acphssrw@csun.UUCP (Stephen R. Walton) (12/04/87)
Netland, I have had the opportunity to play with ARP some these last few days, and I recommend it highly! ARP, for those who don't know, is the AmigaDOS Replacement Project, a Bix-based project spearheaded by Charlie Heath (author of TxEd) to write C and assembler replacements for the AmigaDOS commands we all know and hate. Right now, ARP V1.0 is available as publicly available (PA) software. It includes new versions of 15 or so AmigaDOS commands (Assign, If, Type, Join, Copy, and so on) as well as arp.library which contains common code used by all of these commands. The commands are both smaller and have more functionality than their original counterparts, even counting the disk space occupied by arp.library. I don't want to belabor Arp's good features here; suffice it to say that the goal of a consistent interface has been largely successful. The ARP docs show the following example: All of the following ARP commands will print all of the C files in the current directory on the printer: COPY #?.C TO PRT: JOIN #?.C AS PRT: TYPE #?.C TO PRT: For various reasons, none of these work with the original AmigaDOS versions of these commands; you have to hand-Copy each file. arp.library is a very nice bonus, including routines for such things as case-independent string comparison, printf/fprintf to AmigaDOS file handles, a CompareLock() function, FindFirst() and FindNext() which augment Examine()/ExNext() with wildcarding, etc., etc. C bindings aren't out yet, but they're very easy to generate if you know even a bit of assembler. To try it out: Individuals can copy the ARP distribution disk from anyone who has it; the complete distribution is also on the latest TxEd and FastFonts update disks. If you want to be on the mailing list, send $5 for the latest version to: Arp Support c/o Microsmiths Inc. P.O. Box 561 Cambridge, MA 02140 After Dec. 31, 1987, send an SASE to the above address before sending money to find out if Arp is still supported. Users groups and other purveyors of PD software are asked to send in the $5 in order to register at least one member of the group before distributing Arp to other members. Disclaimer: My only connection to Arp is as a happy user of it and of TxEd; besides, I doubt anyone is making money off of it :-). Steve Walton, CSUN RCKG01M@CALSTATE.BITNET or swalton@Solar.Stanford.Edu
ain@s.cc.purdue.edu.UUCP (12/07/87)
In article <941@csun.UUCP> acphssrw@csun.UUCP (Stephen R. Walton) writes: > arp.library is a very nice bonus, including routines for such >things as case-independent string comparison, printf/fprintf to >AmigaDOS file handles, a CompareLock() function, FindFirst() and >FindNext() which augment Examine()/ExNext() with wildcarding, >etc., etc. C bindings aren't out yet, but they're very easy to >generate if you know even a bit of assembler. The version that was sent to us didn't have any information on the Library itself. Does anyone have this that they can send to us? I would like to know what is in there and how to use it. I might even write some replacement stuff myself (lord knows I've been thinking of it... diskcopy with verification sounds nice for starters). > To try it out: Individuals can copy the ARP distribution disk >from anyone who has it; the complete distribution is also on the >latest TxEd and FastFonts update disks. If you want to be on the >mailing list, send $5 for the latest version to: For those of you who have not checked comp.binaries.amiga, there is also a copy there -- or there should be any day now (I posted it a while ago). -- Pat White (co-moderator comp.sources/binaries.amiga) UUCP: k.cc.purdue.edu!ain BITNET: PATWHITE@PURCCVM PHONE: (317) 743-8421 U.S. Mail: 320 Brown St. apt. 406, West Lafayette, IN 47906
agollum@engr.uky.edu (David Herron aka Admiral Gollum) (12/08/87)
I hate to add a sour note to the praises you're singing, but there's less guarantee that these programs are bug-free than for the 'real' programs. Case in point: The ARP Cd program distributed on some fish disk back in the late 40's or early 50's has worked fine with me for some months now. But it bombs with XICON, a program which comes on the BADGE KD disks which (evidently) runs batch files from an icon. With the ARP Cd, each of these batches bombed with a "Cd failure: <large number>" message. The real Cd coped fine. Just what is the bug? I can't say. Maybe ARP Cd doesn't work in batch files. Maybe it interacts with XICON. Whatever the bug, it's subtle, but it's there. Kenneth Herron
cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) (12/09/87)
In article <1843@ukecc.engr.uky.edu> agollum@engr.uky.edu (David Herron aka Admiral Gollum) writes: >I hate to add a sour note to the praises you're singing, but there's >less guarantee that these programs are bug-free than for the 'real' >programs. Case in point: The ARP Cd program distributed on some >fish disk back in the late 40's or early 50's has worked fine with >me for some months now. This version of CD Charlie Heath wrote to work with his expanded prompt command. The documentation had some notes on when you would want to use it and why. There was also a prerelease of the arp stuff for testing and that has found it's way around as well. The currently released version is just that, a release version, and works tons better. There is more info on it on BIX as well as on the 'official' arp distribution disk. I will se what I can find and upload it here. --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.
peter@sugar.UUCP (Peter da Silva) (12/28/87)
The ARP cd, copy, etc... back on that ol' fish disk returned an error code on success, which blew batch files to bits. I don't know if the new ones do or not. -- -- Peter da Silva `-_-' ...!hoptoad!academ!uhnix1!sugar!peter -- Disclaimer: These U aren't mere opinions... these are *values*.