[comp.sys.ibm.pc.digest] Info-IBMPC Digest V7 #18

hicks@WALKER-EMH.ARPA (Gregory Hicks COMFLEACTS) (03/04/88)

Info-IBMPC Digest           Sat, 20 Feb 88       Volume 7 : Issue  18

This Week's Editor: Gregory Hicks -- Chinhae Korea <hicks@walker-emh.arpa>

Today's Topics:
                             64K Block Allocation
                       Windows .TIF File Format Summary
                                 GRAPH update
                                  Hard cards
                  MSC 4.0 interrupt (^C) handler help needed
                              Turbo C vs Quick C
                   MSC Danger (was Re: Turbo C vs Quick C)
                           Random Number Generator
                        SCRIBE Text Formatter (2 msgs)
                English to Valley Girl Talk Translator Wanted
                        Yet another copyright message
Today's Queries:
                   Errors with 3270 Emulation on Token-Ring
                       Hercules and CGA on a single PC
                      MS-Word Print Driver Tandy DMP-430
                  Information on .DIF File Format Requested

Info-IBMPC Lending Library is available from:

    Bitnet via server at CCUC; and from SIMTEL20.ARPA (see file
          PD1:<msdos>files.idx for listing of source files)

    SIMTEL20.ARPA can now be accessed access from BITNET is via
       LISTSERV@RPICICGE.BITNET using LISTSERV Commands

      INFO-IBMPC BBS Phone Numbers: (213) 827-2635 and (213) 827-2515

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Date: Wed, 17 Feb 88 18:11:45 CST
From: David Camp <C04661DC%WUVMD.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: 64K Block Allocation

From: "Ouri ELZUR - ICT <ELZUR%IIL%sc.intel.com@RELAY.CS.NET>

Can anyone suggest a way to allocate a 64KB memory, in an IBM PC AT or a
clone,  which is ALIGNED to the 64K boundary (0x____0000)?

Date:         Wed, 17 Feb 88 14:45:25 CST
From:         David Camp <C04661DC@WUVMD>

     I read your inquiry about allocating an aligned 64K block.  I did
this in a previous program.  Here is a code fragment that worked for me.
Notice that I had to allocate twice as much as needed in order to insure
that two boundaries were in the field.

unsigned int far * data_buffer;
unsigned long int_buffer;
union
    {
    unsigned long long0;
    struct
        {
        unsigned int short1;
        unsigned int short2;
        } s;
    } int_holder;
{
    /* Allocate the data buffer. */
    data_buffer = (int *) halloc(65536,2);
    int_holder.long0 = (unsigned long) data_buffer;
    int_buffer = (((long) int_holder.s.short2)*16) + int_holder.s.short1;
    int_buffer = int_buffer - (int_buffer % 65536) + 65536;
    int_holder.s.short2 = (unsigned int) (int_buffer / 16);
    int_holder.s.short1 = (unsigned int) (int_buffer % 16);
    data_buffer = (int far *) int_holder.long0;
}

*----------------------------------------------------------------------*
| (314) 362-3635                  Mr. David J. Camp                    |
|                          ^      Division of Biostatistics, Box 8067  |
| Room 1108D             < * >    Washington University Medical School |
| 706 South Euclid         v      660 South Euclid                     |
|                                 Saint Louis, MO 63110                |
| Bitnet: C04661DC@WUVMD.BITNET                                        |
| Internet: C04661DC%WUVMD.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU                      |
*----------------------------------------------------------------------*

------------------------------

Date: 17 Feb 88   19:32 EDT
From: FAC0395%UOFT01.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: Windows .TIF File Format

    A few weeks back I posted a query on the net about getting digitized
images into the Microsoft Windows envrionment.  Since that time, I've had
several (4 or more) conversations with Microsoft technical personnel.
Each, unfortunately, has had a different story about file formats for
Windows.

One tech rep said that, as long as my files were saved out in .TIF format
I could get them into Windows without any problem.  Stupid me, I forgot to
ask how.  So I called back again, and the next tech rep did not know about
.TIF at all.  He did call me back and tell me that I can move my images to
Aldus Pagemaker and from there into the Windows clipboard.  I suspected
that the Windows Development Kit might have other information, but today's
call quashed that hope.  No utility program to transfer .TIF files, but a
description of the file formats if I wanted to write my own program.

The funny thing is that the .TIF format (tagged image format) was
supposedly developed jointly by Microsoft and Aldus.  If that's so, how
come Microsoft seems to know so little about it.  Yet... all of the
graphics programs I've looked at --my salvation seems to be in programs
for desktop publishing-- support .TIF.

I'm working on a hypertext project in Guide.  I want to put scanned images
in with my text.  I also want to do them in color.  I can do this easy as
pie on a Macintosh and still have a "programable" language to flesh my
project out with (hypertalk).  I sure as heck ain't going to write a
program to translate .TIF into MS-Windows.  I suppose that for the
present, the bottom line with this is tuf.TIF.

I have several promising programs on the way and an offer from a guy who
makes a device that scans slides into almost any format that he WILL get
the slide that I sent him into Windows.  I will be happy to continue this
saga later, programs in hand.  Maybe it will save someone else some time
and frustration.  Thanks to those who responded to my original plea for
help.  Now, where's the number of my Apple sales rep?

J. Feustle
FAC0395@UOFT01.BITNET

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 16 Feb 88 20:20:16 EST
From: James R. Van Zandt <jrv@mitre-bedford.ARPA>
Subject: GRAPH update

I have submitted a revised version of GRAPH to the SIMTEL-20 collection,
and Keith Petersen has informed me that the files are now in place...

Filename                        Type     Bytes   CRC

Directory PD1:<MSDOS.GRAPH>
GRAPH.ARC.1                     BINARY  144685  A588H   source code
GRAPHDOC.ARC.1                  BINARY    7899  A675H   documentation
GRAPHEGA.ARC.3                  BINARY   45727  BD22H   executables...EGA/VGA
GRAPHH.ARC.2                    BINARY   46109  9D69H   Hercules
GRAPHHI.ARC.2                   BINARY   46508  24C7H   Houstin Inst. plotter
GRAPHHP.ARC.3                   BINARY   46467  6631H   HP plotter
GRAPHLI.ARC.2                   BINARY   46867  2FFBH   LIPS-10 laser printer
GRAPHPC.ARC.3                   BINARY   48268  F8E5H   CGA
GRAPHZ.ARC.2                    BINARY   48215  D33FH   Zenith Z-100

The EGA version now also supports the VGA in modes 17 and 18.  The HP
version now supports hardware flow control.  Parameters can now come from
a file as well as the command line.

                          - Jim Van Zandt (jrv@mitre-bedford.arpa)

------------------------------

Date: Wed 17 Feb 88 08:27:09-EST
From: Seth Chaiklin <TC.CHAIKLIN@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Hard cards

The January 1987 PC Tech magazine has a full review of hard cards for the
PC.  The Plus Hard Card was the most highly recommended.

A friend has used a Mountain Hard Card for the past year with no troubles.

------------------------------

Date: 16 Feb 88 18:54:50 GMT
From: shap@bunker (Joseph D. Shapiro)
Subject: MSC 4.0 interrupt (^C) handler help needed

-From: Creps <creps@silver.bacs.indiana.EDU>

-   I'm trying to get an interrupt handler to work in MSC 4.0 that will
-handle ^C's at any time...

-for(i=1;i<100000;i++) if (i % 10000 == 0) fprintf("%d",i);
-int interrupt()
-{
-     fprintf("*** int ***");
-     signal(SIGINT,interrupt);
-     return;
-}

1) I assume that you meant either fprintf(stdout,"%d...  or printf("%d...

2) What is missing is fflush(stdout); after your fprintf in the interrupt
routine.  Fprintf only buffers stuff for output until the buffer is full
or a newline is found, or whatever, at which time it effects the fflush.
You are adding "*** int ***" to the buffer, but not flushing it to the
display device.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
Joe Shapiro                        "My other car is a turbo...
Bunker Ramo Olivetti                     too."
{decvax,yale,philabs,oliveb}!bunker!shap

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 16 Feb 88 18:06:56 est
From: Shawn McLean <mclean@Think.COM>
Subject: Turbo C vs Quick C

>From: Ric Messier <ram@lscvax.uucp>

The February issue of PC TECH magazine has a C compiler survey and a good
article comparing the merits and performance between Turbo C and Quick C.
The author suggests that Turbo C edges Quick C in most categories: Quick C
provides some minimal symbolic debugging while Turbo C does not; Turbo C
supports several memory models while Quick C only supports large.

-shawn

------------------------------

Date: 14 Feb 88 15:31:52 GMT
From: Dick Flanagan <dick@slvblc.uucp>
Subject: MSC Danger (was Re: Turbo C vs Quick C)

tim@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (Timothy L. Kay) writes:
> wfp@dasys1.UUCP (William Phillips) writes:
>>wew@naucse.UUCP (Bill Wilson) writes:
>>> Turbo C is superior to Quick C.  On our campus here we have also
>>> had Quick C blow away hard drives, so be careful.
>>
>>I know of a case where MSC (4.0 I think) utterly scrambled a hard drive
>>(not backed up, natch), when a module compiled with one memory model was
>>linked with modules compiled with a different model.
>
>This can happen with *any* C compiler that uses the large model. . . .
>If you break the rules and link large model with small model, who knows
>what is going to happen? . . .
>
>The only solution is to stick to small models or get some memory protection
     ^^^^
An alternative solution is to simply be careful and not break the rules.
DOS has always been very unforgiving in this area (it's as much a victim
of the Intel architecture as we are), and blaming any compiler because it
"lets" us screw up is a bit tacky.

Dick

Dick Flanagan, W6OLD                         GEnie: FLANAGAN
UUCP: ...!ucbvax!ucscc!slvblc!dick           Voice: +1 408 336 3481
INTERNET: slvblc!dick@ucscc.UCSC.EDU         LORAN: N037 05.5 W122 05.2
USPO: PO Box 155, Ben Lomond, CA 95005

------------------------------

Date: 16 Feb 88 18:07:15 GMT
From: "R.Moats" <rdmi@homxc.uucp>
Subject: Random Number Generator

Nick_Grumpy_Landsberg@cup.portal.com writes:
> Simplistic, but this works:
> Generate about 12 random numbers (assuming 0.0 <= i <1.0)
> and divide by 12.  This is sufficiently close to gaussian distribution
> for most purposes.  The more numbers you generate before you do the
> division, the closer you will get to purely gaussian distribution.

(a)  You are right, this is VERY simple.  However, this also only provides
a binomial distribution between 0 and 12 (or however many numbers you use)
while you are aiming for a gaussian distribution which is unbounded.

A much better (from the point of accuracy, not from the point of ease of
implimentation) transform is to use Box-Muller.  Given two random
variables X1 and X2 which are both U(0,1), calculate

Y1 = sqrt (-2*ln X1)*cos 2*pi*X2 and Y2 = sqrt (-2*ln X1)*sin 2*pi*X2

Y1 and Y2 are both N(0,1) !!!

Ryan Moats
AT&T Bell Laboratories

Disclaimer:  any opinions stated above are my own, and do not represent
     those of AT&T.  The facts speak for themselves.

------------------------------

Date: Tue Feb 16 09:07:57 1988
From: lotus!bobf@EDDIE.MIT.EDU
Subject: SCRIBE Text Formatter

To: dandelion!necntc!linus!husc6!cmcl2!brl-adm!adm!hicks@walker-emh.arpa

You might consider the Finalword Formatter from Mark of the Unicorn.  It
is faster than the version of Scribe I used to use on a mini.

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 17 Feb 88 20:09:07 EST
From: johnl@ima.ISC.COM (John R. Levine)
Subject: SCRIBE Text Formatter

Try Final Word from Mark of the Unicorn here in Cambridge.  It includes a
editor which is a lot like Emacs and a formatter which is a lot like
Scribe.  Depending on how fancy your Scribe macros are, you may or may not
have to fiddle your document to get FW to eat it.

John Levine, ima!johnl or Levine@Yale.edu

------------------------------

Date: 16 Feb 88 19:01:11 CST (Tue)
From: james@bigtex.uu.net (James Van Artsdalen)
Subject: English to Valley Girl Talk Translator Wanted

> Date: Mon, 25 Jan 88 13:47:27 EST
> From: rsparbe@NSWC-OAS.ARPA

> Can someone give me a pointer to a language translation program for the PC
> that translates English text into "Valley Girl TalK"?  Bob

> [IF such a program EXISTS, It would be TOTALLY AWEsome! gph]

De valspeak honky code is alive and well.  What it is, Mama!  It's some
lex stash wid no C suppo't, so's you gots'ta gots' lex around.

But da damn "JIVE" honky code is much, much better.  It does baaaad din's
even wid sho't, o'dinary text.

James R. Van Artsdalen
...!uunet!utastro!bigtex!james     "Live Free or Die"

Home: 512-346-2444 Work: 328-0282;
110 Wild Basin Rd. Ste #230, Austin TX 78746

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 16 Feb 88 22:32:12 EST
From: moss!codas!novavax!proxftl!rafael@rutgers.edu (Rafael Mayer)
Subject: Yet another copyright message

In Volume 7 #13 Dave Sill <dsill@NSWC-OAS.arpa> wrote:

>Is he guilty of violating my copyright?  Not knowingly.  Even if I had
>registered the program, it's unlikely the BBS manager would be expected to
>know it was copyrighted.  However, if I had placed the appropriate copyright
>notices in my program, and the thief had not removed them, the BBS manager
>would clearly be held accountable.

Yes, that is correct but while the BBS manager can not be held accountable
and forced to pay damages, an injunction order can be placed on him to
force him, and any others who are distributing your program, to cease
distribution. I believe (although I'm not 100% sure) that after you become
aware that you are distributing copyrighted software, if you don't stop
giving it out, you are liable for damages.

The basic problem with the copyright issue as applied to software is that
not only is it a gray area as far as laws are concerned, but more oft than
not the judges and lawyers do not really understand the mechanisms
involved.  (how the data is stored, what constitutes a copyrightable or
patentable algorithm, etc..). It is best not to expect a consistent or
100% sane behavior from the courts until a lot more cases have been tried
and some sort of pattern can be discerned. Until then I will be expecting
lots of surprising developments and judgments.

                              -Rafael-

Rafael Mayer
UUCP: {ihnp4!codas,allegra}!novavax!proxftl!rafael

Have you heard about the new Cray 3, it is so fast it can execute an
infinite loop in 6 minutes!!

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 16 Feb 88 18:49:15 CST
From: Dan DeNise <C0016%UMRVMB.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: Errors with 3270 Emulation on Token-Ring

We recently set up a Token-Ring with 13 user PS/2 Model 50s and a Model 60
file server and 3270 gateway.  Everything works fine when the net first
starts.  But after a while, after people actually start using files on the
server and getting in and out of 3270 emulation, we start getting strange
errors.  People can't log in and people who are already logged in start
getting NET810 and NET801 errors.

Sounds like the server crashed, right.  Here's the strange part:  From the
keyboard of the server nothing looks wrong!  NET still brings up the
menus.  NET SHARE still lists the people the server thinks are logged in.
NET ERROR doesn't list any errors.  We can Alt-ESCape to the gateway and
display the status panel, even shut it down and restart it.  Sometimes a
people will still be able to get at files on the server or continue a 3270
session while others just get errors.

I've rechecked the startup parameters twice, especially /SES and /CMD, and
they look good.  Besides which, we start getting errors with only 6 or 7
people on.

We're using the new device drivers, not TOKREUI and NETBEUI; IBM PC LAN
V1.20; IBM 3270 Emulation 3.03; and no TSRs.  Has anyone else seen
anything like this?  Any suggestions on how to dig more status information
out of the server?

Dan DeNise
University of Missouri - Rolla
BITNET: C0016 at UMRVMB
AT&T:   (314) 341-4841
Acknowledge-To: <C0016@UMRVMB>

------------------------------

Date:     Tue, 16 Feb 88 15:12 A
From:     <COGLITORE@IPACRES>
Subject:  Hercules and CGA on a single PC

We are asking for some information about the possibility of installing on
a single PC both Hercules and CGA graphics cards.  We  would like to know
if there are conflicts on buses and if it is possible to have two monitors
working toghether showing different information.

                                    Dino and Giovax

[The program from the Lending Library titled PD1:<msdos.screen>TWOSCRN.PAS
allows you to use both a monochrome and a color monitor...  gph]

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 17 Feb 88 14:02:23 N
From: molliet%CLSEPF51.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Subject: Adapting KIQ (Graphics Package) to IBM-PC/AT

We are trying to adapt the layout editor KIQ to IBM-PC AT compatible. We
plan to use Microsoft C Ver 5.0. We're looking for a graphic package wich
will enable us to modify the graphic module of KIQ. We're using Philips AT
compatibles and GENOA extended EGA graphic cards.

Has anyone any suggestion for a graphic package wich will make the best
use of our graphic card ? Is there any existing version of KIQ for IBM-PC
around ?

We will summarize if we have significant solutions, as usual.

Philippe Molliet
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Electronic Laboratory
EL-ECUBLENS
CH-1015 LAUSANNE (Switzerland)

------------------------------

Date: Thu, 18 Feb 88 12:20:54 GMT
From: "Michael S. Hampton" <jedi@clark-emh.arpa>
Subject: MS-Word Print Driver Tandy DMP-430

Does anyone out there know of a printer driver for  Microsoft  Word  4.0
which will  utilize  all  the  special  features and fonts of the Tandy
DMP-430.  The print driver which comes with the package is very limited
and only uses about 4 of  the available fonts.  I would really like to use
some of the other features of my printer and really like MS Word.  Any
help will be appreciated.

Mike Hampton                                       Jedi@Clark-EMH.arpa
SSgt, 3d LES
Clark Air Base
Republic of the Philippines

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 17 Feb 88 10:10:10 CST
From: Dan DeNise <C0016%UMRVMB.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: Information on .DIF File Format Requested

There's a user here (not on the NET) who needs to convert some ASCII files
on a Unix system to DIF format.  He could download, import ASCII, export
DIF, and upload, but he'd rather convert them where they are.

Is a document describing DIF format available anywhere on the net.  I
looked through SIMTEL20 and didn't see any likely names.

Speaking of which, is there a list anywhere of what's in SIMTEL20?  Not
just a directory listing, but a real index with a couple of paragraphs
describing each package.

Acknowledge-To: <C0016@UMRVMB>

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End of Info-IBMPC Digest
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