hicks@WALKER-EMH.ARPA (Gregory Hicks COMFLEACTS) (11/15/87)
Info-IBMPC Digest Sun, 15 November 1987 Volume 6 : Issue 70
This Week's Editor: Gregory Hicks - Chinhae Korea <hicks@walker-emh.arpa>
Today's Topics:
Keyboard Hang-Up on XT Bootup
New Programs Available from SIMTEL20
MIDI and the Synthesizer for the IBM PC (3 msgs)
Adding Memory to an EGA
Word processors w/ multiple columns
USENET Query
6 Megabyte Floppies
T3 Word Processor
3.5 inch diskettes
Hercules in Compaq
Absolute disk read/write from Turbo Pascal v6.68
Zenith and Hitachi CD-ROM Player
Today's Queries:
Re-direction of I/O to COM1 on Z-248
Codeview and Memory Problems
Help recovering my RECOVERed files
DECNET for the PC
Request for recommendations for an ATI EGA Wonder Board
Enhanced Keyboard
Computer messaging / recording / transactions on an IBM LAN
DOS 3.3 ^U/^W patches?
Determining Type of Graphics adapter
Wordperfect on DEC's VAXmate
Receive Spooling for COMx-Ports
Use of Kermit by the Disabled
Microsoft Chart & Ventura Publishing
Drill CAD
Bug in MS-DOS 3.2
TEK PC4100 board
Source of PC hardware info
INFO-IBMPC BBS Phone Numbers: (213) 827-2635 (213) 827-2515
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon 26 Oct 87 21:35:13-PST
From: Randy Cole <COLE@babette.isi.edu>
Subject: Keyboard Hang-Up on XT Bootup
I have had the same type problem with a stock IBM XT with a 10MB IBM
hard disk (no Plus Hardcard in sight). Before it hangs, it generally types
a string of one to ten periods after the DOS prompt. The problem always
goes away after cycling power and hasn't been serious enough to spend time
fixing.
Randy Cole
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 17 Oct 1987 18:25 MDT
From: Keith Petersen <W8SDZ@SIMTEL20.ARPA>
Subject: New Programs Available from SIMTEL20
Now available via standard anonymous FTP from SIMTEL20...
Filename Type Bytes CRC
Directory PD:<MSDOS.KA9Q-TCPIP>
ARCFILES.DIR ASCII 14494 36FCH <--listing of all ARC dirs
NET_BM.ARC BINARY 23563 0FD9H
NET_DES.ARC BINARY 18954 2373H
NET_DOC.ARC BINARY 106817 3824H
NET_EXE.ARC BINARY 90321 BA0DH
NET_READ.ME ASCII 1844 62EBH
NET_SRC.ARC BINARY 208746 D2DBH
TNC_ASH.ARC BINARY 57272 72ADH
TNC_LDR.ARC BINARY 15810 695BH
TNC_TNC1.ARC BINARY 33640 588FH
TNC_TNC2.ARC BINARY 49768 84D2H
Directory PD:<MSDOS.SYSUTL>
BIGECHO.ARC BINARY 9931 EA54H
*************************
KA9Q Internet TCP/IP for MSDOS
All ARCs here are SEA-compatible.
*** WARNING: The 870829.0 release was cobbled together during the paper
presentations at the 6th ARRL Digital Conference in Redondo Beach, CA. It
therefore has not been tested nearly as well as the previous release,
870526.0... therefore, don't throw away your old disks until you've run
this long enough to be happy with it! Problem reports always welcome.
The .ARC files that make up the distribution are compressed archives that
were created with the ARC program produced by System Enhancement As-
sociates.
The distribution is structured based on the directory structure used to
create the software:
NET_BM.ARC .\BM - sources to Bdale's Mailer, and Gerard's Gateway
NET_DES.ARC .\DES- an implementation of DES (Data Encryption Standard)
for possible use in validating logins, etc.
NET_DOC.ARC .\DOC- all of the doc files
NET_EXE.ARC .\EXE- executable programs and config files
NET_SRC.ARC .\SRC- sources to NET.EXE
TNC_ASH.ARC .\TNC\ASH - KISS for the VADCG and ASHBY boards
TNC_LDR.ARC .\TNC\LDR - N4HY's KISS downloader in Turbo Pascal
TNC_TNC1.ARC .\TNC\TNC1- KISS for the TAPR TNC-1 and clones
TNC_TNC2.ARC .\TNC\TNC2- KISS for the TAPR TNC-2 and clones
Whatever you do, don't unpack all of the .ARC files in one directory,
as there are duplicate names all over the place... Makefiles, README files,
etc.
After unpacking, look for a README file in each archive. Read this
first, before you do *anything* else. Some are just informative, some are
very important.
Finally, we're constantly striving to improve this software, and the
distribution as a whole. Comments may be forwarded to Bdale Garbee, N3EUA.
Several of the Doc files include info on how to reach me...
*************************
From: David Kirschbaum <kirsch@BRAGGVAX.ARPA>
BIGECHO is a stand alone program which you can use at the DOS command
line and, more often, in BATch files. It will display a message in
characters 8 lines high and 8 wide. The message can be up to 10
characters in length and can contain any character with ASCII code 127
or less except for the slash (ASCII 92).
TOAD HALL COMMENTS AND WARNING:
BIGECHO.DOC, BIGECHO.SPL, and all the .BAT files in BIGECHO.ARC
contain binary characters (>ASCII 127, actually IBM-PC graphic
characters). Do NOT run any of these files through a "stripping"
process, because you'll lose ALL the effect!
This program was obtained from the SEMPER BBS, Fayetteville NC.
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 19 Oct 87 13:02:48 EDT
From: Joseph A. Cimmino Jr. <jac@umd5.UMD.EDU>
Subject: MIDI and synthesizer for the IBM PC
>From: Erich Neuwirth <A4422DAB%AWIUNI11.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU>
>
>I have heard rumors that together with the PS/2 family IBM also announced
>a synthesizer card with built in MIDI interface and the card also should
>be able to run on the PCbus, not only in the microchannel. IBM in Europe
>does not know anything about it.
From the April 2nd announcements:
The IBM PC Music Feature, available April 1987, Price $495. Feature
code 6011. Part number 81X8630.
Highlights: Stereo FM synthesized sound, headphone connection, MIDI
1.0 compatible, sound generation independent of host CPU.
It is a PC card, not microchannel. Can play up to 8 notes simul-
taneously, has 336 preprogrammed voices/instruments. Headphone connector,
right/left stereo outputs and MIDI interface.
------------------------------
Date: Sat 14 Nov 87 16:23:43-EST
From: Jim Celoni S.J. <su.Celoni@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Software for MIDI based systems
From: "David M. Zielke" <ZIELKEXN%RICE.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
> I am looking for some software which can drive MIDI based systems from
>an honest to goodness IBM-PC. [Mother] is interested in playing some
>piano music on a MIDI keyboard... Then have the computer play it back...
> She has heard of some packages called composer or some such... One
>from a company called 'Unicorn Software'?....
Maybe your Mom heard about Jim Miller's Personal Composer ($495, P. O.
Box 648, Honaunau, HI 96726, 808/328-9518); it includes a sequencer (record
and playback), score editor/printer, DX7 voice editor, extensible via the
included Lisp subsystem. She needs an EGA and color display or "herculoid"
card and monochrome, plus lots of memory and a hard disk. There are other
sequencers on the market too, such as Voyetra Sequencer Plus series and
IBM's own. Best bet is to ask a nearby musician who's used some of them,
look for reviews in magazines such as Electronic Musician and Keyboard, and
visit a music store to try the software out.
To connect an IBM compatible to a MIDI keyboard, she'll need an inter-
face such as the IBM Music Feature (see Carter Scholz's remarks last
issue), Roland MPU-401 and MIF-IPC, or Voyetra OP-4001.
Finally, Mark of the Unicorn (617/ 576-2760) (Unicorn Software is
another, unrelated, company) publishes Professional Composer and Performer
for the Macintosh. She can see those at a music store too... +j
Claimer: (vice DISclaimer) I have worked for Personal Composer and use a
PC, a Roland interface, and Mark of the Unicorn's FinalWord II.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 87 01:25 EDT
From: Bruce H. McIntosh <Z8BHM%SCFVM.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: IBM Music Feature
The rumored device does indeed exist. It is the IBM Music Feature.
What it is: a Yamaha FB-01 synthesizer module on a PC-bus card. You
program the device from the pc keyboard, and play it either from the pc or
(obviously more desirable) from any MIDI keyboard.
For more details, see the October 1987 issue of Musician magazine. It
retails for $495.00 US. One neat feature of the Music Feature (according
to the reviews) is that you can use the pc for other tasks while someone is
playing the synthesizer from a MIDI-connected keyboard.
Disclaimer: I have no connections, financial or otherwise, with either
IBM or Yamaha (who nonetheless makes some really nice synthesizers).
------------------------------
Date: Sat 14 Nov 87 16:23:43-EST
From: Jim Celoni S.J. <su.Celoni@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Adding Memory to an EGA
From: ephram@violet.Berkeley.EDU
>Upon closer inspection the IBM EGA adapter takes 150ns 4164's. He got
>them to take back the old ones and we are waiting for the new ones...
Unless IBM has changed the board's design from the one I have, it
won't: the IBM EGA's graphics memory module uses TMS 4416s (16K-by-4 bits,
not 64K-by-1 bit like 4164s). +j
------------------------------
Date: Sat 14 Nov 87 16:23:43-EST
From: Jim Celoni S.J. <su.Celoni@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Word processors w/ multiple columns.
From: csmoko@NSWC-OAS.ARPA (Charles Smoko)
> I was wondering if anyone on the NET knew of a word processor that
>supported multiple columns(like a newspaper).
FinalWord II 2.20 (FW Corp., 617/ 576-2760) and Word 4.0 (Microsoft,
800/426-9400) "does columns" quite well.
+j
------------------------------
Date: Sat 14 Nov 87 16:23:43-EST
From: Jim Celoni S.J. <su.Celoni@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: USENET Query
From: David Kirschbaum <kirsch@braggvax.arpa>
> A friend asked me how to reach USENET (via ARPA, dial-up, whatever),
>how to join USENET....
Your friend might be able to join a nearby "Public access Unix" system
(rates vary). For $10/month plus Telenet hourly (or PC Pursuit monthly)
charges, the Portal System (check with Phil_Sih%cup.portal.com@sun.com)
carries Usenet groups too. There are also uucp/netnews implementations
such as Lauren Weinstein's UULINK (see UUCP.LAUREN in the Info-IBMPC
library) that make an IBM compatible into a full-fledged Usenet host.
+j
------------------------------
Date: 20 Oct 87 11:06:19 GMT
From: (Michael J. Farren) <lll-winken!gethen!farren@uunet.UU.NET>
Subject: 6 Megabyte Floppies
I would like to point out that the 6M floppies being marketed right now
are not new technology. I first saw one of these some five years ago at a
West Coast Computer Fair. I have a large number of reservations about this
device. First, if it was as good as it claims, why hasn't it succeeded
before now, especially since hard drives cost 10 times as much then as they
do now? Second, if the media were supposed to get cheaper over time, why
hasn't it done so already? Third, what is the technique used to get such a
large data density onto a flexible medium?
Until I get answers to these and other concerns, I am going to reserve
judgment, and am certainly going to reserve my money!
Michael J. Farren
unisoft!gethen!farren
gethen!farren@lll-winken.arpa
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 87 17:45 N
From: <VANLENT%HWALHW5.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: t3 word processor
We have heard about a wonderful word-processing package called T3. It
is a product of TCI Software Research Inc. located in New Mexico. We made
some inquiries here in Duckland. We have been informed that the price is
about 2000 florins (=900$), and that we had to buy every printer driver,
for about f450. Is this universally the case? We asked some people in
England and they received all the drivers without paying any extra money.
So we started to wonder.
Boudewijn van Lent
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 87 11:29:09 EDT
From: John Owens <OWENSJ%VTVM1.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: 3.5 inch diskettes
>Recently we were experimenting with formatting 3.5 inch diskettes in the
>high density drive on a PS/2 Model 60. We used Maxell MF2-DD diskettes,
>labeled double sided, double density, double track (135 tpi). The vendor
>who sold them to us said that they are 720K diskettes. Yet the 1.44M
>drive on the PS/2-60 formatted them at 1.44M with no complaint (and no bad
>sectors). They seemed to work just fine afterwards. Does anyone know
>why?
>
>... are the kinds really manufactured in different ways?
With standard (non-HD) 5.25" diskettes, they are all made as DSDD, then
if a side fails, the other side is used as a SSDD diskette. Similarly, if
they fail too badly to be DD but can be SD, they're marked DSSD or SSSD.
The proportions that are marked, say, SSDD vs DSSD, when they could go
either way are based on expected sales. I'm sure the situation is similar
for 3.5" diskettes with the new high density format, but the diskettes you
had were probably manufactured before the 1.44M drives were in common use,
so they are likely to have passed a 1.44M certification test, except that
the test was never done. Once a manufacturer does start selling both
grades, you use the lower grades at risk of possible data loss after the
disk has been in use for a while....
------------------------------
Date: 1987 Oct 20 23:39 EDT
From: Bob Babcock <PEPRBV%CFAAMP.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Hercules in Compaq
I have a Hercules clone board running in an original Compaq portable as a
replacement for the Compaq video board. I did this because I needed the
higher resolution for a CAD program and didn't have any free slots. There
are several problems to watch out for:
1. The Compaq has an LPT1 port on the disk controller board, and most Her-
cules clones also have an LPT1 port. If you have two such ports, neither
will work. Neither the Compaq port nor the one on the original style Her-
cules board can be disabled or changed to LPT2 without attacking the
hardware. (I believe that you can disable the port on the new Hercules
RAM-font board, but that wasn't available when I was doing the installa-
tion.) Some of the clones do allow you to disable the port, which is what
I did.
2. You may need a BIOS upgrade to get the machine to boot. Compaq tech
support claimed that this shouldn't be true, but my machine wouldn't boot
until the BIOS chip was replaced, and another Compaq with an even older
BIOS ignored the motherboard switch which was supposed to tell it to use a
monochrome board.
3. Many pieces of software will do an INT 10H with function 2 or 3, either
one of which will switch back to the Compaq video board. I wrote a TSR
which intercepts such calls and changes them to function 7 so that the Her-
cules board stays active. I can send you the source if you want it.
4. I doubt if you can get a Hercules board to drive the internal monitor.
I needed a larger external monitor anyway, but you won't have a portable
machine anymore.
5. When I was investigating this question, Compaq told me that this was
not a supported configuration, and that some software would not work. I
haven't run into problems as long as I use my TSR to prevent switching
modes, but I haven't tried to run a lot of different programs.
------------------------------
Date: Thu 22 Oct 87 10:19:34 GMT+1
From: XFCASSAM%HUTRUU0.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu
Subject: Absolute disk read/write from Turbo Pascal v6.68
I think it is a bit unfair to say that the problem with using INT 25H
and INT 26H from Turbo Pascal is a bug in Turbo Pascal. As the IBM Techni-
cal Manual states: be sure to pop the stack to prevent uncontrolled growth
(because return information is passed on the stack). This is thus the
peculiarity of these INTs and Turbo Pascal can do nothing about that. In-
stead of INT 25H and INT 26H you can use INT 13H to the same effect.
The following self-explanatory procedures have to be used. I have used
these often and they work just fine. The only difference is that you must
pass the track/head/sector instead of the logical sector. You can let the
program compute the one from the other.
I hope this is useful to you and others with this problem.
TYPE registers= RECORD
AX,BX,CX,DX,DI,DS,ES,BP,Flags:integer;
END;
VAR buffer:ARRAY [1..512] OF byte;
PROCEDURE ReadSector(drive:char; track,head,sector:byte; VAR ok:boolean);
VAR regs:registers;
BEGIN
WITH regs DO BEGIN
ES:=Seg(buffer); BX:=Ofs(buffer);
AX:=(2 SHL 8)+1; {2=>read, 1=> 1 sector to be read}
CX:=(track SHL 8)+sector;
DX:=(head SHL 8)+ord(drive)-65;
Intr($13,regs);
ok:=(Flags AND 1)=0);
END;
END;
PROCEDURE WriteSector(drive:char; track,head,sector:byte; VAR ok:boolean);
VAR regs:registers;
BEGIN
WITH regs DO BEGIN
ES:=Seg(buffer); BX:=Ofs(buffer);
AX:=(3 SHL 8)+1; {2=>write, 1=> 1 sector to be read}
CX:=(track SHL 8)+sector;
DX:=(head SHL 8)+ord(drive)-65;
Intr($13,regs);
ok:=(Flags AND 1)=0);
END;
END;
Regards, Anneke Sicherer-Roetman, Utrecht State University, Netherlands
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 28 Oct 87 13:23:44 EST
From: mlsmith@nadc.arpa (M. Smith)
Subject: Zenith and Hitachi CD-ROM Player
I got the Silver Platter software up on an IBM-PC/AT with 640K memory,
40 meg hard drive, Enhanced Graphics Adapter (Video 7) and a Sony (marked
Romulus) CD-ROM Player. The software seemed to want more than 512K with the
EGA. I had to gut the config.sys file to just the device = cdrom.sys
statement to get it to run. I did not get the screen corruption, but with
insufficient memory the software would not load (infinite drive light on
A).
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 26 Oct 87 15:38:06 EST
From: boyd@braggvax.arpa
Subject: Re-direction of I/O to COM1 on Z-248
At the operating system level, does anyone know of a method to redirect
console I/O to the COM1 port? Am attempting to implement Dbase III from a
remote site (via PROCOMM shell mode) and the effect is that "REMOTE" locks
because all I/O is directed to HOST console during DBASE III execution.
Control is returned to REMOTE upon existing DBASE III.
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 26 Oct 87 15:14:53 EST
From: Brady%UDEL.EDU@dewey.udel.edu
Subject: codeview
I tried to call Codeview on a 265K .exe file and got a "not enough
space" error message. The machine I use is an IBM compatible Zenith with
640K of memory. Codeview needs 140K and DOS needs 40K, leaving about 200
K to work with.
Does Codeview really need that much scratch space? If not, can someone
suggest why I would get such an error message?
Thanks in advance.
joe brady
[Generally, this error means that FILES=XX in the CONFIG.SYS file has not been
set. There should be a line for FILES=20 (20 is MAX) and BUFFERS=XX in the
file. The NOT ENOUGH SPACE error usually means that it can't open as many
files as it wants. Default for FILES is 8. Five of these are taken up by
the standard DOS I/O handles. gph]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 27 Oct 87 22:33 N
From: <BARNEVEL%HWALHW50.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Help recovering my RECOVERed files
I wanted to CHKDSK my 20Mb hard-disk, but instead of issuing the CHKDSK
command, I unfortunately entered RECOVER C: The result is that all my 512
files are renamed to FILExxxx.REC, including the directory files. The ob-
vious question is: is there a program that can "recover" the FILExxxx.REC
files into the original ones (including the .DIR files).
If not, is the original filename still available in the file? And what
is the format of the REC files. Since an EXE file doesn't seem to work with
a command like FILExxxx.REC, there must have occurred changes during the
Recover operation.
Where do I go from here?
Peter Barneveld
fysko@hwalhw5.bitnet
------------------------------
Date: 27 Oct 87 1:52 -0500
From: Peter Stokes | CMC Kingston <stokes%cmc.cdn%ubc.csnet@RELAY.CS.NET>
Subject: DECNET for the PC
I would like to DECNET my IBM PC AT to our VMS VAX (8530)... the main
objective is to be able to send and receive VMS mail at each node. The
data medium could be RS232 but preferably Ethernet (I am currently using
EXCELAN TCP/IP Ethernet for file transfer). Do you know of any software
(and/or hardware) to accomplish this? Is there something I can integrate
with the current ethernet package I am using? Can you warn me away from
any specific programs?
All help is appreciated!
Cheers,
Peter Stokes
stokes@qucdncmc.bitnet
stokes@cmc.cdn
------------------------------
Date: 27 Oct 87 1:48 -0500
From: Peter Stokes | CMC Kingston <stokes%cmc.cdn%ubc.csnet@RELAY.CS.NET>
Subject: Request for recommendations for an ATI EGA Wonder Board
- Any recommendations for/against installing an ATI EGA Wonder in a true
IBM PC AT with a TATUNG 1380F RGB monitor? We plan to use Lotus 123,
Datatrieve and will be writing some custom graphics software.
- Given the above graphics card and monitor and the IBM PC-DOS/Microsoft C
compiler, what is the best way to write C programs to draw X-Y graphs
within an already written C program? I.E. IBM sell a package called
"Graphics Development Toolkit" (order # 6024196)... is this the way to go?
If you have used this package or can recommend another way...
Please reply directly to me... I will summarize to the net if interest ex-
ists.
Cheers,
Peter Stokes
stokes@qucdncmc.bitnet
stokes@cmc.cdn
------------------------------
Date: Thu 29 Oct 87 19:33:48-EST
From: Dan Benderly <BENDERLY@CS.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Enhanced Keyboard
I just bought an AT clone with an enhanced keyboard, hoping that I
could finally rid myself of the Num-Lock madness. Unfortunately, I find
that the machine boots up with the keypad configured as cursor-control
keys. Is there anyway for me to have it automatically go into Num-Lock
mode ? I've found that the same thing happens on a Compaq 286 with the en-
hanced keyboard. Thanks in advance for any help.
Dan Benderly
(benderly@cs.columbia.edu)
------------------------------
Date: 17 October 1987, 21:49:22 EDT
From: SMILOWTZ%OUACCVMB.bitnet@wiscvm.wisc.edu
Subject: Computer messaging / recording / transactions on an IBM LAN
Rumor has it that if there is an answer to a problem using IBM's it can
be found by letting the users of the ibmpc-l network know about it. So,
what follows is the problem. If you can help, please send your response
directly to SMILOWTZ@OUACCVMB.
To do some investigations on the effects of computer messaging on deci-
sion making, we're in need of some specialized software.
We have access to a lab of 20 IBM-PC's that are connected with IBM's
LAN network, using an IBM-AT as the network server. But, we haven't been
able to configure IBM's network communication software to allow for both:
1. Recording the messages sent and received by users into a single text
file.
2. Recording the source of the message and the time it was sent along with
the times that particular messages were received by different users.
We have already talked with some support people at IBM who felt that
their software cannot be adapted to provide the above functions.
We'd appreciate any help. Perhaps someone has access to some software
that can be used for this project. Please send any suggestions....now-a-
days, it's awful wanting to do something interesting, but being tied up by
inadequate technology!
Thank you,
Michael Smilowitz (SMILOWTZ @ OUACCVMB)
School of Interpersonal Communication
Ohio University
ARPA: <smilowitz%ouaccvmb.bitnet@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
------------------------------
Date: Sat 14 Nov 87 16:23:43-EST
From: Jim Celoni S.J. <su.Celoni@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: DOS 3.3 ^U/^W patches?
Except for the first copies of DOS 3.1 IBM shipped, the code to make
control-U clear the current DOS command line (like Escape but without the
backslash and move to the next screen line) and control-W clear the current
word was NOP'd.
I've seen files that include a two-byte patch to re-enable ^U and ^W
(along with others to, e.g., make ECHO OFF the default in .BAT files); they
have names like DOS31.PAT and DOS32PAT.ARC.
Is there a patch that makes Ctrl-U and Ctrl-W work for DOS 3.3?
Thanks. +j
------------------------------
Date: Mon 19 Oct 87 14:00:39-PDT
From: Ted Shapin <BEC.SHAPIN@ECLA.USC.EDU>
Subject: Determining Type of Graphics adapter
How can I determine what type of graphics controller is installed in a PC,
e.g. EGA, CGA, Hercules, VGA, etc.?
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 19 Oct 87 17:47 EDT
From: Mike Connelly-Semiconductor Research <MDC%src.org@RELAY.CS.NET>
Subject: Wordperfect on DEC's VAXmate
Anyone out there using DEC's VAXmates?
Well, we got a few and are trying to run Wordperfect on them. It installs
and runs fine, but we can't seem to get underlining to work. Yes, we have
tried the Ctrl/f3 (in WP) and using the single color setting and then
choosing underlining, but we either get reverse video (when selecting
reverse video for underlining), or very dim characters (when selecting un-
derlining for underlining). In either case, no actual underlining.
We called the Wordperfect folks with no help - ("Right, what's a VAXmate").
We called DEC's VAXmate folks with no help - ("Right, what's Wordperfect").
Has anyone seen this on other PC/AT (80286) compatibles? DEC claims full
CGA emulation, but...
If there are other VAXmate users out there, I'd like to here from you.
Thanks.
Michael D. Connelly CSNET: mdc@src.org
Mgr, Info Systems
Semiconductor Research Corp.
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 87 12:52:13 MEZ
From: (Johannes Demel Digitalrechenzentrum)
<Z3000JD%AWITUW01.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Receive Spooling for COMx-Ports
Does anyone has a public domain resident spooler (TSR) which is able to
write all the bytes, received on the COM1 or COM2 port, to a file?
Johannes Demel, Technical University Vienna
BITNET: Z3000JD@AWITUW01
------------------------------
Date: Tue 20 Oct 87 09:51:19-EDT
From: Frank da Cruz <SY.FDC@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU>
Subject: Use of Kermit by the Disabled
In preparing version 2.30 of MS-DOS Kermit for release, we are trying
to make the program as useful as possible for people with disabilities like
motor impairment, blindness, or deafness. This program provides terminal
emulation and file transfer for PCs in the IBM PC family, for IBM com-
patibles, the DEC Rainbow, and many other MS-DOS systems. There are
several factors that could inhibit Kermit's use by the disabled:
The escape sequence to get back to Kermit after connecting to a remote
system is Ctrl-] followed by C. People who can only press one key at a
time should not be required to enter control sequences. Similarly, people
with only one hand should not be expected to type control characters beyond
their reach. The new release will allow the Kermit escape-back or other
CONNECT-level escape commands to be assigned to single keys, like F1. So
far so good.
The screen display during file transfer has fields for the filename,
the number of packets transferred so far, the number of bytes, etc. These
fields are updated randomly, so that Kermit's output during file transfer
would make little sense when redirected to a Braille or voice device. SET
DISPLAY SERIAL remedies this.
During terminal emulation, Kermit bypasses DOS and the BIOS and writes
directly to screen memory. This would also bypass any special drivers in-
stalled by people with voice or Braille output devices. The command SET
TERMINAL NONE turns off terminal emulation and uses DOS for all screen
writes, allowing DOS or BIOS-level drivers to be used.
In order to allow the widest possible range of key re-definitions, Ker-
mit uses the BIOS to obtain key scan codes, thus bypassing any DOS-level
console drivers, like ANSI.SYS (but not BIOS-level drivers like SuperKey
and ProKey). Kermit can be directed to use DOS to obtain key codes, but
then the distinction is lost between various keys (like the digit "2" above
the "Q" and "W", and the digit "2" on the numeric keypad). However, when
DOS is used, there is an apparent problem in DOS itself when multiple
characters are assigned to a single key (involving non-blocking character
reads). Thus BIOS-level keyboard handling could potentially bypass DOS-
level drivers distributed with special keyboards, but DOS-level drivers
could have annoying restrictions.
Please help us to make the program as useful as possible by answering
the following questions (or offering any other comments):
1. If you are directing screen output to a voice, Braille, or other device,
please let us know what the device is, how the redirection is done, and (if
you know it) whether the redirection is at the DOS, BIOS, or hardware
level. Also, are there screen drivers for the deaf that translate sounds
(like the terminal beep) into special visual effects? Again, at what level
do they operate?
2. If you have a special keyboard, keyboard replacement, or keyboard
driver, please let us know about it. Does the driver operate at the DOS,
BIOS, or hardware level? Does the device look like a real keyboard to the
system's BIOS?
3. What about TDD modems? Clearly, Kermit or other ASCII-based communica-
tion programs are not compatible with Baudot-only TDD systems. Translating
between ASCII and Baudot is not a practical solution, because the ASCII al-
phabet is more than twice the size of Baudot. Packet-mode file transfer
would be impossible because the Kermit packets could not be uniquely
reconstructed on the receiving end. Presumably there is movement in the
TDD world away from Baudot to ASCII code?
4. Any other considerations we may have overlooked?
Thanks for your help!
Frank da Cruz
Columbia University
Center for Computing Activities
612 West 115th Street
New York, NY 10025 USA
Network addresses:
SY.FDC@CU20B.COLUMBIA.EDU (Internet)
FDCCU@CUVMA (BITNET)
...uunet!columbia!cu20b!sy.fdc (Usenet)
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 21 Oct 87 20:10:52 EDT
From: Jim Tedeschi <JTT58%ALBNYVM1.BITNET@itsgw.rpi.edu>
Subject: Microsoft Chart & Ventura Publishing
I am having a problem putting charts (graphs) from Microsoft Chart (3.0
or 4.0) into Ventura Publishing. I tried to capture the Chart screen with
Frieze from PC Paintbrush, but it froze my screen and I had to reboot. I
did have a picture, however, but it was not enough like the original. I
thought about Windows Clipboard, but Ventura runs in GEM, so that won't
work - incompatible environments. I know that Video Show will convert
Chart into a format that will work with Ventura, but that is an expensive
piece of software to use just as a utility. Does anyone know how to solve
my problem? Thanks.
------------------------------
Date: Wed 28 Oct 87 22:11:29
From: Rmz <id.ifi.remseth-bjoern%SIRI@verd.uio.no>
Subject: Drill CAD
A friend of mine writes drill programs for a band. He figures out
what the band should do out on the field, writes it out on large pieces of
paper and then instructs the band. The band he writes for is a military
band, but it looks more or less like a marching band when you see it on
the field.
From some obscure source he has heard that somewhere in the world there
might be at least one program for the IBM-PC that will help him to do this.
This is about as much as I know. If any of you have heard anything more
about such a program, please send me a message.
(Rmz)
Bjoern Remseth ! ARPA/Internet: rmz@ifi.no.edu
Institute of Informatics !
University of Oslo !
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 30 Oct 87 12:52 EDT
From: James Jones <JAMES%vaxe.coe.northeastern.edu@RELAY.CS.NET>
Subject: Bug in MS-DOS 3.2
In the ASCII and Ye shall Receive Column by Lewis Perdue in October
1987 Boston Computer Currents, the author talked about a MS-DOS 3.2 bug
concerning stack pointers. Perdue said that the CONFIG.SYS file there
should be a line saying this:
STACKS=64,128
Can anyone tell me about this?
Sincerely Yours,
James E. Jones
College of Engineering
Northeastern University
Boston, Massachusetts 02115
CSNet: james@vaxe.coe.northeastern.edu
ARPA: james@vaxe.coe.northeastern.edu@relay.cs.net
BITnet:james@vaxe.coe.northeastern.edu@csnet-relay
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 28 Oct 87 13:12 EST
From: Joshua D. Males <josh%ILJCT.BITNET@wiscvm.wisc.edu>
Subject: Tek PC4100 board
Can I use a Tek PC4100 board on an EGA monitor? If not, what kind of
monitors can I use it on?
Many thanks,
Josh Males
Jerusalem College of Technology
21 Rechov HaVaad HaLeumi
Givat Mordechai, Jerusalem
ISRAEL
Bitnet: josh@iljct
------------------------------
Date: 28 Oct 87 16:29:39 GMT
From: obroin%hslrswi.UUCP%cernvax.bitnet@jade.berkeley.edu (Niall O'Broin)
Subject: Source of PC hardware info
Is there a single good source of detailed low level and hardware info
about PC, AT and compatibles ?
Books such as Ray Duncan's Advanced MS-DOS (good, but doesn't really
cover the ground as described above), Peter Norton's Programmer's Guide To
The IBM PC (which I had and whose loss I don't particularly regret) and his
Inside The IBM PC (which I looked at-forget it) just don't have the infor-
mation I want.
Understand that I am not unfamiliar with MS-DOS and what I am looking
for - I just want/need to know more. I have access to DOS Technical
reference and IBM hardware technical reference manuals, but it can be dif-
ficult to extract information from them. The kind of information I am
talking about is EGA programming details, port addresses of devices, etc.
etc.
Perhaps such a book does not exist - a lot of what I know about the
subject has been gleaned from snippets here and there - sometimes I copied
them, but more often not.
So how about it, netlanders? Does The Hitchhikers Guide To The PC
exist? If so, could someone please give me directions to the nearest
store.
Regards,
Niall O Broin
AXE Software Development
Hasler AG +-----------------------------+
Berne +This space available for rent|
Switzerland +-----------------------------+
BITNET obroin%hslrswi.UUCP@cernvax.BITNET
UUCP .. {uunet,mcvax ..}!cernvax!hslrswi!obroin
------------------------------
End of Info-IBMPC Digest
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