Info-Mac-Request@SUMEX-AIM.STANFORD.EDU (The Moderators) (07/18/89)
Info-Mac Digest Mon, 17 Jul 89 Volume 7 : Issue 122
Today's Topics:
CD-ROM's: The really BIG question.
Comments on File Translations
C vs Pascal
downloading Mac files from Bitnet (was: help with .hqx)
Driver refNums
Equations and MSWord
Info on Timbuktu
Postscripted Logo on Word 4
System icons different?
turning postscript into epsf
Two system folders
Unix program submission
Where to begin?
WordRef 1.0: cross-referencing and bibliography for Word
Your Info-Mac Moderators are Bill Lipa, Lance Nakata, and Jon Pugh.
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Date: Sat, 15 Jul 89 12:37 MDT
From: Reitman%UNCAMULT.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: CD-ROM's: The really BIG question.
Thanks for the many response re: using text files as a database. Most
answers had UNIX solutions, however the maker of an old indexing
HyperCard stack, TEXAS, has released a beauty of a stack which is a big
improvement over TEXAS, called TEX v.5.1. It is available on info-mac
as "tex-05.hqx", compu$erve and genie as "TEX 5.1". Thanks to "5268
Spires, Shannon V." <svspire at SANDIA.GOV> for the tip.
TEX is very clever, but it is magnetic disc based. Parsing is still too
slow for CD-ROM, which is too slow in the first place.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, The big question on everybodies mind is:
HOW DO WE CREATE A DATA INDEX THAT WILL POINT TO AN ADDRESS LOCATION ON
THE CD-ROM.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can do this for the audio tracks on CD-ROM. You can do this for
video frames on videodisk.
How do we do this for data?
The ideal answer would include: A way to simulate the CD-ROM drive
locations while creating an index on magnetic medium, like a 600 meg
hard drive.
So that we: Can create an index that points to start and end "address"
locations of data (or whatever) by character, paragraph, string, chunk,
etc. (you get the idea).
FRANKLY ("Don't call me Frank" Airplane, the movie), this is the $64,000
question that must be answered if those of use developing
full-text-retrieval-software search-engines for CD-ROM are to suceed on
the Macintosh.
The answer in the "AppleCD SC Reference" is: "First, take the existing
CD-ROM retrieval engine and port it to the Macintosh operating system"
Which doesn't do any of us who *don't* have DOS based search engines any
good.
It reminds me of Steve Martins joke about how *not* to pay tax on a
million dollars. "First," he says, "get a million dollars...Then don't
pay taxes on it...When the judge asks you why you didn't pay tax on a
million dollars tell him 'I forgot'. When he asks you 'how can you
forget to pay tax on a million dollars', just say "Well excuuuuuuse me!"
:-)
"Ok, Get a CD-ROM search engine."
.eply herer
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 89 14:31:27 CST
From: CK Farn <HT6B0001%TWNMOE10.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: Comments on File Translations
I have a comment on Ron Webster's reply on Jul 13, 89 Vol 7 No 120
regarding translations between Mac and MS-DOS files.
We have been using a MacLink+ marketed by Dataviz which comes with
three parts: a cable, a Mac disk and a PC disk. The Mac disk include
not only the Maclink+ program, but also a set of file translator that
can be used to translate files between Mac and PC. The translators are
compatible with Apple AFE program, so that one can make use of these
translators from AFE. I remember reading somewhere that Dataviz also
markets the translators seperately. The product is good and reliable
and I highly recommend it over transfer via TEXT. It will handle
among other: 1-2-3/Excel, MS WORD/MacWrite, Binary/binary, Text/Text,
Wordstar/MacWrite, WordPerfect/MacWrite ....... My version can only
recognize WordPerfect 4.2 but not 5.0 though.
Regarding the funny ASCII codes, the easiest way to eliminate them is
using a DA called DESKZAP, which allows you to eliminate these codes
easily.
Best Regards,
Farn
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
C.K.Farn Department of Information Management
National Central University BITNET: HT6B0001 @ TWNMOE10
Chung-li, Taiwan HT6B0001%TWNMOE10.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
Republic of China Tel:(03)422-7151x6160 Fax:(03)422-2416
+----------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
Acknowledge-To: <HT6B0001@TWNMOE10>
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 89 14:35:30 EDT
From: Timothy Miller <TSM%BROWNVM.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: C vs Pascal
I'm just curious: Does anyone know what approximate ratios of mac C programmers
to mac Pascal programmers might be?
Tim
tsm@brownvm.brown.edu
tsm@brownvm.bitnet
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 15 Jul 89 00:08:15 CDT
From: GA0095%SIUCVMB.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu (Robert J. Brenstein)
Subject: downloading Mac files from Bitnet (was: help with .hqx)
Getting Macintosh files from Bitnet archives (MacServe at PUCC or
Listserv at RICE) is actually quite a simple process. Those archives
have two kinds of files .txt and .hqx. Both of them are text (meaning
ASCII) files as far as Bitnet and host computers (be it IBM, VAX, or
SUN) are concerned. The difference is that txt files contain only
verbal information whereas hqx files contain binhexed versions of files
in Macintosh format (applications, inits, cdevs, non-TEXT documents...).
Since the files are both text until they get to your Macintosh, you
download them the same way--do not try to convert them on the computer
you use to access Bitnet. However, if the hqx files come in parts as
it is a case with many larger submissions, you should combine them on
the host computer before downloading to the Macintosh--you will have
to download less files and it is usually simpler to append files to
each other on those computers. Once those files are on the Mac, you
can look at them with any text editor (Edit or Qued or JoliWrite or
MockWrite or whatever you like). Txt files need to further processing;
however, hqx files need to be unhexed. Before doing that it is a good
idea to remove the info which is usually above the line telling that
whatever follows needs to be "treated" with Binhex 4. The colons present
in the info will confuse Binhex and you will get CRC error. If you don't
have the Binhex 4 application, you need to get it from a friend or the
local Macintosh User Group. (Warning: Binhex 5 is a completely different
program not a newer version of Binhex 4.) If you have Binhex 4, start
it up and select the Upload to Application item from its File menu, then
select the file you want to convert to Macintosh format. The second
dialog will allow you to rename or place into any folder. Typically, one
just approves whatever it is shown there--the default name will be that
of the file before it was binhexed. Alternatively, you can use StuffIt
(version 1.5.1 is recommended) which has an option to decode Binhexed
files. From experience, I would recommend to have both of the programs.
I noticed that some files binhexed (I believe) with Stuffit produce
CRC errors when unhexed with Binhex but decode fine with StuffIt. You
may need StuffIt anyway since quite a few hqx files actually are StuffIt
archives. By the way, StuffIt is a shareware and you should also look
for it among your friends or in the local MUG. Another program which may
be needed is PackIt III (latest I saw was version 1.3 I believe). You
need to get it just as the other two. PackIt is an older compression
utility but there are still quite a few packed files in the archives.
You can recognize between the two by the suffix appended to the file
name (after it is unhexed): .sit means StuffIt archive and .pit means
PackIt archive. Each of these two has also a sibling program, Unstuffit
and Unpackit, respectively, which work only one way. If you get them,
they will do as well as the full versions for downloading.
As far as the downloading process, you can use any modem and communication
package you like. It neither makes a difference if you use Kermit or
Xmodem as long as files are transferred correctly.
I hope that the above notes, as brief and condensed as they are, will
help Mark and all other readers of this digest who have problems with
retrieving Macintosh files from Bitnet archives.
Robert
[One comment: if you use StuffIt 1.5.1 to decode the .hqx files, you do NOT
have to strip the file header (the stuff before the This file must be
converted... line). -Bill]
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 89 14:12:29 EDT
From: Timothy Miller <TSM%BROWNVM.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu>
Subject: Driver refNums
I'm in the process of writing a screen saver. The best and most likely to be
compatible way of getting periodic control to check for events and do the
drawing if the mac is idle seems to be to write a driver to use the accRun
control call from SystemTask. However, all the refNum/unit table slots that
aren't used for Apple drivers, desk accessories, or scsi drivers are reserved.
Is there an "Apple reccomended" or "correct" way to determine what refNum I
should use? Should I just write the driver as a desk accessory, require the
user to install it, and load it in at startup with an init? (This last method
doesn't seem too good if desk accessories are going away in the near future.)
Currently I have the driver in a file along with an init. The driver is marked
as sys and locked so that the init can open the driver and then detach the
resource to keep the driver around across launches and after the init file is
closed.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Tim
tsm@brownvm.brown.edu
tsm@brownvm.bitnet
------------------------------
Date: 14 July 89, 08:03:00 MST
From: ICBAL%ASUACAD.BITNET@forsythe.stanford.edu
Subject: Equations and MSWord
I work in a Math Dept. where MS Word and MathType is the favored
combination for preparing tests, referee's reports, etc. But there is a
big problem with Word 4.0 which has sent us scurrying back to Word 3.02:
When an equation is created in MathType (or any other equation
processor) and is pasted into a Word paragraph, it is pasted
sitting "on the baseline" and must be selected and subscripted in
order to line up properly with the line of text it is pasted into.
This is the same in both word 3.0 and 4.0. However, Word 3.0 will
"close up" the space above the pasted line as soon as the equation is
subscripted; but Word 4.0 will not--resulting in a very large gap
above the line containing the equation. This makes for very unsightly
paragraphs. The problem seems to exist with any pasted graphic.
Does anyone know of a solution to this problem with Word 4.0?
I appears that Microsoft wants us to use Word's built-in formulas
(which we don't like) or none at all.
Bruce Long
Department of Mathematics
Arizona State University BITNET: ICBAL@ASUACAD
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 16 Jul 89 23:13 CDT
From: "Sandro Corsi, Univ.of WI-Oshkosh" <CORSI@oshkosh.wisc.edu>
Subject: Info on Timbuktu
Mohamad El Jazzar requested further info on Timbuktu. The reply may have
wider interest, so here it goes:
Timbuktu was produced and originally marketed by WOS Data Systems. The
company has since been taken over by Farallon, which is now in charge of
sales. I believe, however, that tech development still takes place at WOS's
original location. Both addresses follow:
Farallon Computing, Inc.
2150 Kittredge Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
(415) 849-2331
fax: 841-5770
WOS Data Systems, Inc.
1321 Wakarusa Drive
Suite 2010
Lawrence, KS 66044
(913) 843-8101
I bought the product over a year ago, so I'd rather not provide pricing
info which would surely turn out to be outdated. At one point MacConnection
did carry Timbuktu -- and they still might. Refer to their current ad on
any Mac magazine for a reliable "street price".
Essentially, what the program does is replace the screen of any Mac "guest"
on an AppleTalk network with the screen of one Mac "host". If desired, the
keyboards and mice of any of the guests can be used to control the host.
The user at the host machine has full control over access privileges, and
password protection can be used if desired.
The main advantage of the program is that more than one person, regardless
of physical location, can work on the same project and exchange
contributions immediately. In a teaching lab situation, it solves at the
same time the problem of showing the entire class what's going on (without
the logistic problems and expense of a projection system), and of providing
the teacher with feedback as to the students' progress. It also seems to
encourage participation from those not bold enough to stand up and walk to
a blackboard: everyone remains seated at the respective workstations,
resulting in noticeable anxiety abatement.
Problems I have encountered (using slightly-outdated version 2.0.1):
* hardware incompatibilities:
Since Timbuktu uses broadcasting to allow multiple guest connections, our
AppleTalk ImageWriter had to be taken off the network. This is a hardware
problem in the IW AppleTalk interface, and it is high time Apple came out
with an upgrade for it. The problem can be mitigated by segregating the IW
in a different zone and setting Timbuktu not to broadcast across bridges.
Timbuktu and broadcasting also caused our GatorBox to crash repeatedly.
Again, the fault was apparently on the hardware side, and Cayman
(GatorBox's makers) were very helpful in tracking down and solving the bug.
This, BTW, reminds me to point out that "AppleTalk network" means just that
-- regardless of transport layer, so that guests and host can be on any
combination of LocalTalk and Ethernet (and, I imagine, Token Ring as well).
* speed considerations:
Timbuktu works better if it only has to relay QuickDraw commands to draw
the host screen on the guest Mac. However, it is possible to force
transmission of a bitmap for those applications (typically, paint programs)
that twiddle the bits directly. Obviously, in the latter case there is a
lot more network traffic involved, and everything gets noticeably slower.
*interaction limits:
Timbuktu will take over the entire screen of the guest (in fact, if you
have multiple screens, the non-menu ones will be visible, but inactive). It
would be nice if it displayed in a window, so as to allow cut-and-paste
betweeen host and guest. In fact, since logging into a host involves some
waiting on a busy network, it would be even nicer to have multiple sessions
going on in multiple windows, allowing one-click-away switching.
File transfer between host and guest is available in the new version (3.0),
but I cannot comment on it as yet.
The host mouse and keyboard have priority over other input attempts, but
the guests are all on the same level. It's easy in our lab to have a
student start a drawing -- and watch it turn into garbled scribbles because
someone at another guest Mac jerked the mouse. It would help if input at
one guest locked out momentarily inputs from all other guests.
Tech support may cause some concern, because (as of a couple of months ago)
there are, apparently, just two people in charge -- and when they're out
for lunch you're out of luck. However, the program is fairly
straightforward and no major problems should come up.
The package's "anti-piracy" scheme involves entering a valid serial number
at each workstation. The number is recorded on a configuration file, and
can be changed at any time -- but no two workstation on the same net can
have the same number at the same time.
Hope the above is of help. Best regards,
Sandro Corsi
Art Dept.
Univ. of Wisconsin - Oshkosh
Oshkosh, WI 54901
------------------------------
Date: Fri 14 Jul 89 10:02:02-PDT
From: Bonnie Hiller <HILLER@score.stanford.edu>
Subject: Postscripted Logo on Word 4
I'm using Word 4 to produce business documents for the Computer Forum.
I want the Stanford Logo on our letterhead, and I have a postscripted
version that I use. The problem is this:
When the logo prints on the first page of any document, it prints
about a quarter of an inch too low and prints over the return address.
On all subsequent pages of the document, the logo prints where it
should.
I have tried putting the logo postscript information in the body of
the document, I've put it in as a first header and as a plain header.
I've tried it in all of these places as hidden text.
When I called Technical Support at Microsoft they had me make a small
change to the name of the Word Settings document in the Systems folder
and told me to start up Word again. That didn't work, and they seemed
mystified.
So far the only solution is to take my one page document, copy it so I
have two pages saying the same thing, and then print it. The second
page comes out ok, and the first page I use as a file copy.
Does anyone have a solution or at least some suggestions towards a
solution for this problem?
-Bonnie
-------
-------
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 89 11:46:54 CDT
From: Revised List Processor (1.5o) <LISTSERV%RICE@rice.edu>
Subject: System icons different?
I have a problem. My system, Finder, Clipboard and scrapbook icons
have all changed. Sounds like the scores virus, right? Well maybe.
I have already found two virus programs on my hard disk drive, so
I have done a lot of reading. I know that the scores virus changes those same
icons, however it changes them to documents, mine changed to better drawings of
the mac plus with shadded screens? In addition my drive is testing clean, I am
testing with various shareware and PD packages. Could it be scores or is it
something else? Hopefully, its not a virus at all, but something I did like
putting a file in the system folder or making my system file to large.
Any ideas?
Lee Brannon ---------- CCREBEL @ INDST
[Colorfinder?]
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 89 14:44 CDT
From: Fred Schulz <CHEE77@uhvax1.uh.edu>
Subject: turning postscript into epsf
> While we're on the subject of postscript, does any one know the file format
> for doing an EPSF file such that when it is imported it displays a screen
> rendtion of what is contained in the postscript code.
According to MacWeek of july 11 p. 20, Smart Art by Emerald
City Software, 415-324-8080, "can open PostScript text files. download
the postscript commands to your laserwriter, pull back the image from
the printer, display it on the sceen and save it as an EPS file."
It's sold by macZone (1-800-248-0800) for $89.
I've never seem the product, nor have I bought anything from MacZone.
------------------------------
Date: 17 Jul 89 06:18:36 GMT
From: Scott Truesdell <truesdel@ics.uci.edu>
Subject: Two system folders
A very simple way to maintain two system folders is to simply drag the
Finder out of the folder you don't want to boot and drag the
appropriate copy of the Finder into the folder you DO wish to boot.
You usually have to open and close the folder to "bless" it.
Simple. Uncomplicated.
scott
truesdel@ics.uci.edu
--
Scott Truesdell
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 15 Jul 89 16:18:22 -0700
From: johnroc@ucsco.ucsc.edu (John Rocchio (x2578))
Subject: Unix program submission
Here is a shar file that contains a set of shell scripts, awk scripts and
c programs to ask for and retrive a given number of days worth of
submissions to info-mac. Mail questions or comments to johnroc@ucsco.ucsc.edu
[Archived as /info-mac/unix/info-mac-access.shar; 16K]
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 89 11:33:25 CDT
From: Revised List Processor (1.5o) <LISTSERV%RICE@rice.edu>
Subject: Where to begin?
Fellow Mac evangelist and Macinoids, I am currently trying to
expand my knowledge of the macintosh inerds and I keep running into
brick walls. I am using Resedit and several ICON changing packages to
try and create my own ICON# and ICONS, however I have little knowledge
about the subject and all my efforts end in frustration. For example:
I added some icon resources to a HyperCard stack, this worked, but I changed
the ICON for the stack (In resedit it shows its changed) and when I go back
to the desktop its still the same? Can ICONS for Documents and Stacks be
changed?
I read someplace about having to rebuild the desktop, so I tried that, the only
change that took effect was that my icons for Kermit V.09(40) changed back to
pictures of Kermit the frog!
So, I guess what I am asking is for assitance in finding
information on the following topics :
RESEDIT
the DESKTOP
ICONs
ICN#s
and changing resources period.
I have the last two years of MACUSER and last years MACWORLD and ofcourse
access to the INFO-MAC DIGEST archieves, so if anyone knows of some helpful
information in these publications or the name of a good book could you please
send me a message.
Thank you all Lee Brannon
CCREBEL @ INDST
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 89 13:43:05 EDT
From: man@cs.brown.edu
Subject: WordRef 1.0: cross-referencing and bibliography for Word
Here is an application and HyperCard stack I developed for producing cross-
references and bibliographies using Word 3/4. It is yet another facility
which uses the Print Merge facility of Word, but I have tried to do it in
a way which is more general than any of the systems which preceded me, so
that it should be able to handle virtually any cross-referencing and
bibliography needs. It is a ShareWare package and may be distributed
not-for-profit as long as the application, stack, and document are all
kept together.
Some of the features are:
o No limit on the number of counters (variables) used for cross-
references
o Variables can be combined in general arithmetic expressions
o Increment operators are included for convenience
o Variables can have strings interspersed with numbers
o Can scan Word files directly (if Fast Save is off)
o There can be any number of Word files or bibliography files in a
single manuscript
o The bibliography files are kept in the ever popular BibTeX format
o A HyperCard stack is provided for maintaining the bibliography
files
o Several different citations styles are provided to go at the point
of reference
o A user-definable style sheet is used for formatting the
bibliography entries.
Enjoy!
--Mark
[Archived as /info-mac/app/wordref.hqx; 179K]
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End of Info-Mac Digest
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