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GEnieLamp A2Pro - Vol.1, Issue 08b (October)
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|| |||||| || || |||||| RoundTable
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~ WELCOME TO GENIELAMP A2Pro! ~
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
~ Byteworks To Present 3D Logo Seminars In October ~
~ MAB Desktop Construction Set Released ~ MPW Scripts Now In Library ~
~ Hierarchic Menu Primer ~ MPW Tips ~ Jim Couch Resigns As Editor ~
~ X, Y, And Zmodem Specs Uploaded To Library ~ GNO/ME 2.0 RTC Transcript ~
~ 8/16 Central Tour Begins ~ Thinking About Online Communications ~
~ HOT NEWS, HOT FILES, HOT MESSAGES ~
////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
GEnieLamp A2Pro ~ A T/TalkNET OnLine Publication ~ Vol.1, Issue 08
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Editor.....................................................Jim B. Couch
Publisher.................................................John Peters
Copy-Editor............................................Bruce Maples
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////////////////////
~ GEnieLamp IBM ~ GEnieLamp ST ~ GEnieLamp [PR] ~ GEnieLamp TX2 ~
~ GEnieLamp A2Pro ~ GEnieLamp Macintosh ~ LiveWire Online ~
~ Member Of The Digital Publishing Association ~
GE Mail: GENIELAMP Internet: genielamp@genie.geis.com FTP: sosi.com
////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
>>> WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE APPLE A2Pro ROUNDTABLE? <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
~ October 1, 1993 ~
FROM MY DESKTOP ......... [FRM] HEY MISTER POSTMAN ...... [HEY]
Notes From The Editor. Is That A Letter For Me?
A2PRO ROUNDTABLE STAFF .. [DEV] TOUR OF 8/16 CENTRAL .... [TOU]
Directory of A2Pro Staff. Great Programmers Magazine.
LIBRARY BIT BONANZA ..... [LIB] OFF THE DEEP END ........ [OFF]
HOT Files You Can Download. Something Completely Different.
NIGHTS OF THE ROUNDTABLE [RTC] REFLECTIONS ............. [REF]
Real Time Conference Watch. About Online Commmunications.
GNO/ME 2.0 RTC TRANSCRIPT [GNO] LOG OFF ................. [LOG]
Unix for the IIgs Improves GEnieLamp Information.
[IDX]"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
READING GEnieLamp GEnieLamp has incorporated a unique indexing
""""""""""""""""" system to help make reading the magazine easier.
To utilize this system, load GEnieLamp into any ASCII word processor
or text editor. In the index you will find the following example:
HUMOR ONLINE ............ [HUM]
[*]GEnie Fun & Games.
To read this article, set your find or search command to [HUM]. If
you want to scan all of the articles, search for [EOA]. [EOF] will take
you to the last page, whereas [IDX] will bring you back to the index.
MESSAGE INFO To make it easy for you to respond to messages re-printed
"""""""""""" here in GEnieLamp, you will find all the information you
need immediately following the message. For example:
(SMITH, CAT6, TOP1, MSG:58/M530)
_____________| _____|__ _|O__ |____ |_____________
|Name of sender CATegory TOPic Msg. Page number|
In this example, to respond to Smith's message, log on to page
475 enter the bulletin board and set CAT 6. Enter your REPly in TOPic 1.
A message number that is surrounded by brackets indicates that this
message is a "target" message and is referring to a "chain" of two
or more messages that are following the same topic. For example: {58}.
ABOUT GEnie GEnie's monthly fee is $8.95 for which gives you up to four
""""""""""" hours of non-prime time access to most GEnie services, such
as software downloads, bulletin boards, GE Mail, an Internet gateway,
multi-player games and chat lines, are allowed without charge. GEnie's
non-prime time connect rate is $3.00. To sign up for GEnie service, call
(with modem) 1-800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH. Wait for the U=
prompt. Type: XTX99014,DIGIPUB and hit RETURN. The system will then
prompt you for your information. Need more information? Call GEnie's
customer service line (voice) at 1-800-638-9636.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
//////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE ////
/ "Keeping weight off is pretty simple actually. /
/ My grandfather used to recommend "push-aways. /
/ Not push-ups. /
/ Push-aways...you push the plate away." /
//////////////////////////////////// R.IMMLER ////
[EOA]
[FRM]//////////////////////////////
FROM MY DESKTOP /
/////////////////////////////////
Notes From My Desktop
"""""""""""""""""""""
o TOP OF THE PAGE
o NOTES FROM THE PUBLISHER
>>> TOP OF THE PAGE <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""
~ By Jim B. Couch [GELAMP.A2PRO] ~
WELCOME TO THE OCTOBER A2Pro GEnieLamp! This month marks some changes in
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" the way the lamp is published.
In the past John Peters [GENIELAMP] did much of the layout for all of the
GEnieLamps. Now the responsibility of laying out each lamp is the
responsibility of the individual editor. This has given me a little more
'artistic' control and I have added a couple of new things. As always your
input concerning the Lamp is welcome. This publication is for the members
of A2Pro, and your input is important. Just send your questions, comments,
and suggestions to GELAMP.A2PRO via E-mail.
This month's Lamp also will probably also be the last Lamp I have the
privilege to produce. I have had the opportunity to purchase a business
that I am currently managing and I will not be able to continue to edit the
A2Pro GEnieLamp. Do not fear, although I will not be editing the lamp, it
will continue under the editorship of another person. With my departure,
there is a need for more people to be involved in publishing the A2Pro
Lamp. If you are interested in writing for the Lamp contact GELAMP.A2PRO.
Working for the Lamp is indeed work, but it is also a lot of fun, and you
are compensated with online time!
To all of you out there downloading and reading GEnieLamp A2Pro, thank
you for all of your support. For those who have posted comments and
compliments, I can't thank you enough. Your encouragement has meant the
world to me. I have immensely enjoyed producing the A2Pro Lamp for you
all.
Thank you and enjoy the Lamp!
Jim Couch
GEnieLamp/A2Pro
>>> NOTES FROM THE PUBLISHER <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
~ By John Peters [GENIELAMP] ~
FINALLY, FULL INTERNET ACCESS My latest online adventure started when I
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" spotted an ad in a local computer zine for
low cost access to Internet via an online system called Spectrum. Hmmmm...
Full access to Internet for only $12.95 a month? That's certainly worth a
phone call. So I logged on, had a look around, liked what I saw and signed
up. Since Internet access was the reason I signed on in the first place, I
immediately went to the Internet area. FTP? Telnet? UUCP? It quickly
became obvious that for this online adventure I was first going to have to
do some serious homework.
So, my first step was to add the Internet RoundTable to my Aladdin
auto-pass. Second, I raided their file areas looking for anything and
everything I could find on Internet. (For an excellent primer on Internet,
download Zen and the Art of the Internet, file #40. To get there type:
M1045;3).
Armed with this newly learned knowledge, I once again logged into the
Internet system. My first destination was the Cleveland FreeNet, a popular
system that I used to log onto in my old PC Pursuit days. Within seconds I
had logged on and was searching their file bases for interesting tidbits.
It felt like old times again...
So, what does all of this have to do with GEnieLamp?
I am happy to announce that the nice folks at Spectrum have decided to
offer GEnieLamp to their subscribers and will now also offer GEnieLamp to
Internet members via FTP anonymous access. The address is: sosi.com and
the Lamps are available in the ~/pub/GEnieLamp directory. My personal
address on Spectrum Online Systems is: jpeters.sosi.com
If you do get GEnieLamp via Internet, take a moment to go to our local
conference area, local.genielamp and tell me about you and your Internet
adventure. Who knows? Working together maybe we'll both be able to figure
out this wonderful thing called Internet!
Until next month...
John Peters
GEnieLamp/DigiPub RoundTable
[EOA]
[DIR]//////////////////////////////
A2PRO ROUNDTABLE STAFF /
/////////////////////////////////
By Jim B. Couch
[GELAMP.A2PRO]
______________________________________________
APPLE II PROGRAMMERS & DEVELOPERS ROUNDTABLE
_____ ______ ______________________________________________
/_____|/______\
/__/|__| ___|__| Head Sysop: Matt Deatherage (M.DEATHERAGE)
/__/_|__| /_____/ Assistants: Steve Gunn (A2PRO.STEVE)
/________|/__/ __ __ __ Greg Da Costa (A2PRO.GREG)
/__/ |__|__/______ /_//_// / Todd P. Whitesel (A2PRO.TODDPW)
/__/ |__|________// / \/_/ Jim Maricondo (A2PRO.DYAJIM)
[*][*][*]
[EOA]
[HEY]//////////////////////////////
HEY MISTER POSTMAN /
/////////////////////////////////
Is That A Letter For Me?
""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Jim B Couch
[GELAMP.A2PRO2]
o BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS
o A2PRO ODDS & ENDS
o WHAT'S NEW?
o PROGRAMMER'S TIPS
o HELP WANTED
o HOT TOPICS
o MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT
>>>BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
[*] CAT10, TOP28, MSG{1}..............................Hierarchic INIT
[*] CAT15, TOP15, MSG{133}...............................Menu Manager
[*] CAT17, TOP10, MSG{1}......General Help on File Transfer Protocols
[*] CAT19, TOP15, MSG{90}..................MPW IIgs Cross Development
[*] CAT21, TOP4, MSG{40}.........................Menus and menu bars
[*] CAT36, TOP32, MSG{59}........................................Logo
>>> A2PRO ODDS & ENDS <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
CURRENT A2PRO RTC SCHEDULE
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Sun @ 8:30pm: The A2Pro Sunday Night RTC - general programming
Mon @ 9:30pm: Toolbox Tricks and GS/OS Gadgets - program the toolbox and
GS/OS with your host, Dave Miller
Tue : No RTC. B-(>
Wed @ 9:30pm: HangTime's HyperBar and Grille - discuss HyperCard IIgs
programming tricks
Thu @ 9:30pm: The Graphics and Sound Workshop with your host, Nate Trost
Fri @ 9:30pm: Sloanie's Introduction to Programming
Sat @ 8:30pm: Brian Wells brings you Assembly Language Programming
All times are eastern daylight time. -- HangTime
(A2.HANGTIME, CAT1, TOP5, MSG:69/M530)
HIERARCHIC INIT GETS IT'S OWN TOPIC Due to the increasing level of
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" discussion, and the imminent release
of the programming information, I have created a topic for discussing the
use of the Hierarchic INIT in your programs. This new topic is Topic 28 in
Category 10 (Tools and Utilities for Programmers).
Please continue all Hierarchic related discussion there.
Nate (hierarchical BB topics? Don't we wish.....)
(N.TROST [65Nate16], CAT15, TOP15, MSG:137/M530)
COME JOIN THE A2PRO RTC! It's been just over a month now that we've
"""""""""""""""""""""""" held help for programmers live six nights a week
in A2Pro's real-time conference (RTC).
Now that we've settled in, we notice that while lots of people drop
by, it's only a small percentage of the folks we know are visiting the
roundtable, or who are reading this message.
We provide this service to help people with programming -- learning,
debugging, discussing or implementing. We book guests like Jawaid Bazyar,
who talked to a big room full of people last week about GNO/ME 2.0, or Mike
Westerfield, coming on September 13th to discuss 3D Logo.
In addition to our informal Sunday Night Jam get-together, we have
RTCs on assembly language (Saturday nights), getting started with
programming (Fridays), graphics and sound (Thursday), Toolbox and GS/OS
programming (Monday) and hypermedia with HangTime on Wednesdays.
We think this is a pretty impressive lineup, but a lot of you
apparently don't, because you don't stop by.
Our question to you:
What can we do to improve our RTCs?
--Matt (A2Pro head sysop)
(M.DEATHERAGE [A2Pro Leader], CAT1, TOP5, MSG:57/M530)
[*][*][*]
>>> WHAT'S NEW? <<<
"""""""""""""""""""
MICOL ADVANCED BASIC NEWS In the last mailing I received from Micol,
""""""""""""""""""""""""" they were advertising the Desktop Construction
Set for 29.95. This was shortly after the release of MAB //e v.4.5.
These are a set of routines to add to your code to write desktop programs
using MAB. Instructions are included (on disk).
- Otis
(P.LARSON12, CAT9, TOP18, MSG:10/M530)
MPW SOURCEMENU SCRIPT NOW AVAILABLE IN LIBRARY A lot of people here know
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" that I use MPW IIGS and
I've been asked by a few people if I'd upload some of my scripts and
whatnot.
I just uploaded "SourceMenu". A vastly improved version of the same
script that Apple provides with MPW. (If nothing else, mine at least
supports AsmIIGS files :)
I'll be uploading more scripts in the future (ORCAToMPW, MerlinToMPW,
etc) and I'll also be uploading my macros for MPW IIGS assembler. Much
better than the M16.Util macros that Apple provides.
(BRYAN.ZAK, CAT1, TOP30, MSG:75/M530)
HIERARCHIC INIT INFO UPLOADED TO A2PRO LIBRARY Licensing, programming,
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" and technical information
has been posted; the "HI.ProgInfo.BXY" file should be released and
available soon!
(SEVENHILLS [Dave], CAT10, TOP28, MSG:1/M530)
ED NOTE: HI.ProInfo.BXY is File #3552 in the A2Pro Library.
>>> PROGRAMMER'S TIPS <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
A PRIMER ON HIERARCHICAL MENUS When a menu item is "Hierarchical" it
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" simply means that highlighting that menu
item will pop open a "sub-menu" from which you can make selections.
Platinum Paint is probably the program most everyone has, and the
second release uses hierarchic menus (but not via our Hierarchic INIT).
Using hierarchic menus is not "important", but there are some
advantages for organization in a very large program. For example, instead
of having 12 different menus, you might be able to logically combine some
menus (e.g. in a page layout
USING HIERARCHIC MENUS IS program you might have a
NOT "IMPORTANT", BUT THERE ARE "Type" menu, and that menu you
SOME ADVANTAGES FOR ORGANIZATION might have items for "Font"
IN A VERY LARGE PROGRAM. "Size" and "Style". On
highlighting, those items
would present an appropriate sub-menu. By having those three "main"
choices stuck onto a "Type" menu, you save the space of having 3 separate
menus on the main menu bar.
Hierarchic menus shouldn't be used just for the sake of using them;
like other interface elements you should only use hierarchic menus when
there is a good need. (Apple discourages their use because not all the menu
items are immediately visible to the user, but hierarchic menus are widely
used on the Mac anyway.)
What _IS_ important is that there be one standard way of implementing
hierarchic menus in your application. Having several different, competing
methods will just cause confusion, and probably severe compatibility
problems.
We are proposing that our Hierarchic INIT become the standard that
everyone should use. Not only is our INIT already completed, but it has
been used successfully in several commercial products, and more to come (it
is already installed on many people's systems).
I will monitor this topic, and we will gladly support Hierarchic to
fix any bugs you might discover (the INIT is already at v1.6.1 and appears
to be very stable at this point).
If you play with Hierarchic and have a "BRAM checker", you may notice
that the Hierarchic INIT changes two values in BRAM. This is intentional
-- they are the "Initial Delay" and "Drag Delay" values, and the BRAM
locations have been officially assigned by Apple--we ain't breakin' any
rules! :)
Thanks, --Dave
(SEVENHILLS [Dave], CAT10, TOP28, MSG:3/M530)
HUMAN INTERFACE CONCERNS RELATED TO HIERARCHICAL MENUS Apple also
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" discourages their
use because they're _really_ hard for some people to use. I've pretty much
given up on any program that
APPLE ALSO DISCOURAGES THEIR _only_ lets me change fonts
USE BECAUSE THEY'RE _REALLY_ HARD through a hierarchical font
FOR SOME PEOPLE TO USE. menu (as in they have a menu
item named "Fonts" and it
pops up a regular font menu as a submenu). If I move off the top of the
menu to scroll it, but I hit another menu in the menu bar, it switches to
that menu and I have to start all over again.
Hierarchical menus are _very_ difficult for some people to use. Apple
says absolutely, positively never have them more than one level deep, and
don't use them at all if there are other ways. Except in 320 mode, "I
don't have enough menu bar room" probably means you could use menu bar and
command redesign.
--Matt
(M.DEATHERAGE [A2Pro Leader], CAT21, TOP4, MSG:40/M530)
QUICK TIPS ON USING MPW First, if you're like me, you have one folder
""""""""""""""""""""""" (mine's called "Projects") and that's where all
your current, uh, projects are.
The following added to your UserStartUp-<your name> script can be handy:
UNSET EXIT
DirectoryMenu `files -d -f {Boot}Projects`
directory "{Boot}Projects:WWPro 2.1" }} DEV:NULL
SourceMenu :source:
SET EXIT 1
(NOTE: the }} is supposed to be error-out and is typed as option->)
What does this do?
First, exit is unset so that errors don't causing the script to be
aborted. Then all the folders in the {Boot}Projects folder are added to the
Directory menu (so that selecting them automatically makes them the current
directory!). after that I set the current directory to whatever project I'm
currently working on (in this case, WWPro 2.1). The error redirection is in
case that folder doesn't exist (as happens when I move WWPro 2.1 out of my
projects folder). Then, the best part. SourceMenu is used to build a menu
of all the source files in :WWPro 2.1:source: -- this is good. I can then
open a source file in the WWPro project simply by selecting it from the
SourceMenu. Very good indeed.
DirectoryMenu and Directory are built-in MPW tools. SourceMenu is a
script that I recently uploaded to A2PRO.
Have fun, and watch this spot for more MPW tips!
Bryan
(SOFTDISK.INC [Bryan Zak], CAT19, TOP15, MSG:90/M530)
HOW DOES ONE CALCULATE TRANSFER TIME FOR FILES I started this topic since
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" I couldn't find any other
place to post my questions. Topics 2 and 3 each discuss specific file
transfer protocols, whereas I have a few "non-specific" questions.
I've asked this question in the AppleNET category over in the A2RT
before, but I never got a really clear answer on it. My question is, is
there some sort of formula (for each baud rate or otherwise) I can use to
calculate a reasonable estimation of the amount of time it'll take to
transfer a file with a protocol that the user selects? (eg: Zmodem)
It's been suggested that what I do is keep track of the CPS rates of
previous file transfers, and use the averages of those as benchmarks for
future transfers. But, is there any Q&D formula that can be used?
Your help is much obliged!
Derek Fong
(M.POTTER4 [AppleNET], CAT17, TOP10, MSG:1/M530)
>>>>> Note that most software first estimates and then re-adjusts the
""""" estimation as the transfer goes on. What you do is take the bps
rate, divide by 10 ... that gives you the maximum physical transmission
rate. Now, let's assume your user uses Z-Modem, so you lose 3-4%
(sometimes as much as 5%) of that due to protocol overhead. If the user
has V.42 (bis doesn't matter much for packed data, which I also assume),
the transmission rate will again go up by 10-15% (this is due to the fact
that V.42 leaves out start and stop bits, and throughput is therefore
higher).
So, let's take an example: You user logs in at 16,800 bps, V.42bis,
and uses Z-Modem to get packed data of a length of say 2.3 MB. Using the
above "formula", you end up with roughly 1760 cps, which would take 1370
seconds.
More often than not, actual throughput would be higher than just 1760
cps, so that is why most implementations I have seen start out
"pessimistic" and then update their estimation according to real data
transfer. Of course, at today's modem speed, there might not be a need for
that ... who cares about +- 20 seconds :)
About other protocols: X-Modem CRC halves transmission rate, roughly,
I do not know about Y-Modem. Just try it out.
Yours, Soenke
(S.BEHRENS [Merino], CAT17, TOP10, MSG:2/M530)
<<<<< Thanks for the help; it's really appreciated! I was hoping someone
""""" out there would be able to give me more precise details on some of
the, others:
o Xmodem (CRC, 1k, Checksum)
o Ymodem (batch and 4k)
o Kermit
Now that I have an idea of what Zmodem throughput is like, I'd also
like to know if anyone out there has any idea about the other protocols
I've mentioned. Any takers?
Derek Fong
(M.POTTER4 [AppleNET], CAT17, TOP10, MSG:3/M530)
COMPLETE SPECS FOR XMODEM, YMODEM, AND ZMODEM Just tonight I uploaded
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" file #3560 to A2Pro's
Library, which contains the complete specs for Xmodem, Ymodem, and Zmodem.
:)
Check it out and see if that helps you any.
Dave
(JUST.DAVE [m530 daily!], CAT17, TOP10, MSG:10/M530)
HOW DOES ONE 'SPY' ON IPC? Anyone have any idea on how one would "spy" on
"""""""""""""""""""""""""" what is going on inside of the IPC
communications system?
I want to make a utility that would keep track of messages that are
being sent around in IPC (especially those sent by name), and act on them,
or even possibly intercept them.
The idea here is to keep track of the messages between the Finder and
any installed Finder Extras, but this would have other uses as well.
Any suggestions??
--SnakeBytes
(SNAKEBYTES [SnakeBytes], CAT15, TOP1, MSG:56/M530)
>>>>> Richard Bennett has written a CDA to do just this. :-) You can
""""" find IPCSpy in the A2Pro library, file #3421.
Nate
(N.TROST [65Nate16], CAT15, TOP1, MSG:57/M530)
>>> PROGRAMMERS WANTED <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
65816 PROGRAMMERS WANTED FOR SNES DEVELOPMENT There's a new cartridge
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" development company
starting up in central California. They're looking for 65816 (or 6502)
assembly programmers for SNES development. You can fax a resume to
415-949-3935 (put "Attn: Lane & Aaron" on it) or call Lane Roath at
415-917-7866. Those numbers are good until mid October '93.
Jay Jennings
(PUNKWARE, CAT13, TOP8, MSG:57/M530)
>>> HOT TOPICS <<<
""""""""""""""""""
SEVEN HILLS RESPONDS TO HIERARCHIC CONCERNS I just read the latest A2Pro
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" GENIELAMP. Unfortunately I
don't have the time to cruise any boards except the Seven Hills one in A2,
so I'm probably way late in getting in on the messages about our Hierarchic
init...next time someone should drop me a note. :)
First let me say that we do have an INIT that provides hierarchic menu
capability on the IIGS. To an application, hierarchic menus behave and
respond just like normal menus; the only extra effort is in creating and
disposing of the menus, but that's minimal.
>> If we all write such an init, I pity the poor user trying to run our
>> software on his machine. With patch, upon patch, the poor Menu
>> Manager will be freaking out.
That is exactly why Hierarchic is available for licensing in your own
applications; if anyone is interested, I will be happy to post some
technical documentation along with the latest version of Hierarchic for
experimentation. If you end up using Hierarchic and decide you want to
include it with your program, you can license it from us.
Now I've got to get on my soapbox! The following two comments irked
me:
>>> SOFTDISK.INC (Bryan)
>> It's just too darned buggy
>>> SNAKEBYTES
>> I've heard that. The Hierarchic INIT has become infamous because of
>> this.
I would really like to know what you guys have heard that I haven't.
In the life of Hierarchic I have heard only TWO complaints:
-=> NUMBER 1: THE MOUSE BUTTON SOMETIMES "STICKS" DOWN.
Hierarchic is using the "StillDown" toolbox call to determine whether
the mouse button is still down, and the toolbox is telling us "yes, the
mouse button is still down."
I've never seen this on the IIGS, but the people who have usually have
a Zip chip and/or RAMFast along with lots of other INITs. I _have_ seen it
on my Mac, which is also loaded with INITs.
I suspect the system is relying on interrupts to be able to look at
the mouse status, and it's just coincidence that installing Hierarchic (one
more init) is causing the "sticky" button to appear more often. Another
indication that this may be true: the problem happens even when accessing
menu items that are NOT controlled by Hierarchic.
{BTW, technically this isn't even a "bug"; it's an annoyance that
probably would not occur if you shift-booted and loaded Hierarchic by
itself.}
-=> NUMBER 2: DELETING NON-EXISTENT MENU ITEMS TRASHES MEMORY.
The author of HardPressed reported this bug (THANK YOU ANDY!), and it
was fixed within days of his report. {It was a simple oversight--our tool
patch wasn't verifying the menu item existed before it deleted it.}
If you get the feeling I'm slightly annoyed, you'd be right. ;)
Bryan, especially you should know that unless a bug gets reported there is
no way it can be fixed (unless we happen to stumble across it in our own
development efforts). Have you encountered bugs you can definitely
attribute to Hierarchic? Or have you just taken things you've "heard" and
determined that Hierarchic is "too darned buggy" for anyone to use?
I'll be very grateful to ANYONE who can tell me about bugs in
Hierarchic (especially if it's more than just a "feeling" that a particular
problem is caused by Hierarchic--though I don't mind hearing about those
either).
>> I know of four developers that have already toyed with hierarchical
>> menus and now SnakeBytes will make five.
This should be a big clue that writing hierarchic menus from scratch
is NOT an easy task.
>> This feature really should have been implemented by Apple. Regardless
>> of whether or not they approve of it, it would have resulted in more
>> stable system software for the USER.
Well they didn't. And they won't. So instead of whining about what
SHOULD have been, focus on what IS. Our INIT provides the hierarchic menu
capability, and it's integrated into the existing Menu Manager (but done
safely so the same patches have survived system updates through 6.0.1).
And it is a "standard" that is already supported by several great products
(and more products to come).
So instead of reinventing the wheel and manufacturing different,
conflicting ways to do this, why not help Seven Hills make the _existing_
product work better simply by reporting the bugs you encounter? {Despite
rumors that are apparently circulating on systems I don't visit, we are
extremely willing to fix bugs and to work with third parties to share our
technologies.}
Stepping off the soapbox... { I know, I know, it's a BIG step down...
:) }
Thanks, --Dave
P.S. While I'm at it, I may as well growl at Richard too! ;) I agree
with Matt on this one. But note that it _is_ possible to load Hierarchic
v1.6.1 (in beta testing) on the fly. This means you can Shift-boot, yet
still run The Manager v1.1 or Spectrum v1.0 (both in beta testing).
In another "open" technology that we're developing, the INIT is
segmented so that the portion in memory is extremely small...like just the
IPC handler and the code to handle 2 or 3 small messages (e.g. "get
version"). It doesn't start using more memory until you make a "startup"
call to actually _use_ the features the INIT offers. So a well-written
INIT doesn't HAVE to take up gobs of memory when it's not in use.
P.P.S. The reason all our source is in Merlin is because that's what
all our stuff is written in, and that's all we've used Hierarchic from.
Perhaps some enterprising person could provide us with glue code (or
whatever) for Pascal, C, etc.? And Bryan is right--tool illegal, IPC
wouldn't work for 5.0.4.
(SEVENHILLS [Dave], CAT15, TOP15, MSG:133/M530)
>>> MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""
Byteworks' introduction of 3D Logo for the GS has created quite a
stir. A number of questions have come up concerning the implementation of
the language. Probably the most asked question is why the language runs
under an interpreter instead of a compiler. Mike Westerfield of Byteworks
answers this question (and a number of others) in the following post:
Category 36, Topic 32
Message 58 Tue Sep 21, 1993
BYTEWORKS at 11:54 EDT
Trying to pin down the one distinguishing feature of Logo that makes
it an interesting language worth your attention is a lot harder than trying
to tell a C programmer what Pascal is all about, or a Pascal programmer
what C is all about. The reason is pretty simple: unless you've used LISP
or one of it's cousins, Logo is unlike any language you've ever seen. It's
that different.
To shed some light on the interpreted vs compiled aspect, though,
let's go back to our AppleSoft days and think about a program I wrote that
some of you probably wrote, too. I wanted to type in an equation as a
program ran, and then have the program run that equation to do something
with it -- displaying a graph, finding zeros, integrating it, and so forth.
In C or Pascal, you would have to write a scanner, parser, and interpreter
to handle equations. In AppleSoft, I evaluated the equation and poked it
into memory. That's a _lot_ easier, but still took some work. In Logo, I
would just use READWORD to read what you typed, then RUN to run it.
That's just the tip of the iceberg, too. The whole _language_ works
that way. That's why Logo & LISP are such good languages when you are
writing something that can change as the programs run. At the top end,
that could be a sophisticated AI program. At the bottom end, it can be
something as simple as typing in an equation or entering the chemical
formula for a molecule, then drawing it. (There's a sample movie in the
A2Pro library that shows some molecules that were done this way.)
If you're looking for a "better" C or Pascal, don't look at Logo.
That's not what Logo is all about. If you're looking for a language that
can do some things easily that are very, very difficult in C or Pascal,
like self- modifying programs, AI, 3D graphics, interactive development,
easy desktop programs, or speech, then Logo will do things a C or Pascal
programmer just can't imagine. Trying to explain it is like trying to
explain color to a blind man. But if you think Logo must be compiled, or
that it ought to be in ORCA, you're a little like that blind man trying to
understand color in terms of sound. You just can't. You have to "see" it!
:)
Mike Westerfield
[*][*][*]
While on GEnie, do you spend most of your time downloading files?
If so, you may be missing out some excellent information in the Bulletin
Board area. The messages listed above only scratch the surface of
what's available and waiting for you in the bulletin board area.
If you are serious about your Apple 2, the GEnieLamp staff strongly
urge you to give the bulletin board area a try. There are literally
thousands of messages posted from people like you from all over the world.
[EOA]
[GNO]//////////////////////////////
GNO/ME 2.0 RTC TRANSCRIPT /
/////////////////////////////////
Unix for the IIgs Improved
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Jim B.Couch
[GELAMP.A2PRO]
RECENTLY JAWAID BAZYAR OF PROCYON, INC. was the guest of A2Pro at a Round
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Table Conference. The topic
under discussion was Procyon's newest version of GNO/ME. GNO/ME adds UNIX
multitasking capabilities to the Apple IIgs.
<A2PRO.HELP> Greetings! Welcome to the GNO/ME 2.0 conference.!
<JUST.DAVE> OK, here's how this works. I'm going to ask everyone
to be paitient and wait their turn. First we'll have
Jawaid say his introduction, then we'll ask for
questions. If you'd like to ask a question, type
/RAIse to raise your hand.
OK, go ahead Jawaid. :)
<PROCYON.INC> Hi, everyone, and thanks for coming! What is GNO?
What is UNIX? UNIX is a very powerful operating system
that started on mainframes and migrated down to PC's
recently. GNO is an implementation of UNIX for the
Apple IIGS.
UNIX is a multitasking OS; many processes can be
running at once, with extremely few restrictions on
what those processes can do. For example, there is no
need to specifically code "multitasking- awareness" in
UNIX, as in other multitasking systems on the IIGS.
This means you can concentrate on your program; GNO
takes care of all the multitasking.
GNO comes with a CLI (command line interface) called
GSH, which allows you to control almost every aspect of
the system, including controlling processes and what
not.
The GNO Kernel does all the nitty gritty work of
actually switching between processes; and GNO comes
with 80 plus utilities to do tasks from text
processing to helping write compilers to printing the
date :)
GNO also has tremendous built-in communications
facilities; controlling a modem is only a few short
lines of C or assembly! With the communications
support comes multi-user support; you can be "logged
into" your IIGS multiple times, over a terminal or
modem.
(For the curious, GNO/ME is pronounced "guh-know em
ee", and stands for nothing in particular :-) (well,
the 'ME' is for Multitasking Environment).
<J.GREGURICH> Can one now run more than desktop Application at a
time?
<PROCYON.INC> Sorry, no, not like The Manager. However, the
definition of "desktop" application is a bit different
in GNO 2.0, due to the Graphical Shell Interface we
have.
So far, the only thing I've seen TM do,
multitasking-wise, is unshrink files in the
background, and that's something that GNO can do quite
handily with a simple shell command.
It's a different approach. If you want, you _can_ run
Switch-It! inside GNO, for multiple desktop programs
_and_ UNIX multitasking.
<J.GREGURICH> So, with Switch-It, can one multitask with more than
one Desktop App?...assuming the use of GNO of course.
<PROCYON.INC> No, the desktop apps don't multitask, but if you can
think of desktop programs that actually benefit from
multitasking that we don't have provided utilities
for, I'll seriously consider adding it :)
Oh! The Graphical Shell Interface allows you to run a
shell (and associated commands) in a window in any
desktop application.
<R.KABAKJIAN> The obvious question: do tasks running under GNO need
to be written a particular way, or can existing
programs off the shelf run under GNO as is?
<PROCYON.INC> Almost all existing GS/OS software runs fine under GNO,
but only one desktop app at a time.
(Switch-It! counts as "one" desktop app)
<R.KABAKJIAN> Being a full Unix environment, what are the Internet
client possibilities?
<PROCYON.INC> We expect that our TCP/IP implementation for GNO will
be in beta testing by the end of the year, probably
sooner. At that point, you can use SLIP or MacTCP (or
even the EtherTalk card if it arrives) to directly
connect your IIGS to the Internet with GNO.
TCP/IP is the standard Internet Protocol.. basically a
fancy term meaning "I can talk to the Internet
directly".
<E.GAGNE1> Can I use DAs on GNO/ME?
<PROCYON.INC> Sure, inside a desktop program. You could run Teach,
or Finder, or AWGS, or whatever, and use DAs (NDAs, I
presume). GSI (Graphical Shell Interface) is an NDA.
(One of the things GSI allows is to use _any_ editor to
do your programming, then select the shell NDA and
compile. Instantly.)
<E.GAGNE1> So do I boot to GS/OS and let it load the DAs then
switch to GNO/ME, or does GNO/ME load the DAs?
<PROCYON.INC> GNO runs on top of GS/OS, as an application. That
gives the greatest flexibility, and compatibility.
Once inside GNO, though, it's a whole new world.
<J.GREGURICH> So, if I wanted to set up a BBS and offer internet
access to my subscribers, that is possible?
<PROCYON.INC> Yes.. you'd need BBS software, which is very easy to
write because of the built-in communications support
GNO offers. And by the end of the year, you should be
able to have Internet access by one of three methods:
direct connection (TCP/IP), UUCP, and Morgan Davis'
Internet transport system (I don't recall the name
offhand). UUCP basically does batch transmissions of
email and news.
There are two email systems for GNO, and one of them
doubles as a news system. So, as soon as the
transport is in, GNO basically _is_ an
Internet-capable BBS.
<J.GREGURICH> Can I run C programs coded for unix mainframes on the
GS? For instance there is a Zmodem rz/sz source code in
the Library? can I use that with little modification?
<PROCYON.INC> Yes.. many of the utilities included with GNO were
taken directly from UNIX, with little or no
modification.
For convenience, we've included rz/sz with GNO/ME 2.0
:-)
<K.FLYNN> Can I make shell scripts in GNO? What shells is it
compatible with?
<PROCYON.INC> GNO's shell, gsh, is a lot like the UNIX C-shell (csh).
At this time gsh does not have a programming language,
but you can write scripts which execute a sequence of
commands.
<K.FLYNN> So a 'shell script' currently is the same as typing a
bunch of commands at the prompt, right?
<PROCYON.INC> Correct. We hope to add full IF/THEN/ELSE (etc)
support to gsh soon.
<N.TROST> Can you give us a summary of the utilities included
with 2.0? Number, names of some, brief description of
some of the cool ones...etc....
<PROCYON.INC> As mentioned earlier there are over 80 utilities
included with GNO. rz/sz handle file communications,
but mundane activities such as catalog listings, file
copying and process control commands are also
included.
Let's see.. on-line manual system, AWGS/AW3.0 text
formatters, calendar printer, all sorts of text
manipulation, text file searches (with wildcard
support), ORCA language support, data compression,
project maintenance, ShrinkIt archive extractor,
BINSCII/UUENCODE/APACK/TAR extractor and archivers, and
much more.
Suffice it to say then that GNO comes on 3 3.5" disks,
all _compressed_. :)
<E.GAGNE1> I'm confused. Is GNO/ME a Finder-type program, or a
compiler like ORCA? What is Unix?
<PROCYON.INC> UNIX is an operating system; like GS/OS, it provides
'services' to application programs. In GNO's case, the
services range from communications, IPC, to
multi-process control.
<PROCYON.INC> GNO/ME is the name for the entire system, which
encompasses the kernel, shell, 80 utilities, and
support for ORCA languages.
<PROCYON.INC> GNO isn't a compiler, but you can use any Byteworks
product (except Prism) in GNO.. GNO often makes using
said tools more pleasant :)
<E.GAGNE1> IPC?
<PROCYON.INC> (Inter-process Communication - different programs
'talking' to each other)
<E.GAGNE1> If I know an ORCA language, what's the advantage to
owning GNO/ME?
<PROCYON.INC> For example, if you were going to compile a large
program, you could do it in the background, while you
moved on to the task of your choice. ORCA is strictly
a programming environment, whereas GNO goes far beyond
that.
For example, the other night, I was working on parts of
the GNO system (ORCA editor & ORCA/C) while Andrew
here was in a GEnie RTC - through a terminal hooked
into the IIGS. Two completely different tasks running
on the same IIGS.
<J.GREGURICH> Do the GSOS FST operate fully with GNO? How well does
ORCA/C work with GNO? Do you have your own C compiler?
How about Compact disk access? If one has an
accelorator, how many programs can be running before
the user notices slow response?
<PROCYON.INC> Whew! Let's see. :) Yes, AppleShare, HFS, MS-DOS,
etc. all work fine under GNO (since it runs under
System 6.0 or 6.0.1).
ORCA runs beautifully with GNO. Mike Westerfield and I
got together and made changes to the ORCA system and
GNO so they could cooperate better (like ORCA/C
support for running in the background).
Response times vary, depending on what is running. One
of the best things about GNO is that it is designed to
"know" when a program is waiting for some event to
happen (like the user to type a command, or waiting
for modem input). In these cases the program is put
"to sleep" and takes no CPU time!
<C.LAING> What do you consider a standard UNIX? Will it support
all the fun stuff like tar, grep, cc, dbg, troff, man,
etc....And will you include a hack? Gotta have hack!
<PROCYON.INC> GNO/ME 2.0 comes with tar, grep/egrep/fgrep, nroff,
man.. Byteworks provides the C compiler and debugger,
and Moria and Rogue have been ported to GNO. Wow!
100% hit ratio! :)
(oops, I'd better clarify - GNO/ME does _not_ come with
ORCA/C or debugger - that must be purchased
separately)
<C.LAING> Wow! vi? I could go on, but it could get silly. I'm
just looking for general guidelines.
<PROCYON.INC> Yes, vi too :)
<R.KABAKJIAN> Is working knowledge of C and/or Unix a prerequisite in
any way for getting the most from GNO, or can one get
by just by using the canned programs? Is GNO fully
compatible with Hardpressed?
<PROCYON.INC> C - no, you don't need to know C. Unix - well, it's a
UNIX system, so the more you know the more you'll get
out of it. We include a comprehensive manual for the
system and the shell in particular, and also have an
extensive bibliography of beginner's UNIX texts you
can buy (or borrow).
Yes, GNO is fully compatible with HardPressed, as Andy
and I also collaborated to ensure HP would operate
smoothly.
<R.KABAKJIAN> will the GS under GNO eventually rival a Sun
workstation? :)
<PROCYON.INC> For the cost, definitely :)
<E.GAGNE1> I run a ProDOS 8 BBS (Warp Six!). What would I gain
from owning GNO/ME, ie what advantage would I have?
How did you mean, "Moria & Rogue have been ported to
GNO"? GA
<PROCYON.INC> Since GNO cannot run P8 applications, not much (in the
case of Warp 6). However, when someone writes BBS
software for GNO... multiline BBS, you can still use
your computer even when someone is on the BBS...
By 'ported' I mean the original source code has been
modified to run in GNO (all UNIX systems tend to be
subtly different, hence the changes)
(source code for almost everything is in C, and is
available for your perusal upon request - I'll
probably upload a good chunk of it to GEnie as well).
<E.GAGNE1> What are all these man, vi, tar, and grep being
discussed? GA
<PROCYON.INC> 'man' is an electronic manual - you can read the
documentation for almost everything included with GNO
on your screen without finding the book :)
vi is a handy and quick text editor.. tar is an
archive format that can put lots of files into one
file (kinda like ShrinkIt), and grep searches text
files for strings.. you can use wildcard expressions,
which makes grep _very_ powerful).
<B.GILLESPIE3> What about a communications program? Do you have one?
(With GNO, that is.)
<PROCYON.INC> There are two.. one is a simple 'dumb-terminal' called
'copycat'; if you upload a description of GNO's console
to your remote system (termcap), it will handle
full-screen displays. Copycat has some miscellaneous
useful features as well.
(copycat can execute a shell command and write the
output to the modem, for instance)
The other is the venerable TelCom, available here on
GEnie. It's a text-mode 16-bit comm program with
VT100, X/YModem, and scrollback.
<B.GILLESPIE3> Is GNO/ME compatible with AutoArk?
<PROCYON.INC> I haven't personally used AutoArk, but it should work.
ga
<J.GREGURICH> I own an older version of ORCA/C...the one just before
2.0. Will I have to upgrade?
<PROCYON.INC> ORCA/C 1.3 works in GNO (I still use it sometimes)
fine; C 2.0 works _better_ (there were a couple issues
that got worked out, mostly dealing with access to the
keyboard).
<J.GREGURICH> If I have my Unix BBS running with someone online, can
I launch AWGS and do my work while the BBS is
running...assuming the BBS is non-desktop?
<PROCYON.INC> Yes, exactly.
<J.GREGURICH> One more. I can connect an Apple IIe to the GS serial
port and "logon" to it with Proterm?
<PROCYON.INC> Yes.
You can even connect an ancient VT100 terminal to it
(like I do) :-)
<S.REEVES2> What kind of security is there for remote logins? UNIX
file permissions? Restricted shells? mkroot?
<PROCYON.INC> If you install the multi-user package, logins are
protected by an encrypted password scheme. At this
time we don't
have file permissions or rshells, but the next GNO
release will address the issue. Basically, it's a
"Trust your users" setup right now.
Shells aren't hard to write, so a restricted shell is
definitely a possibility. We're thinking along the
lines of a protection database like AppleShare.
<E.GAGNE1> How much does v2.0 cost? What was the last version, and
what does v2.0 include that the previous version
didn't?
<PROCYON.INC> GNO/ME 2.0 is around $90.. you can purchase it from
Resource Central, or for a limited time, directly from
us.
Upgrade is $33-$38, depending on domestic/foreign
shipment.
2.0 includes complete documentation for one; about 40
more utilities, and all manner of new features. the
Multi-user stuff; the additions are rather extensive.
Ah! Brand-new serial drivers which are about 300-400%
faster than the old ones.
There's a whole topic full of the additions in 2.0 in
our Category in A2Pro (Cat 30).
<A2PRO.HELP> Jawaid: What steps should programmers take to ensure
complete compatibility with GNO? (ie what are some
basic guidelines?)
<PROCYON.INC> There are just a few issues, really, since GNO does
most of the work. One, minimize bank 0 usage
(becoming very important with GNO and Switch-It!).
Second, never ever directly access the keyboard
hardware/screen hardware.
** <PROCYON.INC> disconnected.
<M.DEATHERAGE> Well, that's a bummer.
So, to keep everyone interested -- We'll give away a
free copy of GNO!
Here's how we do it -- we use the magic GEnie to pick
one person here not on staff or assisting in A2Pro,
and we then ask that person an Incredibly Complex
Question (tm).
If you're picked and you get it right, you win GNO/ME
2.0 (or an upgrade if you already own 1.x!)
By my magic counting, that gives us Rich. Are you
ready for your question, Rich?
<R.KABAKJIAN> yup
<M.DEATHERAGE> Here it is:
What mythical species is spelled almost exactly the
same as "GNO/ME"?
<R.KABAKJIAN> Fourier analysis tells me the answer is "gnome"
<M.DEATHERAGE> Ta-daah!
<R.KABAKJIAN> wheee
<M.DEATHERAGE> Now that Jawaid's back, and due to the hour, we're
going to open up the floor for discussion. Don't step
all over
each other shouting at Jawaid at once or we'll go back
to protocol so everyone can get an answer. :)
<R.KABAKJIAN> As long as we're talking about Internet, is SLIP
hardware a theoretical possibility?
<PROCYON.INC> SLIP runs on a standard modem or direct serial line;
you can also do Internet over AppleTalk or Ethernet.
<A2PRO.DYAJIM> Jawaid, is GSI ever going to be updated so that the
display looks better? Like give it a VT100 emulation
at least!
<PROCYON.INC> Jim - yes, Derek T. is supposed to be working on that,
but I may beat him to the punch :)
<A2PRO.DYAJIM> WAY COOL
<J.GRAHAM29> Jawaid, if one of your tasks is timing sensative (i.e.,
data acquisition) will the multitasking foul up the
timing? I've run into that problem with The Manager.
<PROCYON.INC> Airship - yes, but you can, if you must, tell the
system to temporarily stop task switching.. also,
using interrupts will help.
<J.GRAHAM29> Hmmmm, I'd love to find a way to run a foreground task
on a GS while is was taking data. At present my data
rates are fairly slow, 1 to 5 points per second.
<PROCYON.INC> At 1 to 5 points per second, you're going to have a
hard time missing data in GNO; GNO task switches on
average 20 times per second.
<J.GRAHAM29> I may give it a try! The timing problem probably
occurs in the wait cycle between points. With The
Manager the system slows down in the ball park of
10-15%.
<PROCYON.INC> GNO's overhead has been measured at around 5%.
<B.GILLESPIE3> Am I correct in assuming from the conversation that you
can drop into P8 from GNO?
<PROCYON.INC> BiG - there is a 'launch' command that will Quit-To a
P8 program once you exit GNO, but you can't run P8
inside GNO. (unless a ProDOS-8 emulator happens)
You could do an actual emulator, where it interpreted
the 6502 code, but that's really slow (but also better
than nothing).
<A2PRO.DYAJIM> Jawaid - when will it be possible to use a GNO term
program and say, background download in GNO?
<PROCYON.INC> Jim - I can do that now :)
<A2PRO.DYAJIM> Good :) How?
<PROCYON.INC> Sure, Jim - use TelCom to log in/interact, then OA-Q
and use RZ/SZ in the background. Then go off and do
whatever. You can use copycat too.
<R.KABAKJIAN> Speaking of crashes... Mac System 7 can recover from a
task crash without losing the rest of the system. Will
GNO be able to do that eventually?
<PROCYON.INC> Rich - GNO can do that to an extent, about the same
extent that System 7 or the Mac can (that is, just
hope that something in the system didn't get
clobbered).
If you bonk into the monitor, in most cases you can hit
"^C" and the crashed process is killed and you return
to the shell.
<A2PRO.DYAJIM> Or you can use the GNO CDA and kill the process from
there..
End of transcript
[EOA]
[DEV]//////////////////////////////
DEVELOPER'S CORNER /
/////////////////////////////////
News From The A2Pro Online Developers
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Jim B.Couch
[GELAMP.A2PRO]
>>> ONLINE SUPPORT IN A2PRO <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
CAT TOP COMPANY
=== === =======
29 INDEPENDENT DEVELOPERS ONLINE
2 DYA/DigiSoft Innovations Online
8 Simplexity Software Online
14 Quality Computers Q-LABS Online
20 DreamWorld Software Online
26 METAL/FV Software Online
32 Kitchen Sink Software Online
30 PROCYON, INC.
31 SOFTDISK PUBLISHING
32 MORGAN DAVIS GROUP (MDG)
33 GS+ MAGAZINE
34 JEM SOFTWARE
35 LUNAR PRODUCTIONS
36 THE BYTE WORKS
Each month this column feature highlights and news from various
developers who provide support via A2Pro.
>>> NEWS FROM THE INDEPENDENT DEVELOPERS <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
NEWS FROM DYA/DIGISOFT The latest (revised June 14, 1993) edition of the
"""""""""""""""""""""" Twilight II Generation 2 Module Format (G2MF)
Reference is now available in the library (File #3542.)
In addition, sample C source code for Ball, a working Twilight II
module with full setup and sound, is NOW AVAILABLE! (FINALLY!) Check out
file #3543. And bring all your T2 module programming questions RIGHT
HERE!! :-)
<<Jim
(DYA [Jim:DigiSoft], CAT29, TOP4, MSG:5/M530)
[*][*][*]
NEWS FROM KITCHEN SINK SOFTWARE System II development is coming along
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" quickly now as we get time to develop
aside from our "day" jobs to pay the bills.
The
disks that were passed out at our session at KansasFest would be
considered very limited at this point. All of the problems that we were
experiencing there have been fixed and the desktop now actually launches
programs. Much of the code has been written and we are now testing the
code for worst case scenario (sp?). Don't get me wrong, we are still
adding features to the system, but development seems to be going smoothly
now. Usually that's when the bottom falls out from under a developer, but
that's where we are.
When we get to a point where the run-time version of the desktop is
tested, we will be uploading a demo here on GEnie and probably AOL.
Stay tuned to this category for details.
Eric
(KITCHEN.SINK [Eric], CAT29, TOP36, MSG:4/M530)
>>> NEWS FROM PROCYON INC. <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
GNO/ME 2.0 RTC TRANSCRIPT NOW AVAILABLE The transcript from the highly
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" successful GNO/ME 2.0 RTC is now
available for downloading in the A2Pro library!
Lots of great information and answers about what GNO is, what it does,
and why you need it. Check out this transcript today!
The text file transcript archived with ShrinkIt and uploaded as a .BXY
file is available as file #3540.
The plain text file that can be downloaded or listed is available as
file #3541.
Nate (GNO Excuse! Download the transcript! :-)
(Graphics and Sounds RTC Thursdays at 9:30 Eastern in A2Pro RTC!)
(N.TROST [65Nate16], CAT30, TOP5, MSG:33/M530)
>>> NEWS FROM SOFTDISK PUBLISHING <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
SOFTDISK SUBMITTER GUIDELINES AVAILABLE Recently someone asked me if we
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" had any guidelines or whatever
for submitting to Softdisk.
Welp, the short answer is, YES!
In Library 31 of A2Pro you'll find various guidelines. There are three
different documents (in two different formats, ASCII text and Teach):
1. Softdisk Submitter Guidelines
2. Softdisk Programmer Guidelines
3. Softdisk G-S Programmer Guidelines
The first document is quite short (1 page actually) and simply
describes the process and technicalities of submitting a program, art,
music, etc to us.
The other two documents are basically a list of tips on programming
for either Softdisk of Softdisk G-S. They are a compilation of things we've
asked submitters to change in the past, things we require of programs, etc.
Even if you have no plans on submitting to Softdisk, you may want to
check these two documents out. Reading them will help ensure that your
programs have that "professional" look.
----------------------
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions about any of our
guidelines, please, let me know!
Bryan Pietrzak - Softdisk Publishing
(SOFTDISK.INC [Bryan Zak], CAT31, TOP6, MSG:3/M530)
>>> NEWS FROM GS+ MAGAZINE <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
REALLY -- GS+ DOES PAY FOR PROGRAM SUBMISSIONS! Well, after 4 years of
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" publication, we've
finally started to get people to submit programs to us! :-) So, if you've
got a program on the burner and you'd like to get some $ for it, why not
submit it? You'll probably get more money than you would for shareware.
(JWANKERL [Joe], CAT33, TOP2, MSG:3/M530)
>>> NEWS FROM THE BYTE WORKS <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
3D LOGO SEMINARS IN A2PRO DURING OCTOBER! Create a 3D cube that jumps
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" right out of your screen with
just a few lines of a simple programming language. Rotate the cube to
create a movie with just one more line. Create a complete desktop program
with just a few dozen lines. You can learn to do all this and more in a
series of live seminars.
GS+ magazine says the 3D Logo demonstration at KansasFest this year
was their favorite session. They saw Mike Westerfield take the chemical
formula from a person in the audience, type in the formula, and create a
movie of the molecule rotating on the screen -- all in about 15 minutes,
while describing the process step-by-step!
Roger Wagner picked our Logo as the standard scripting language for
HyperStudio Mac. He was impressed with the combination of a language so
simple it's used with second grade kids, yet so powerful it's used for
artificial intelligence.
Now you can create movies of rotating molecules with a few easy
commands. Draw houses in 3D, and SEE them in 3D with our special 3D
glasses. Learn Logo, a computer language so simple it's used with 2nd
grade kids, yet so powerful it's used for advanced artificial intelligence
work. Make your computer talk with statements as easy as BASIC's PRINT
command. It's all there in 3D Logo, and now you can learn this powerful
language in a series of four fun, fact-filled seminars with Mike
Westerfield, author of 3D Logo.
The seminars will cover:
7 Oct Introduction to the Logo Language
14 Oct Creating 3D Pictures
21 Oct Making Movies
28 Oct Desktop Programs
Each seminar will meet at 9PM Eastern in one of the A2Pro conference
rooms. Seminars are planned for 1 hour, but Mike will stay around longer if
you have questions you'd like answered. You can also post questions and
pick up reading assignments in Category 36, Topic 32 of A2Pro.
Here's what you'll need:
1. An Apple IIGS computer. It should have at least 1.25M of memory, and
you'll need a color screen for the true 3D displays.
2. 3D Logo. Regularly priced at $95, you can get 3D Logo for just $50 if
you order before the seminars end!
Don't get left out of the excitement! Join us for our online
seminars, (which are brought to you at no extra charge!), and be sure to
order your copy of 3D Logo soon, so you'll have it in time for the first
seminar!
To order, send your name, mailing address, and VISA or MC card number
& expiration date to:
E-mail: ByteWorks
Phone: (505) 898-8183 (M-F, 8AM-5PM Mountain)
Mail: Byte Works, Inc.
4700 Irving Blvd NW, Suite 207
Albuquerque, NM 87114
Please add $5 shipping in the U.S. If you are outside of the US,
we'll be happy to tell you the shipping charges for your country.
(A2PRO.HELP [ Sloanie ], CAT36, TOP32, MSG:59/M530)
[EOA]
[OFF]//////////////////////////////
OFF THE DEEP END /
/////////////////////////////////
Something Completely Different
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Nate Trost
[N.TROST]
>>> And Now for Something Completely Different... <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
(sorry Monty :-)
Toolbox Pulp Fiction Oh, Vector!" shouted Minnie Assembler. "You are such
"""""""""""""""""""" a cruel TaskMaster! Every time I GetNextEvent you
have already given me a dozen new SendRequests, to my ID! Can you not
WaitCursor even for a moment? My HeartBeat throbs wildly as I approach an
Unclaimed Interrupt Error!"
"No Minnie!" replied Vector. "MoveTo your next task! RunQ it like the
wind!"
To be Continued?
[*][*][*]
Overheard in RTC <N.TROST> (pictures Beavis and Butthead on the II
"""""""""""""""" Alive cover)
<A2PRO.HELP> Cool! Heh heh huh heh heh
<N.TROST> Heh heh heh. AppleWorks 4.0. Heh heh. Cool. Heh HehHeh.
Heh Heh, Randy Brandt. Heh Heh.
<QUALITY> He said "Brandt." Huhuhuhuh. Isn't that the stuff that
keeps you regular? You know, like raisin brandt?
Huhuhuhuhu.
<A2PRO.HELP> No, that's fiber and brandt. heh huh heh oh yeah.
heh huh heh. Being regular is cool. heh huh heh.
<QUALITY> Fruit and... fruit and... uhhh, come on, idiot, it's right
on the box! Huhuhuhuh.
<N.TROST> heh heh huh heh let's blow up a toilet he heh heh.
[*][*][*]
Top 10 Things You Miss by Not Attending A2Pro RTCs (In no particular
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" order)
10. The best songs from the 70s, 80s and 90s with less talk!
9. Costume Party--Dress Up Like Your Favorite Tool
8. Beavis and Butthead discuss AppleTalk
7. Chicken Chili Jamboree
6. Guest Night: Vice President Al Gore discusses how trimming the fat
from code saves taxpayers valuable cycles
5. Spin the Bottle
4. Wheel of Opcodes
3. Brian Wells Assembly Night with Full Body Swedish Massage
2. Rocky Horror Picture RTC with Lunatic
1. Chance to win a copy of the home game!
//////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE ////
/ "Hey, guys, Pascal let's you shoot yourself in the foot -- /
/ it just does it in a civilized way: /
/ /
/ procedure ShootFoot; extern; /
/ /
/ Then you let someone else do the dirty work. :)" /
/////////////////////////////////////////////// BYTEWORKS ////
[EOA]
[TOU]//////////////////////////////
TOUR OF 8/16 CENTRAL /
/////////////////////////////////
The Great Programmers Magazine
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Chris Budewig
[K.FLYNN]
>>> Your Tour of 8/16-Central - Introduction <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
OK, AS PROMISED... (suggested, hinted at), I will be conducting you on a
"""""""""""""""""" tour of that great programmer's magazine,
8/16-Central. The tour will feature one issue each week in this topic and
will let those of you who are one-at-a- time downloaders know just what you
will be getting for your download time! :)
Each tour will be structured in roughly the same way and will include
directory listings of the files in the issue and give you a short
description of each of the articles (but to find out what is actually IN
each article, you'll have to download the issue!). Just keep in mind that
8/16-Central wasn't always published by Resource Central and so the
directory structure of the issues does change over time.
I'll Have a DLT On Rye, Please! Included with each issue are two
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" general-purpose navigation programs
called DLT 8 and DLT 16. DLT stands for Display Launcher Thingamajigs,
which are text and graphics viewer programs that allow you to page through
articles and source code listings, view diagrams, and launch programs &
demos. The DLT's included with the first issue were not finished versions,
but were completed in later issues and other features were added as time
went on. Minimum requirements for these programs are a IIGS for DLT 16, or
a 128K //e or better for DLT 8.
>>> 8/16-Central - March, 1990 - File #3383 (ESC.9003.BXY) <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
A full list of all files on every issue of 8/16 and 8/16-Central can
be found in file #3382 (ESC.INDEX.BXY). Here is a condensed directory of
this issue:
/ES.CENTRAL.9003/
..READ.ME Intro and Welcome
..IIgs/
....READ.ME16 Description of 16-bit contents!
....INIT.MASTER/ Bill Tudor's CDev to manage loading of Inits/DA's
....ARTICLES/
......MAR.90.HERBH/ Article: How to write CDevs (w/ TWGS CDev)
......MAR.90.STEVES/ Article: Filter Procedures and the Dialog Manager
......MAR.90.STEVEL/ Article: Illusions of Motion (part 1)
......DESKDRAW/ Article: Zen and the Art of Animation
....DEV.UTIL/ Some of Parik Rao's shell utilities:
(UN)ACE - packs sounds using the A.C.E. toolset
(UN)PACK - converts pictures between the $C0 and
$C1 filetypes
SETINFO - change file info from the shell
SOURCER - convert any file to Assembly data
..Classic.Apples/
....ReadMe8 Description of 8-bit contents!
....ZBASIC/ Article: Squirreling away data in Auxmem with ZBASIC
....BLU/ Floyd Zink's Binary Library Utility
....RELOCATION/ Article: Run-time relocation of 6502 Assembly using
BRK's
....HARDWARE.HACK/ Article: Pushbuttons and Biofeedback
....EDITOR/ Article: Text Editor in Applesoft BASIC
Jerry Kindall describes an interesting approach to relocating 8-bit
code in real time in this issue. His method uses the BRK instruction to
interrupt the program when an instruction is encountered that requires
relocating! This reminds me of the technique I've seen Microsoft use in the
Messy-DOS world to do floating point coprocessor emulators for QuickBASIC.
Nifty, eh?
>>> 8/16-Central - April, 1990 - File #3384 (ESC.9004.BXY) <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
I'll be adding some codes to the condensed directory listing included
with the tour of each issue. They will let you know what kinds of files
are included in each item that is listed. The codes are:
S : Source code -- what you need to create the program
X : Executable program -- you can run this directly!
D : Documentation -- tells how the program works and what to do
with it
A : Article -- explains a subject and probably the source code that
demonstrates it
There is a very fine line between a file labeled as Documentation and
one labeled as Article -- I've chosen the one that seemed most appropriate
in each case. I've also marked every program written in BASIC with both S
and X since the source code to a BASIC program IS the executable! [grin]
Here is my condensed directory of this issue:
/ES.CENTRAL.9004/
..READ.ME.816 Intro and Welcome
..IIgs/
....Read.ME16 Description of 16-bit contents!
....Articles/
......APF.Viewer/ (SXA) Loading Apple-Preferred Pictures using Pascal
......Info.Bar/ (SXA) How to put controls in the Info Bar of a
window (or 'Bypassing the Control Manager' :)
....DevUtil.SRC/ (S) Source to Parik's utilities from last issue
Includes: (UN)ACE, (UN)PACK, SETINFO, and
SOURCER
....AWGS.MAXI Maximum- and minimum-sized APF pictures that are
....AWGS.MINI loadable by Appleworks GS.
..Classic.Apples/
....Read.Me8 Description of 8-bit contents!
....LIGHT/ (SXA) A simple line editor for Applesoft
....ZBasic/ (S) Three ZBASIC programs:
MLI.ERROR - Explores ZBASIC's error process
with files -- doesn't look
complete
FN.BESTMATCHSTR - Selects which of a group of
strings matches a target string
the best
FN.PARSEWORD - Breaks a string up into a
series of 'words', returning
one at a time
....ARCHIVE.LIST/ (XD) A 'pretty printer' for Applesoft programs
....FAZ.II/ (SXD) Change file and aux types from ProDOS 8
....SOFTWORKS/ (XD) Adds the AppleWorks interface to BASIC
programs!
....GETKEYMOUSE/ (SXA) Get keyboard and mouse input and display the
current time with one call
....ZRAM.2.CLOCK/ (S) Demonstrates how to read the ZRAM clock
....SHARE/ (XD) Multitasking under ProDOS 8! From France
....THREE.D.DEMO/ (SXD) Three BASIC programs that demo 3D drawing
techniques
....PRETTY.POLGONS/ (SXA) The Polygon Plot - drawing polygons with any
rotation or X,Y,Z orientation
A side note taken from the READ.ME.816 file:
The First Law of Programming: All Programs Have Bugs
The Second Law of Programming: All Bug Fixes Introduce Bugs
The Third Law of Programming: Software is Never Done, Only Removed From
the UnWilling Hands of Programmers
Uh, okay. Back to reality.
Be sure to check out the SHARE utility. It lets you run a machine
language program in the background while running something else in the
foreground! Multitasking on an 8-bit Apple ][!
[EOA]
[LIB]//////////////////////////////
LIBRARY BIT BONANZA /
/////////////////////////////////
HOT Files You Can Download
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Nate Trost
[N.TROST]
>>> Utilities <<<
"""""""""""""""""
File #3553: RESLIN.BXY V0.39 (GS)
Uploaded on 9/17/93 by RICHARD.B
About 70K (d/l time approx. 7 minutes @ 2400 baud)
Allows you to view/edit resource forks, with some handy copy and
duplicate functions. Also allows homegrown, plug-in editors.
File #3551: VERSIBOX1.3.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 9/14/93 by TOM.W
About 15K (d/l time approx. 1 minute 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
VersiBox is a freeware contribution from Michael Chinn of Caro, MI.
It's an ampersand routine for Applesoft that allows you to draw windows,
buttons, boxes, and input fields on the 80-column text screen. Also
includes a new input-anything routine and the ability to print to windows
on the screen.
File #3549: SPLITTER.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 9/10/93 by N.DODGEDODGE
About 30K (d/l time approx. 3 minutes @ 2400 baud)
This program will allow you to split up OMF files so they can be
disassembled with MERLIN's Sorcerer. Shareware.
>>> Programming References/Sample Source <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
File #3552: HI.PROGINFO.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 9/15/93 by SEVENHILLS
About 60K (d/l time approx. 6 minutes @ 2400 baud)
Programming information for the Hierarchic INIT, which provides the
ability for the IIGS to do hierarchic "sub-menus". Reference guide, sample
source and licensing information is included.
File #3543: T2.BALL.SRC.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 9/6/93 by DYA
About 43K (d/l time approx. 4 minutes @ 2400 baud)
Sample source code (Orca/C and Rez required) for Ball, a complete and
working Twilight II module. Ball demonstrates how to write a working
module for DigiSoft Innovations' Twilight II screen saver. Ball includes
customizable setup along with sound effects, all in ORCA/C.
File #3542: T2.G2MF.JUN.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 9/16/93 by DYA
About 30K (d/l time approx. 3 minutes @ 2400 baud)
This is the June 14, 1993 revision of the Twilight II Generation 2
Module Format (G2MF) reference. This is the latest version and supersedes
previous editions.. Contains full and complete documentation on the format
of T2 modules. A must have for anyone writing or interested in writing
modules for DigiSoft Innovations' Twilight II screen saver
File #3519: ANSMUSSPECS.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 9/1/93 by A2PRO.HELP
About 6K (d/l time approx. 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
Documentation file telling how to write ANSI Music files on an IBM.
Gives complete documentation for the ANSI Music format, in case anyone is
thinking of writing an editor or interpreter. Further documentation is
available in the GW-BASIC or BASICA manual.
File #3516: LOGOCMNDS.BNY (GS)
Uploaded on 8/31/93 by BYTEWORKS
About 5K (d/l time approx. 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This file lists all of the commands in 3D Logo 1.0 for the Apple IIGS.
The commands are explained in detail in the reference manual that comes
with 3D Logo.
File #3512: CLASS2.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 8/25/93 by D.BROWN109
About 25K (d/l time approx. 2 minutes 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This text file contains a listing of commands for Class 2 FaxModems.
It does _not_ contain specifications for the actual Fax image, though it
contains a list of sources to consult for those specifications.
File #3511: CLASS1.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 8/25/93 by D.BROWN109
About 14K (d/l time approx. 1 minute 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This text file contains a listing of commands for Class 1 FaxModems.
It does _not_ contain specifications for the actual Fax image, though it
contains a list of sources to consult for those specifications.
File #3508: APPIICAT2.6.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 8/25/93 by S.BEHRENS
About 31K (d/l time approx. 3 minutes @ 2400 baud)
This is a catalog of programming languages available for the Apple //
series, both 8-bit and 16-bit, old and new.
>>> A2Pro Special Files <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
File #3544: LIBDB.29AUG.BXY (ALL)
Uploaded on 9/7/93 by A2PRO.TODDPW
About 75K (d/l time approx. 7 minutes 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This is an AppleWorks 3.0 database file of the A2Pro libraries,
created by GECONV 3.2 from a listing of the libraries as of 29-Aug-93. It
has been sorted by ascending file number and then by ascending category.
Packed with GSHK and Binary II.
>>> RTC Transcripts <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""
File #3541: RTC.GNOME2.TXT (GS)
Uploaded on 9/6/93 by N.TROST
About 25K (d/l time approx. 2 minutes 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This is the official A2Pro RTC Transcript from the GNO/ME 2.0 RTC held
with Jawaid Bazyar of Procyon, Inc. Jawaid talked about and answered
questions concerning the new GNO/ME 2.0 UNIX implementation for the Apple
IIgs. This is a text file that can be downloaded or <L>isted.
File #3540: RTC.GNOME2.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 9/6/93 by N.TROST
About 12K (d/l time approx. 1 minute @ 2400 baud)
This is the official A2Pro RTC Transcript from the GNO/ME 2.0 RTC held
with Jawaid Bazyar of Procyon, Inc. Jawaid talked about and answered
questions concerning the new GNO/ME 2.0 UNIX implementation for the Apple
IIgs. This file is a NuFX archive compressed with ShrinkIt.
>>> Misc. Files <<<
"""""""""""""""""""
File #3537: SOURCEMENU.SIT V1.2 (MPW IIGS)
Uploaded on 9/6/93 by BRYAN.ZAK
About 2K (d/l time approx. 20 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This is a much enhanced version of the SourceMenu script that Apple
ships with MPW. (I put my customized scripts in a folder named "MyScripts"
and then have that in the command path.) SourceMenu builds a menu
containing all the source files in the specified directory. Usage is
"SourceMenu [directory]" (if no directory is specified the current
directory is scanned). My version also puts a "SourceMenu..." item in the
menu allowing you to easily rebuild the menu.
File #3517: CHEM4DEMO.BXY (GS)
Uploaded on 8/31/93 by BYTEWORKS
About 46K (d/l time approx. 4 minutes 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This movie was created with 3D Logo 1.0 for the Apple IIGS. You can
play the movie with any Paintworks compatible movie player; there are
several in A2. You can also play the movie with 3D Logo, of course!
>>> System Software <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""
File #3505: APPLE II SETUP.SIT (MAC)
Uploaded on 8/19/93 by A2PRO.HELP
About 475K (d/l time approx. 47 minutes 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)
This disk is the AppleShare Apple II Setup disk for the AppleShare
File Server product from Apple. When you install a server so that Apple II
workstations can boot from it, the server installation software asks for
this disk. You _must_ use this disk and not any older version to boot IIgs
workstations into System Software 6.0.1. This disk has a MacBinary header.
REQUIRES a MACINTOSH, DiskCopy and Stuffit Expander.
>>> APPLE ASSEMBLY LINES QUICKINDEX <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
3520 V5N1 Oct.84 (44K)
AAL.OCT.84.BXY
18-digit arithmetic part 6, a review of the 65802 and more!
3521 V5N2 Nov.84 (42K)
AAL.NOV.84.BXY
18-digit arithmetic part 7, turning bit-masks into indexes and
converting two-digit decimal strings to binary, and more!
3522 V5N3 Dec.84 (39K)
AAL.DEC.84.BXY
18-digit arithmetic part 8, 65C02's in older IIs, strange way to
divide by 7, sly hex conversion, tables for faster hi-res and much more!
3523 V5N4 Jan.85 (41K)
AAL.JAN.85.BXY
18-digit arithmetic part 9, a symbol table source maker, and a short
single-byte hex-to-decimal printer
3524 V5N5 Feb.85 (39K)
AAL.FEB.85.BXY
18-digit arithmetic part 10, making DOS-less disks, building hi-res
pre-shift tables, and more!
3525 V5N6 Mar.85 (44K)
AAL.MAR.85.BXY
A real 65816 disassembler, finding memory size from the ProDOS 8
global page, more on 65C02s in older IIs and more!
3526 V5N7 Apr.85 (43K)
AAL.APR.85.BXY
Shrinking code inside BASIC.System, fast text windows for Applesoft,
and more!
3527 V5N8 May.85 (38K)
AAL.MAY.85.BXY
New catalog for DOS 3.3, 80-column window utility for IIe and IIc,
adding date command to BASIC.System, and more!
3528 V5N9 JUN.85 (41K)
AAL.JUN.85.BXY
Boyer-Morris string search algorithm, integer square-roots, interrupt
trace, and more!
3529 V5N10 JUL.85 (38K)
AAL.JUL.85.BXY
Reading DOS 3.3 disks with ProDOS, multi-level ProDOS catalog, BSAVE
to new non-binary files in BASIC.System, and more!
3530 V5N11 Aug.85 (42K)
AAL.AUG.84.BXY
Making a print buffer on the IIc with a Z-RAM, generic conversion
routines, wildcard file name search, and more!
[EOA]
[RTC]//////////////////////////////
NIGHTS OF THE ROUNDTABLE /
/////////////////////////////////
RTC Watch
"""""""""
By Nate Trost
[N.TROST]
>>> DoModalWindow from non-applications <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
<T.MYERS4> Just using DoModalWindow() from an NDA...
<M.DEATHERAGE> Don't set the updateAll flag! :)
The system doesn't know what to set the current resource
app
to before trying to call the drawing procedures in those
windows, so if the wrong one is set, the system will
probably just crash.
<T.MYERS4> So, if I leave updateAll bit off no windows (except
the frontmost) will get updated?
<M.DEATHERAGE> Right. And that's what you have to do if you're
not an application.
>>> System Header Files <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
<J.GREGURICH> I dropped by to tell ya that I got minitext to compile.
The MenuRec and toolRec records have an array in them
respectively that was big enough. I had to edit menu.h and
locator.h. I'm surprised C called that an error.
<M.DEATHERAGE> Bayou: You shouldn't have to edit the system's header
files. In fact, doing so is a bad idea for when you need
to update interfaces.
<J.GREGURICH> Matt, actually I just created a copy of them and replaced
the <..> with ".."
<M.DEATHERAGE> Still, Bayou, you shouldn't have to do it. What was the
problem you were trying to solve?
<J.GREGURICH> The program was trying to define a menu listing of 8 items.
the header file's Struct def only declared 5 slots in the
array....so I didn't change my Library header files,
I just created new ones.
<M.DEATHERAGE> Bayou! Aha!
There's a built-in way to get around that. Look
at the top of menu.h if you can see it now.
In my version (the Apple version), the array is defined as
of length "mbtMenuRefArrayLength", which is defined as
0x0005. (Did you see that when you were working with it?)
<J.GREGURICH> That is what I changed. I changed the 5 to an f
<M.DEATHERAGE> OK, but you don't have to!
Look around it in the source. It's only #define'd
as 0x0005 if there's no previous definition. (#ifndef
mbtMenuRefArrayLength/#define mbtMenuRefArrayLength
0x0005/#endif)
That means that if you've _previously_ defined that label
as a different value before you #include <menus.h>, you'll
get your value instead of the default one.
So, just #define mbtMenuRefArrayLength 0x008 (or anything
else you like) before you #include <menus.h> and you won't
have to change the standard header files.
Kind of slick, huh?
<J.GREGURICH> Yea. That is what I like about C
<M.DEATHERAGE> The same is true for theToolsLength in <locator.h>
and mtItemRefArrayLength in <menus.h>.
>>> BRL vs. JMP <<<
"""""""""""""""""""
<RICHARD.B> Just wondering who preferred BRL over JMP and the other way
around, specifically in regard to OMF files.
With BRL the file is smaller, but with JMP the code is
faster.
<N.TROST> Hmm, I just use BRL out of habit....most of the time.
Sometimes I just use JMP for no particular reason. :-)
<SOFTDISK.INC> Richard: because JMP has to be relocated, BRL doesn't....
I NEVER use JMP. EVER.
<A2PRO.HELP> I use BRL because I generally use the ORCA macros "JCS"
"JNE" etc and that's what they use.
<[RICHARD.B> I use whichever seems logical in relation to the code
logic. Sometimes JMP just seems more logical.
>>> Sound RAM and Music <<<
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
<R.NIELSON1> I use SoundSmith and Noisetracker/SonicTRACKER.. etc..
I noticed that SoundSmith only allows 64k total for
instruments...is this because SS only allows the Ensoniq
sound RAM for instruments?
<A2PRO.HELP> Yes.
<R.NIELSON1> Hmmm... How do the others do it? Switch from sound RAM and
main memory?
<A2PRO.HELP> Yup... :)
<N.TROST> They quickly move data into the sound RAM while the
instrument is playing.
<R.NIELSON1> Whoa! Cool... and this does require lot's of
processing time no?
<N.TROST> Eats a lot of processor time, which is why you don't see
background MOD players.
[EOA]
[REF]//////////////////////////////
REFLECTIONS /
/////////////////////////////////
Thinking About Online Communications
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Phil Shapiro
[P.SHAPIRO1]
>>> MAKING USE OF "TELECOM AGENTS" <<<
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Online communication brings with it all sorts of benefits... but as
the old saying goes, "Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing." When
people start getting inundated with electronic mail they need to find ways
to streamline their online time.
Just last month I observed an amusing, creative solution to e-mail
overload. A friend of mine has a son in the fifth grade who takes a strong
interest in computers and telecommunications. For two or three years this
young fellow has been pleading with his parents to get a 9600 baud modem
for the family computer. Since this youngster typically spends fifteen to
twenty hours each week online, he is weary of the low speed of his family's
2400 baud modem.
Recognizing an opportunity to help themselves, the parents in this
family agreed to buy a 9600 baud modem for the family, on condition that
the fifth-grade son spend time each day helping his parents answer their
own electronic mail from work. The youngster agreed to take on this new
family chore and, true to his word, now spends ten to twenty minutes each
day retrieving his parents' e-mail. He sets up his communications program
so that his parents can sit down and quickly answer their e-mail after
dinner each evening.
While this story sounds more amusing than alarming, it does raise some
thorny ethical issues. Why is it that the parents of this family felt
compelled to answer their work e-mail from home? Because hardly anyone has
enough hours in the day to do productive work and still find time to answer
all the electronic mail that arrives at his or her desk during the day.
The term "telecom agent" refers to a person who helps streamline one's
online communication experience. In the case of my friend's family, the
young child served as a "low-level" telecom agent. His duties were simply
to retrieve e-mail, save the messages to a hard drive, and set up the
communications program for easy answering of the e-mail.
"High level" telecom agents take on the extra duty of saving incoming
e-mail messages to a hard drive, and classifying incoming e-mail into
categories and/or specific folders on the hard drive. High-level telecom
agents can also take on the responsibility of answering some of the more
routine e-mail messages that arrive at a person's desk. In that way, busy
business professionals can streamline their online communications.
So the next time that you feel overwhelmed at how much e-mail is
arriving at your desk, perhaps it's time to start looking around for a
fifth-grader to come to your aid. In the months ahead it may not be
unusual for kids to have this new chore added to their list of family
chores. The familiar refrain of parents around the country could plausibly
evolve to something along the lines of: "Okay, Chelsea, I want you to: 1)
Clean your room, 2) Take out the trash, 3) Retrieve mom and dad's
electronic mail. And don't forget to feed the cat."
-Phil Shapiro
[*][*][*]
The author takes a keen interest in the social dimensions
of communications technology. He can be reached on GEnie
at P.SHAPIRO1; on Internet at: p.shapiro1.genie.geis.com;
on America Online at: pshapiro
////////////////////////////////////// GEnie_QWIK_QUOTE ////
/ "Not only did I find a new toy, but I'm trying real hard /
/ not to do as much programming at home. In other words, /
/ I'm trying to get a life. :)" /
////////////////////////////////////////////// PUNKWARE ////
[EOA]
[LOG]//////////////////////////////
LOG OFF /
/////////////////////////////////
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