Info-IBMPC@B.ISI.EDU.UUCP (06/30/86)
Info-IBMPC Digest Sunday, June 29, 1986 Volume 5 : Issue 65 This Week's Editor: Phyllis O'Neil This Afternoon's Topics: MASM 4.0 Bug Forwarded U.S. Naval Observatory Item PC-HACK V3.4 Re: Caution with PC Network Re: The PICK operating system Apple LaserWriter info This Afternoon's Queries: Lifetree Software PC-Draw (Query) PC-KAT 8-Mhz AT, Wait States query Z-80 Cross Assembler Wanted. Problem with MS Word Print Driver Needed: APL Character Set PRN redirection PC to Unix 286 Boards for XT Tractball equiv. for Microsoft Mouse ------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Jun 86 13:19:24 PDT From: Gordon_Bartel%UBC.MAILNET@MIT-MULTICS.ARPA To: info-ibmpc@USC-ISIB.ARPA Subject: MASM 4.0 bug I found a problem with the % macro expression operator when used in default hex radix (.radix 16). 0 through 9 are ok, but instead of using hex digits A - F that the rest of the world uses, MASM comes up with the letters J - O !!! After producing the MASM-HEX digits 'J' through 'O', the assembler procedes to produce a 'symbol not defined' error. The following sample program produces 0,,9,J,K,..,O as output when you assemble it! .radix 16 output macro char %out char endm n = 0 rept 10 output %n n = n + 1 endm end I called Microsoft, and they said that this was a known problem which they were planning on correcting with their next version. I asked about the possibility of an update, and she said that she didn't know if there would be one or not. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Jun 86 02:59:05 EDT From: Fred Blonder <fred@mimsy.umd.edu> To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.arpa Subject: Forwarded U.S. Naval Observatory Item I found this on the Naval Observatory's BBS, and am passing it along for your information. ==================================================================== A "FLOPPY ALMANAC" FOR MICROCOMPUTER USERS A new compact source of accurate astronomical information is being developed at the U. S. Naval Observatory. A 5-1/4 inch computer diskette, called the "Floppy Almanac", will soon be available to microcomputer users. This diskette will provide one years' information on accurate positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars, for any date and time within the year; data on the apparent illumination and rotation of planets; times of rise, set, and transit of any astronomical body for any location on Earth; and the data needed by a navigator to obtain a position "fix" from astronomical observations. This is the principal data now contained in three annual Observatory publications - the Astronomical Almanac, the Nautical Almanac, and the Air Almanac - comprising over 1000 pages of tabular information. The "Floppy Almanac" diskette will be useful for professional and amateur astronomers, navigators, surveyors, meteorologists, engineers, and others who regularly need accurate information on the positions and motions of the Sun, Moon, planets and stars. Use of the diskette will require a microcomputer compatible with the IBM* PC. (Specifically, the "Floppy Almanac" is being designed for use in any IBM PC-compatible machine with at least 256k bytes of memory running MS-DOS**; an 8087 arithmetic coprocessor is strongly recommended.) The "Floppy Almanac" is the result of a year-long development effort by Dr. George H. Kaplan, Mr.Timothy S. Carroll, Dr. LeRoy E. Doggett, and Dr. P. Kenneth Seidelmann of the Nautical Almanac Office of the U. S. Naval Observatory, and Ms. Susana E. Deustua of the University of Michigan. It draws upon ten years of experience producing the Almanac for Computers, an annual publication of the Nautical Almanac Office which provides astronomical formulas and algorithms for small computers and calculators. In contrast, the data from the "Floppy Almanac" will be immediately available to anyone with a microcomputer and the diskette; no programming or detailed knowledge of computers is required. Ease of use has been a specific design goal. It is anticipated that the "Floppy Almanac" diskettes will be available in late summer 1986. At that time, interested institutions and individuals will be able to purchase the diskettes by writing to the Naval Observatory, code FA. The projected price of each diskette is $20. Each diskette will provide the data for one calendar year. Only the diskettes for 1986 and 1987 will be available initially. Diskettes covering future years, as well as improvements and extensions to the data on the diskettes, will be available by mid-1987. Versions of the "Floppy Almanac" for microcomputer architectures other than that of the IBM PC are planned. * IBM is a trademark of International Business Machines Inc. * MS-DOS is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. -END- Contact: Dr. George H. Kaplan (202) 653-1516 or 653-1541 (PAO) Nautical Almanac Office, U. S. Naval Observatory Washington, D.C. 20390 ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Jun 86 17:50:56 edt From: brant%linc.cis.upenn.edu@CIS.UPENN.EDU To: info-ibmpc@USC-ISIB.ARPA Subject: PC-HACK V3.4 The latest release of Don Kneller's port of Unix Hack to MS-DOS, PC-HACK V3.4, is temporarily available by anonymous FTP from linc.cis.upenn.edu in the pub/hack subdirectory. Feel free to add it to your archives. Brant P.S. The two files you want are hack34.arc and hackmisc.arc ------------------------------ To: elefante@radc-multics.ARPA Cc: info-micro@brl-vgr.ARPA, info-ibmpc@usc-isib.ARPA Subject: Re: Caution with PC Network Date: Fri, 27 Jun 86 08:12:49 -0500 From: Mark H. Granoff <mhg@mitre-bedford.ARPA> With regard to ordering by mail, I thought readers might like to hear a success story. Last April, I decided to replace by computer system with an AT&T 6300. After searching locally for the best price (and finding the best one to be about $3200), I hunted through magazines for the best mail order price and found one. The outfit I found was The Computer Discount Warehouse in Illinois. Since the only thing I had ever bought previously by mail was a printer for considerably less money, I went through several gyrations to determine if they were "on the level" or just out to rip me off. (I called the Illinois Better Business Bureau, the Illinois State Department, and a the outfit's bank (the largest in Illinois)). When I was finally satisfied that they would actually send me some merchandise, I sent them a certified check. Within 10 (business) days of sending out the check, I had my system. It's worth noting that I payed $2100 for the following: AT&T 6300 w/ 640k memory (socketed) 1 20mb Seagate HD w/ Western Digital Controller 1 360k Half-height floppy. Parallel Printer Cable (That price included shipping, too!) The upshot here is that I was very pleased to get such fast delivery. At the time, everything I bought was "in stock and ready to ship." I remain pleased with my purchase and have had no problems. Mark H. Granoff (mhg@mitre-bedford) ------------------------------ To: cc.galvin@r20.utexas.edu Cc: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.ARPA Subject: Re: The PICK operating system Date: Fri, 27 Jun 86 09:35:28 -0500 From: ted@mitre-bedford.ARPA >Hi, anyone with experience with the PICK operating system out there? >I'm interested in opinions on its functionality/usability. Also, what >they DB lookup commands or are they more like standard OS commands >(rename, delete, etc). > >I'll summarize if I get any responses and anyone else is interested in >the results. Pete, I recently graduated from Cornell University, where I was a part-time programmer for the Cornell Campus Store. The Campus Store runs the AIS implementation of PICK on a Honeywell mini. For such an unknown operating system I was very impressed with its capabilities. PICK is a highly database oriented operating system. Standard OS commands include SELECT (filename, relational operators), LIST (filename item or "*") DELETE_FILE, DELETE(filename itemname), and the usual COMPILE, EDIT, COPY... There is really no difference between the the 'OS' type commands and the 'Database' commands. They are all equally accessible. Every file in PICK is a database file, with items which can be accessed by their "KEY". You might ask "What about the program files?", well programs are also kept in these type of files. Your program is one BIG item in a file of many items/programs (somewhat like a library). Files in PICK can also have what is called DICTIONARY. The dictionary section of the file contains items which describe the FIELDS of the ITEMS in the DATA section of the file. (Getting confusing yet?) The descriptions in the dictionary section allow you to give real names to the fields and their lengths, types, etc. This allows you to produce reports very easily and quickly. For example: (Please don't hold me to the exact syntax) 1. SELECT STUDENT.FILE WITH CHARGE.BALANCE > $100 AND WITH GRADUATION.YEAR= "1986" 2. LIST LAST.NAME FIRST.NAME PHONE.NUMBER CURRENT.BALANCE You now have a nicely formatted list, which could have been sorted/printed. As far as I know (please correct me if I'm wrong) the only programming Language available is BASIC. It is a very robust form of BASIC, with all of the constructs of those "higher level languages". It gives you complete flexibility to massage a database in any way you see fit. The compiler that AIS supplies is fast, and the executeable seems to be fairly efficient. My only major complaint with the AIS implementation of PICK is the editor. It is a line editor <BARFFF>. An unsupported full screen editor comes with the O/S, it has a fairly limited command set, but it works well and has never chewed up any of my files. I could run on for quite a while, but I really don't know what else you would like to know. If you could fill me in on what you would like to use the system for I could help you out. Just for reference, my past/current programming experience includes BASIC(-PLUS-2) on VMS and RSTS, and some Pascal on RSX-11M. I have used other operating systems such as VM/CMS, TOPS-20, UNIX, and RT-11, and have programmed on them in a limited fashion. I own a PC clone, and have done some programming on it. I would happy to answer any other questions that you have. -- ted ted@mitre_bedford.arpa DDD (617) 271-3144 Disclaimer: I am in no way a affiliated with PICK or AIS. English is not my forte, and I hate proof-reading. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Jun 86 08:38:08 cdt From: mlw@ncsc.ARPA (Williams) To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.ARPA Subject: Apple LaserWriter info David: I am only just now looking into this question, so I don't really have answers but I think I've found a good info source (if I can go through it all)... There's another interest group called LASER-LOVERS on the net that addresses laser printer topics. Obviously, there are many non-IBM-PC applications out there, but the use of LaserWriters in different environments seems to be fairly commonly discussed. Maybe you can get more specific help there. Requests for joining the distribution group are supposed to go to LASER-LOVERS-REQUEST@WASHINGTON and archives are available through anonymous login ftp from <MAILING-LISTS>LASER-LOVERS.ARC and <MAILING-LISTS>LASER- LOVERS.ARC-1 (and maybe some others?). Hope this helps. If you find any significant information, could you send me a copy directly? I'd be glad to work with you to assemble a "status report" or some such if you're interested. Mark (mlw@ncsc.arpa) ------------------------------ From: hermix!stan@rand-unix.ARPA To: randvax!info-ibmpc%ISIB@ECLB Subject: Lifetree Software Date: Tue Jun 24 21:05:17 1986 Does anyone out there know what happened to Lifetree Software? Specifically, last year I saw a program from them called EGAMAGIC. It allowed the user to specify colors on an EGA display. I would like to get in touch with the company to obtain a copy. Thanks. Stan Stead BELL: (213)206-6238 ARPA: hermix!stan@rand-unix.ARPA UUCP: {decvax!ihnp4!trwrb}!hermix!stan ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Jun 86 08:54:53 cdt From: moore@ncsc.ARPA (Moore) To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.ARPA Subject: PC-Draw (Query) Does anyone have any pointers to public domain drawing programs? Nothing fancy, but I've heard only rumors about "PC-Draw." Any suggestions? Jim Moore NCSC ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Jun 86 11:45:50 EDT From: John Shaver STEEP-TMAC 879-7602 <jshaver@apg-3> Subject: PC-KAT To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib I am trying to use PC-KAT and keep getting a -1 error. I objviously am not doing something correctly. I do not have a hard disk but am using the program on a 1.2M Hi-density disk. John ------------------------------ Date: 25 Jun 86 14:18 EDT From: (Gary Chapman) <CHAPMAN@NYU-ACF1.ARPA> To: <INFO-IBMPC@USC-ISIB.ARPA> Subject: 8-Mhz AT, Wait States query Can anyone provide me with technical information, or a good source for such information, about wait states on the IBM PC/AT (specifically the new 8-Mhz model)? What is the story? Is it possible to put in faster memory and remove the wait state? At what level is the wait state implemented? Any comments would be greatly appreciated. --Gary Chapman, NYU ACF Microcomputer Lab (CHAPMAN@NYU-ACF1.ARPA ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 24 Jun 86 19:07:06 EDT From: Rob%UMass.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU (Systems Programmer) Subject: Z-80 Cross Assembler Wanted. To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.arpa * W A N T E D * An inexpensive or public domain cross-assembler for the Z-80 that can be run on an IBM-PC clone. I would like a source copy if possible but an executable version is acceptable. I would prefer to pay no more than 50$. If anybody has any information please send it to: ROB@UMass.BITNet Thank you, Rob deFriesse ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 25 Jun 86 13:50:31 edt From: Mark D. Freeman <mdf@ohio-state.ARPA> Subject: Problem with MS Word Print Driver To: info-ibmpc-request@usc-isib.arpa I have Microsoft Word 3.0. I also have a NEC P5 printer. The NEC P5 emulates an Epson LQ1500. It also has many other features, such as real underlining, full IBM character set (graphics characters), higher resolution graphics, triple as well as double-width fonts, etc. The Microsoft Word printer driver for the NEC P5 doesn't even support all the fonts that they support in their Epson LQ1500 driver! I'd copy it over, but the spacing tables are different. The NEC P5 driver doesn't take advantage of ANY NEC P5 extensions to the Epson commands. It does underlining by drawing a 60 dpi graphics line under the characters, and microspaces by using graphics mode. It translates some IBM graphics characters to dashes and other ugly plain ASCII 'equivalents'. I called Microsoft, and they said that if I found an actual bug, I could send to them in writing. They would send it on to their development team, who might look at it, and might fix it. The fixed driver would then be made available with the next new product release. Even if they fixed it next week, I'd have to wait for an official disk of new drivers to be released, which may never occur. I asked for some help in modifying the driver myself. I was told that if I couldn't figure it out from the manual, they couldn't help me, because that was the only reference material available to the tech support staff. They supply the drivers, but do not support them, nor do they help anyone who wishes to write new ones. By the way, if anyone has intimate knowledge of how these damned PRD files work, or has a working NECP5 driver for any version of Word, I'd love to get mail from you! ------------------------------ From: irwin.wbst@Xerox.COM Date: 26 Jun 86 7:51:49 EDT Subject: Needed: APL Character Set To: INFO-IBMPC@USC-ISIB.ARPA Does anyone know where I can get an APL Character Chip for a PC or Clone? I understand that STSC sells them bundled with their software for about $300. Ethan Irwin ------------------------------ Date: 26 Jun 86 11:54 EST From: davidsen%kbsvax.tcpip@ge-crd.arpa Subject: PRN redirection To: info-ibmpc@usc-isib.arpa We have a system which has the matrix printer on LPT2 and another device on LPT1. Is there a way, such as an undocumented call to MODE which will redirect PRN and printscreen to use LPT2? ------------------------------ Date: 26 Jun 1986 13:47-PDT From: Guy Tiphane <logitech!guy@decwrl.DEC.COM> Subject: PC to Unix To: INFO-IBMPC@USC-ISIB I am looking for an inexpensive solution to our separation between developers who like the Vax Unix system and those who like the IBM PC. We are running BSD 4.1 (I know, it's old) and have lots of tty lines. Regular PC-DOS is used on the PC side. I used a program called TANGO (it seems to be called SYNCHRONY now) by a company called COSI in Michigan. Although it solves the problem of file transfer, it still remains primarily a terminal emulator. I need more than anything else: - A PRINT that can send to the Vax printer - A MAIL that can communicate with the Vax mail - A GET/PUT FILE to archive files once edited on the PC As you can see, the terminal emulator is not so important. Any idea? Guy Tiphane Logitech, Inc. 805 Veterans Blvd. Redwood City, CA 94063 (415) 365-9852 ucbvax!decwrl!logitech!guy (I am not member of this mailing) ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Jun 86 18:20:30 PDT From: hplabs!sdcrdcf!SEASUN.MERMAID.SDC.UUCP!alex@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Alex Hwang) To: sdcrdcf!usc-isib.arpa!info-ibmpc Subject: 286 boards for XT I need some advice on PCturbo 286e boards by Orchid and the Classis 286 Speed Pak by JDR Microdevices. Both boards claim 8MHz 80286, mega byte on aboard EMS memory, faster than AT and absolute compatibility with ol' XT environment. I do a lot of memory intensive processing, usually via ram disk. Recently I sort of ran out memory space for ram disks and got tire waiting for the 8088. While shopping around for extended or expanded memory, I notice for few hundred bucks more I can get one of these 80286 board for my XT. This seems a lot cheaper and less hassle than dumping my XT and getting an AT. Any word of wisdom is very much appreciated in advance. Alex Hwang ..!hplabs!sdcrdcf!alex ------------------------------ Date: 27 June 86 09:38 EDT From: T7Y%CORNELLC.BITNET@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU Subject: Tractball equiv. for Microsoft Mouse To: INFO-IBMPC@usc-isib.arpa Folks, If anyone is familiar with a tractball (sort of a upside down stationary mouse) that would function in place of a Microsoft Mouse please send along any product info you might have. Thanx in advance . . . Tom Abdella Tufts University T7Y@CORNELLC.BITNET ------------------------------ End of Info-IBMPC Digest ************************ -------