup|
If you put the Kit programs on your hard disk, we suggest you place
them in a directory that is in your DOS PATH so that you can use
any program from any directory on the disk.
Either:
Put all the programs into a new directory called \WMKIT or similar
and add this directory to the PATH command given in your AUTOEXEC.BAT
file.
Or:
Copy the programs you want to use often into a directory already in
the path (enter PATH on its own to see which directories are included).
Many hard disks have a \DOS, \BIN or \UTIL directory that will do nicely.
For more information on the PATH command, see your DOS manual.
|BSetting Up|Done
|.
|PSoftware Details|
All the programs on this disk were written especially for What Micro?
magazine by Strange Software Limited. Although the programs are the
copyright of Strange Software, a special licence has been granted
which means that the software is free to you and free to any friends and
colleagues that you may wish to give a copy to.
Please read the following pages to be sure you fully understand your licence
to use this software...
|BLicence Details|Your software licence
|BLimited Liability|Limited Liability
|BSpecial Offer|How to get a complete, printed manual
|BGetting Help|Getting Help
|BWelcome|Done
|.
|PLicence Details|
In the following statement, "the software" refers to any and all of the
programs and data files on this disk.
The software is the copyright of Strange Software Limited.
Strange Software Limited grants you the right to freely use and copy this
software FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY, whether it be in the course of your business
or as part of a hobby or personal application.
You MAY NOT resell, hire, rent, advertise, mass duplicate or mass distribute
the software, store the software on any form of electronic distribution
device, supply the software as part of a commercial transaction, supply the
software as part of another software package, whatever its nature, or modify
the software in any way whatsoever without prior written permission from
Strange Software Limited.
For alternative licence arrangements, write to:
Marketing, Strange Software Limited, 40 Bowling Green Lane, London EC1R 0NE.
|BSoftware Details|Done
|.
|PLimited Liability|
While every effort has been made to ensure that the software on this
disk works as described, Strange Software Limited and VNU Business
Publications accept no liability for any errors or restrictions it might
contain or for damages arising directly or indirectly from its use.
The software is supplied free and without guarantees of any kind.
If your disk itself is defective or damaged, please see the reverse of the
disk sleeve for details of how to return it for a replacement.
You are advised to read the details of each program contained in
this information file before attempting to use it and then to try the
program out in a test situation to see if it performs both usefully and
correctly before you attempt to use it on important disks or with important
data.
|BSoftware Details|Done
|.
|PSpecial Offer|
Although this file provides an on-line manual and help system, there simply
isn't enough room to provide the sort of detail and advice you'd expect from
the manual for a commercial software package.
So we've done the next best thing and produced a full manual for those that
are using the programs regularly and would like to know how to get the best
from them. To keep the cost down, it doesn't have a fancy slip-binder or
colour screenshots. But it is packed with tips, tricks and background
information from the people who know the software best: its authors!
The price? Just £4.95 including VAT and post and packing.
To order your copy, send a cheque or postal order, made payable to
Strange Software Ltd, to:
|H|CWhat Micro? Kit Manual|
|CStrange Software|
|C40 Bowling Green Lane|
|CLondon EC1R 0NE|
|H
|BSoftware Details|Okay!
|.
|PGetting Help|
This software is supplied free of charge and is unsupported.
While we've tried to make the programs clear and easy to use, there may be
times when you can't get something to work. In these situations, please
make sure you've tried all the options:
* Type the program name on its own. Many of the programs have a
built-in usage message which describes their operation.
* Check it out in this INFO file. Type INFO KIT <progname> to go straight
to the page(s) on a particular program. Use the Find and Again options
to make sure you've found and read all the material that relates to
your problem.
* Look in the printed manual if you've bought one (it is more detailed
than this file and may cover your problem).
* Get a friend or colleague to help.
* Try the same program on a different disk, data file or machine if
possible.
If you have a genuine technical enquiry, we'll try our best to answer it.
Please write, enclosing an SAE, to What Micro? Kit, Strange Software,
40 Bowling Green Lane, London EC1R 0NE.
|BSoftware Details|Done
|.