kevinw@Su-Dsn.ARPA@sri-unix.UUCP (04/09/84)
From: Kevin W. Rudd <kevinw@Su-Dsn.ARPA> having just scanned an article which mentions how to do a bug fix to an existing distribution public domain program, i have noticed what could be to many a very confusing issue. this has to do with how to put the patched software back to disk. in cpm the solution is to use ddt to patch the software and then to exit ddt back to the ccp and use the cpm SAVE command (having decoded the size of the program from the ddt (or sid) logon message). there is one problem with this approach with cpm-plus (aka cpm3) -- it won't work. cpm-plus has a pre-execution save command which, upon return to the system from the next run program, prompts you for the address range to be saved and to what file. easier to use, perhaps, but much different in actual useage. it could be used in a similar wa, perhaps, but i have not tried it. instead, one may use the W commad in sid (as supplied by dri) -- it will write the program to a file or will write a user supplied address range to a file as well. there is a problm in the default address range as it uses the address of the last loaded module end location as the end location to save rather than the greatest end location... oooopppppssssss. just what we expect frm dri though... unfortunately, there is no easy solution to how to give instructions to people to patch programs. perhaps it would be better to have some kind of program editor which will take a patch file and process it. this program would be written to work in a cpm or a cpm-plus system and would alleviate any potential confusion which may arise from people trying to follow instructions (or to determine which of several instructions) blindly. -- K