WhizNews (C) Copyright WhizWare, 1995 A ùWhizWare Software Product Author: Thomas C. McIntire ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ Vers: 4.0 ³ ùWhizNews Help and Information Index ³ 11-20-02 ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÁÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ùAction message lines ùIndex of show pages ³ ³ ùAutoWhiz programming ùInfo programming ³ ³ ùCGA graphics ùPainting with color ³ ³ ùClearing after pages ùSpeed (pace, TU) ³ ³ ùColor on text pages ùText editing ³ ³ ùCompiling show programs ùViewing show pages ³ ³ ùConfiguring page files ùWhizDraw program ³ ³ ùDrawing with characters ùWhizHelp compiler ³ ³ ùEditing a show ùWhizNews.EXE program ³ ³ ùEGA/VGA graphics ùWhizNews.WPG work file ³ ³ ùFile space requirements ùWNeditor.EXE program ³ ³ ùIcon files ùWNhelp.DAT text file ³ ³ ùImporting show pages ùWNhelp.EXE program ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ |WhizNews WhizNews is our generic name for show programs containing animated text and video graphics. In its simplest form, the show program ùWhizNews.EXE cycles through "pages" stored in a file called ùWhizNews.WPG ... when the end of the show is reached, the show starts all over again. WhizNews shows can be started by typing the program's name as a DOS command (or from a batch file) or they can be automatically started if a system sits idle for a specified period of time (see ùAutoWhiz for how this can be done). WhizNews shows can be stopped by hitting most any keyboard key. A special meaning can be assigned to the use of ; we call it ùInfo programming: A show program is, conceptually, an "advertising movie". If a viewer wants to know more about a certain "product" the show can be interrupted and the system switches to a static text-file displaying mode. is used to exit that mode, and the show resumes as before. WhizNews shows can be "named" whatever you like; the end product is a set of files that can be distributed as a "video presentation program" for a variety of audiences. See ùCompiling and ùConfiguring for more about this, special functions built into our ùEditing program. See also, ùAction about "animated text", or ùCGA and ùEGA/VGA and ùIcon for more about "video graphics". |WhizNews.EXE WhizNews.EXE is the name of our "show program". It contains the logic for "processing" pages from a show file initially called ùWhizNews.WPG (WPG means "WhizPage file"; read on to discern this meaning.) As this program runs it "loads" each page directly into video RAM. Part of a page is thus an immediately visible "background mask". The show program then displays ùAction text initially loaded into an invisible area of video RAM, along with parameters that control ùClearing and ùSpeed and ùColor and so on. WhizNews.EXE is also the file that is used as a basis for show programs known by other names. The ùCompiling function -- while ùEditing -- first copies this file to one that you name, then that file is internally changed to access other files to be included with your end-product video presentation program. |WhizNews.WPG WhizNews.WPG is the name of a WhizPage file that always contains 60 pages; ùEditing can only be done to this file; it must reside in the same path as the editing program itself. WhizNews.WPG is also the file that is used to create show programs known by other names. The ùConfiguring function -- while ùEditing -- can be used to create an end-product WhizPage file of fewer than 60 pages. (See ùFile for how to determine space requirements.) This function can be used "in reverse" also, to copy existing shows back into the work file for updating, correcting, or whatever. Another important concept is the idea of ùImporting pages from "old shows" (or a library of "canned pages") into WhizNews.WPG; see that ùEditing is an apt term because, we seldom have to create whole new shows from scratch. |Info Info programming is an optional capability that allows a viewer to interrupt a show and invoke a "help program": A text file "reading mode". Create the text file itself using your favorite text editor or word processing program. "Process" that file with ùWhizHelp and specify target names for the Info program and its corresponding text file. Then, using the ùCompiling function of the ùWhizNews ùEditing program, specify the name of the program generated with WhizHelp. (A "blank name" provided at compile time effectively means "no Info", and use of will be treated like any other key to simply stop the show.) |WhizHelp WhizHelp is a development system that we use for providing on-line help in all of our systems (just like this one called ùWNhelp.EXE that displays what you are now reading, text pages stored in the ùWNhelp.DAT file). WhizHelp has its own on-line help capability, developed using WhizHelp itself, naturally. That system defines the brief rules for "writing" text pages that can be found quickly and easily, with or without a Mouse, and how the "read" program can be made "context sensitive". The output from WhizHelp can have whatever file names you like, so that they will seem to be an integral part of any "software package". It is this same inherent capability that makes it possible to use WhizHelp to add ùInfo files capability to a ùWhizNews show. To make that show "context sensitive" we follow special syntax rules when ùEditing our ùIndex of show pages in the ùWhizNews.WPG file. |CGA CGA graphics--Color Graphics Adapter--was the first-out capability for a PC to be able to "draw", and to be able to do it in color. WhizNews has intentionally maintained its ability to work on CGA systems. We have also added an enhancement that provides much higher resolution "pictures" on those that have ùEGA/VGA (q.v.) capabilities. Note: On some (older) systems--depending on the type of video adapter present--some "characters" may not appear as they normally should. In the event, on such machines, the DOS program GRAFTABL should be run (once) before a WhizNews program is run. To provide a show editor with an easy means of interspersing some simple animated graphics sequences (to break up the monotony and tedium of text-only output) there are six canned CGA graphics routines hard-coded into the show program itself. These routines can be "turned on" as a ùClearing action to follow the presentation of any text page. (See ùEditing for how to do this.) The alternative to CGA graphics is more comprehensive, as can be seen on the next few pages (q.v.): ùEGA/VGA graphics, and ùIcon files created with our ùWhizDraw system. |EGA/VGA EGA/VGA graphics--Enhanced Graphics Adapters, etc.--provide for higher resolution images with more color capabilities than the earlier ùCGA systems but at a price, of course. There are some direct relationships between higher resolution, more colors, the speed of a given machine, and the size of disk files used to hold graphics images. Really fancy graphics could cause older machines to run too slow or consume too much disk space. See ùIcon and ùFile descriptions for more about this. WhizNews editors can deliberate the various trade-offs and produce shows that will run on a broad range of system configurations. Another consideration is, of course, the time and effort necessary for a person to do fancy "art". Some pretty impressive and innovative shows can be fabricated using only the ùWhizNews ùEditing program; a typical page can be built from scratch in just a few minutes. In contrast, although ùWhizDraw (a video graphics drawing program) is far easier to use than many similar programs, it can still take several hours to create really complex pictures, sometimes. The complications of doing "animated graphics" has been curtailed by putting that logic inside the show program itself; it contains built-in subroutines for various ways of displaying and erasing what would otherwise be "static" pictures. These options can be selected with the ùClearing function during ùEditing (which is also how ùSpeed options are selected). |Icon We use the word Icon just as Webster does: An image or representation; a portrait; picture; illustration, etc. A further distinction is necessary in this environment, however. All images on a monitor are made up of dots; some are on and some are off. The buzz word for these dots is Pixel, short for Picture Elements. ùWhizNews runs primarily in text mode; characters (letters, numbers, etc.) are stored in memory and files as codes; the "shaping" of those characters is done at display-time by systems software and electronics, each code representing a certain "standard" character. Icon files, on the other hand, contain "bit images" (not codes). These bits (or dots or pixels, or whatever) are mapped into video RAM just as they are stored: A "digitized image" or picture. There are a variety of programs on the market for recording or creating such images in files in the first place; WhizNews can only "play" pictures stored in files produced by ùWhizDraw (q.v.) It is possible to "import" scanner images stored in MSP (Windows) format, however. A program called WDgraf (WhizDraw Graphics Files Utility) can convert such files to be compatible with all of our software. Read on. |WhizDraw WhizDraw is a graphics pixel punching program. And a lot more. It differs from most packages of this genre because it is a full-screen editor; no menus or other junk clutters up part of the screen; it makes use of pop-up menus as an alternative. WhizDraw can do most of the things typical of such programs, like one-click support for drawing of lines and boxes and circles, and so on, and the tasks usually referred to by names like cut, paste, zoom, rotate, enlarge, fill and paint. And it contains three sets of fonts for typing and printing, etc. Here is how WhizDraw can relate to WhizNews: We use a scanner program--the one that came with our scanner-device--to capture an image from a book or magazine, or whatever, into an MSP-type file (viz, Windows format). Then we run WDgraf, the Graphics Files Utility that is included with WhizDraw, to convert it to an ùIcon file so that we can edit it, modify it, etc. Now, all we have to do is move the result to a ùWhizNews show path and change its name to make it a "callable" file. That naming convention is described under the topic ùClearing ...a function accessed with the WhizNews ùEditing program. |WNeditor.EXE ùEditing of Show Pages is done with WNeditor; this system consists of 5 files: WNeditor.EXE (the program) WNeditor.WPG (WhizPage file of screens associated with F-keys) WhizNews.WPG (WhizPage file of 60 work pages) WNhelp.EXE (on-line help program) WNhelp.DAT (on-line help data file) The ùWhizNews editing program is used to edit (create, erase or modify) text pages stored in the work-pages file. This program also contains routines for ùImporting pages from other show files and for ùConfiguring and ùCompiling show programs for distribution. WNeditor.EXE can be started as a DOS command: WNEDITOR This program expects WNeditor.WPG and WhizNews.WPG to be in the path where WNeditor.EXE is stored. The two WNhelp files should normally be in that same path as well (if not there, requests for help will simply be ignored). WNeditor.EXE can also be linked-to from WhizNews.EXE (the show program). If the show in progress is WhizNews.WPG and <249> is punched, the editor is invoked with the show page then being displayed already loaded. (On exit from the editor, the show resumes with the last page "saved".) |Editing The WNeditor program is Function-Key driven. F-keys 1 through 10 are used like "hot keys"; pulls up a "menu screen"; this key can be used anytime; this start-up screen has two other uses: The only correct way to exit the editing program is via while on this screen. This is also the way to get "on-line help": To call ùWNhelp.EXE while editing. To do this, anytime, hit then (or because the keys are ignored at this point). The WhizNews help scheme is described next because it is akin to how ùInfo programming can be made part of a video presentation system. For quick access, here is an index of topics specific to ùWNeditor.EXE ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ ù Configure Show File ùWhizNews.WPG and ùConfiguring concepts ³ ³ ù Compile Show Program ùWhizNews.EXE and ùCompiling concepts ³ ³ ù Draw Boxes ùDrawing tricks and limitations ³ ³ ù Draw Characters ùPseudo graphics vs. ùCGA or ùEGA/VGA ³ ³ ù Color Settings ùPainting with ùColor ³ ³ ù Action Messages ùViewing ùAction settings and ùStart up ³ ³ ù Load a WhizPage ùIndex maintenance, ùImporting & ùInfo ³ ³ ù Save a WhizPage ùClearing and ùIcon and ùSpeed ³ ³ ù Edit a WhizPage ùText editing functions ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ |WNhelp.EXE WNhelp.EXE is the WhizNews on-line help program. It "displays" text screens stored in the WNhelp.DAT (data) file. WNhelp.EXE can be started as a DOS command: WNHELP This program expects WNhelp.DAT to be in the path where WNhelp.EXE is stored. (If not there, the help program simply terminates.) WNhelp.EXE can also be linked-to from WNhelp.EXE whenever the start-up menu screen is being displayed, by hitting either or . Help topics can be quickly selected with a Mouse if Mickey's driver is already in memory. Normally the left button works like and the right button works like . These two buttons work when "clicked". The "meaning" of these two buttons can be flip-flopped anytime WNhelp.EXE is running by hitting the key. |WNhelp.DAT WNhelp.DAT is a specially configured file consisting mostly of ASCII text. WNhelp.DAT contains some "binary data" however; sending it to a printer could cause some folks a severe migraine. WNhelp.DAT is normally read by use of WNhelp.EXE--our on-line help program. WNhelp.DAT was created from a pure ASCII file that we maintain with our favorite word processing program: ùConfiguring of this file is done with ùWhizHelp and that program itself is used as the basis for ùCompiling the program WNhelp.EXE--the exact same scheme you can use for providing ùInfo capability as part of a show of your own. |File Disk file space requirements may be a design issue for some ùWhizNews show packages. ùWhizNews.EXE itself is about 72KB; a show with ùInfo capability will contain a second program of about 50KB. The additional space required is a function of how many Pages a show consists of, the ùIcon files that must accompany it, and the size of the data file itself for ùInfo text. Each WhizPage contains 3,248 bytes; a show can have up to 60 pages, thus a maximum size of 194,880 bytes. See ùConfiguring for how to reduce this overhead for shows having fewer than 60 pages. The size of the ùInfo data file to be included is a matter of verbosity, of course. ùCompiling an ASCII file for use with this system results in a file just slightly larger than the source (less than 100 bytes typically). ùIcon files-- ùEGA/VGA graphics images--are stored in individual files which can be quite large (up to a maximum of 64KB, per). Even "small" pictures can run 10KB or more. Obviously, if space is an issue, few of, and small may be criteria to impose when planning a production... Moderate productions will often fit 720KB disks; large shows on 1.44MB. |Configuring ùEditing (per se) can only be done to pages in the ùWhizNews.WPG file which contains 60 pages (nearly 200,000 bytes). Most shows will require fewer pages, and most show programmers will prefer a name of their own choosing. Solution: Hit to Configure a ùWhizNews Show File ùEditing (per se) can only be done to pages in the ùWhizNews.WPG file. It is sometimes necessary to change, modify, or otherwise update "old shows". Solution: Hit to copy a Configured file into ùWhizNews.WPG See the next page for more ... | ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ Function Key can be used anytime while running ³ ³ ùWNeditor.EXE for custom ùConfiguring of a Show File. ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ Note: If a target already exists, it will be clobbered. Idea: If the target is ùWhizNews.WPG you might want to make an off-line back-up copy of it first to preserve pages that will be destroyed. Note: The current ùIndex is changed to correspond to the incoming pages. Idea: If the target is a "good show" you might want to make an off-line back-up copy of it first to preclude a chance of "blowing the show". Idea: Double check the End-of-Show mark first. Hit to see it. Note: If a contains a typo or is otherwise not valid to DOS you will hear a BEEP and the cursor positions to the line in error. Note: Whatever is entered on this screen is "remembered" until changed. |Compiling ùWhizNews.EXE is the name of our "run a show" program; the WhizPage file it knows by heart is called ùWhizNews.WPG (that name is built-in). Most show programmers will prefer names of their own choosing. Some presentation programs will include a few ùIcon files and some may have ùInfo text file reading capability as well. Solution: Hit to Compile custom WhizNews Show Programs See the next page for more... | ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ Function Key can be used anytime while running ³ ³ ùWNeditor.EXE for ùCompiling a custom Show Program. ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ Note: ùWhizNews shows run best, naturally, when stored on a hard disk. Idea: Do not specify a disk drive when compiling; the used here become embeded in the resultant Show Program. Note: It is easier for a user to use *.* for copying all files from a distribution disk. Idea: Use the same "first name" for all when compiling a show package. (And, why dictate a Path, at all?) Note: If a contains a typo or is otherwise not valid to DOS you will hear a BEEP and the cursor positions to the line in error. Note: Whatever is entered on this screen is "remembered" until changed. |Pseudo Pseudo graphics is jargon for drawing with certain characters. ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ Ü°Û ³ A simple graph: ³ ²Û°Û± ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ Entertaining animation can be achieved with some "standard" PC characters. Type a line like this: ÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜßÜß Mark it for ùAction to Rotate. You will like what happens. Caveat: Unfortunately, not all "standard" characters look exactly alike on different systems, nor even, in different display modes on a given system. ùWhizNews runs in 40-column mode (40 characters per line) rather than the customary 80-column text mode. Some of the "double wide" characters look a little different than their skinnier cousins. There is also a considerable difference between ùCGA and ùEGA/VGA adapters: The character cell sizes are different; even zero varies (slash vs. a dot). With this background in mind, see the next page about "Drawing"... |Drawing DOS books often refer to the standard PC font set as ASCII characters but this is a misnomer. ASCII defined the "meaning" of only 128 codes; the first 32 are "control codes". PCs "print characters" for codes 32-127 as ASCII defined them, and now have a ùPseudo graphics set of characters for codes 128-255. Some can also be printed for codes below 32 (their "control meanings" have deviated somewhat from the original ASCII standard). ùWhizNews depends on DOS (and the system BIOS) for keyboard input and output on monitors. Thus: There is an inherent capability to produce characters that have no corresponding "key". (Surprised? A lot of hackers don't know this either.) It is done by holding down and punching a code number on the numeric key pad. (Such characters are not displayed until you let go of the key.) So: <196> then <196> then <217> will "print" ÄÄÙ ùWNeditor.EXE provides a much easier means for Drawing Boxes and other "shapes" while ùEditing --see the next two pages for how to do this. | Function Key is used for ùDrawing Boxes; it is used in two different but related ways: While actually ùEditing --see ù -- works as an on/off switch. When ON, moving the cursor with the keys causes "boxes" to be drawn. While on any screen other than , pops up a menu of options and rules related to Box Drawing. To get to this screen while editing hit . If done this way, and you hit then , the return to editing mode is automatic. | Function Key is used for ùDrawing with most any character; it is used in two different but related ways: While actually ùEditing --see ù -- works as an on/off switch. When ON, moving the cursor with the keys causes "shapes" to be drawn. While on any screen other than , pops up a menu of options and rules related to Character Drawing. To get to this screen while editing hit . If done this way, and you hit then , the return to editing mode is automatic. |Color Without a doubt, color is a significant attraction to ùWhizNews viewers. For those doing the ùEditing however, color programming is no trivial trick. Colors on computer monitors are relative, not specific. Brown, for example, may look like dark red on some, but almost orange on others. There are many reasons, including the obvious one of inept use of the "tuning knobs". For colorful text, hues and tints are not important but good contrast is: Green words on a blue background would be bad; yellow on blue a much better choice. Border coloring can be attractive, but, it may not work on all systems. The new edge-to-edge type monitors is a case in point. Another mechanical risk is potential with colored borders too: Vertical or horizontal adjustments may be so off-center that your pretty border could offend someone's sense of symmetry. (And, the unknowing might reckon it's your fault.) Colored text characters pose another kind of risk. Suppose we build a show on an ùEGA/VGA system and it really looks great. It may look lousy to a viewer with a ùCGA adapter, however. Don't forget about character cell-size differences; a blank line above and below text, and an extra space fore and aft a message string is sage advice. |Painting Painting with color is an important aspect of ùEditing show pages. When a show page first hits the screen it should be seen as a "back drop" for the ùAction lines coming up. If those text strings are going to have colors that are different than the overall background, an extra programming step will be necessary. The usual steps are: Paint the whole screen. Type and Draw what's wanted. Mark the Action strings. Do a save. The Save process "lifts" the Action strings off the page and hides them in an unseen area so they can be played out on a background mask, i.e., the screen as it will look with the action strings omitted. Now, if those strings were painted with various background colors, when the characters are blanked the result will look like empty boxes. Sometimes this is good but more often it is not what is wanted. So, just before a Save is done--after all Action strings have been marked--paint over the Action areas with the uniform background colors wanted. CAVEAT: Do not forget this important last step EVERY TIME a Save is done. (It must be done even if nothing is changed!) | Function Key is used for ùPainting with color; it is used in two different but related ways: While actually ùEditing --see ù -- works as an on/off switch. When ON, moving the cursor with the keys causes whatever is on the screen to be "painted". While on any screen other than , pops up a menu of options and rules related to Color settings. To get to this screen while editing hit . If done this way, and you hit then , the return to editing mode is automatic. |Action Without a doubt, Action is a significant feature of ùWhizNews shows. For those doing the ùEditing however, Action requires a little brain strain. There are 25 lines on the screen; each line can contain 40 characters. Action strings are played out from top to bottom in 1-2-3 order. Only one "message string" can be marked on each line; all of the characters in such strings must have a common ùColor setting. With these points in mind, now we can have some fun... Given a black background: On line 1 type 40 "spaces" in blue. Mark columns 1 through 40 to "streak up". See what happens: A blue background, for what is to follow, will smoothly scroll up the screen. Similarly, line 25 can consist of 40 black spaces marked to "streak down" (a neat trick preceding an ùIcon --they always have black backgrounds). Remember, a "space" is a character with all of its pixels turned off and <219> resembles a space with all of its pixels turned on. All other characters are made up of patterns of ons and offs, ON meaning foreground color and OFF meaning background color. See ùViewing and ùStart for some useful tricks for doing Action experiments. | Function Key is used for ùAction messages; it is used in two different but related ways: While actually ùEditing --see ù -- works as an on/off switch. When ON, moving the cursor with the keys causes whatever is on the screen to be "marked". While on any screen other than , pops up a menu of options and rules related to ùAction settings. To get to this screen while editing hit . If done this way, and you hit , the return to editing mode is automatic. |Viewing Because ùEditing must be done on a static screen, no ùAction can be seen. A ùWhizNews page consists of 2000 characters (40 times 25 lines) so it's hard to remember which are marked to do what. Hitting while on screen is a handy trick, but experimentation is often needed to achieve what is wanted at "play time". The following tricks can shorten trial-and-error exercises: Save a page being worked on in slot 1 of the index (it can be moved into its proper place later). PS: We normally make Page #01 a simple black, blank page in final productions; it is our secret "test" slot. Temporarily mark Page #01 as the end of the show. Now we can watch just this one page, over and over to see if it works the way we want it to. To avoid having to go to and fro in DOS command mode: Start ùWhizNews.EXE then hit <249>; this is a quick link to ùWNeditor.EXE and the Page on screen is automatically loaded as if had been hit. Make whatever adjustments are needed, Save the page, then hit . Watching a whole show over and over can be both boring and time consuming for its creator. See ùSpeed and ùStart for how to zip through such reviews... |Index Each page in a ùWhizNews.WPG file can be assigned a name (a brief description or whatever) to make it easier to "remember" what's on a page. These titles are displayed in an index of pages whenever ù Load is selected. The "name" assigned to a page may have a second use: A subject-word used to make an ùInfo presentation "context sensitive". ùWhizHelp works like this program; a viewer can quick-pick pages by clicking on any word that has a dot-character in front of it. Scenario: A show is in progress; a viewer hits . If the show package includes ùInfo capability, and the Index entry for the page then running begins with a dot (an <249> code) and ends with a space, and that "name" exactly matches one for a page in the accompanying text file, that is the page that is snapped on the screen when the "read me" program is invoked. (PS: A "no match", deliberate or otherwise, will default to the first page in the text file; this happens also for Index titles that do not begin with a dot.) See that, effectively, Index titles are unseen by anyone other than a show's producer. Although the entry for each page can contain only 20 characters, cryptic abbreviations can be coined as mnemonic aids for knowing what's on a page, what ùIcon it calls, or whatever. | Function Key is usable anytime to the get to the Load menu. If is hit, the page with the highlighted number is copied from ùWhizNews.WPG to a work area (in WNeditor.WPG) and the program switches to ùEditing mode, just as if ù Edit was selected. ùIndex maintenance is done on this screen also; to switch to this mode hit . Changes are dynamic (titles are stored with each page in ùWhizNews.WPG and are updated immediately with whatever is done while in this mode). The presentation order of Pages can be changed while in Index maintenance mode, using to tag one page, then for the one with which it is to be "swapped". The green note () on this screen denotes the "end of the show", the last page to run before ùWhizNews starts over. To change this, move the note with and then hit . ùImporting pages from other files (paths, disks, etc.) is another valuable capability... (cont) |Importing The time that it takes to create new presentation shows can be sharply reduced by simply ùEditing WhizPages from "old shows". Suppose Page 13 from another file can be used (as is or with minor changes). To "import" it into ùWhizNews.WPG do it like this: Hit ù Load to see the current ùIndex then to get to Index maintenance mode. Move the cursor to Page 13. If the current Page 13 is valuable, move it to another slot; the incoming page will REPLACE whatever is in this same position. Now hit . Type the of the disk file that contains the page to be imported. DOS rules apply; any error will cause a BEEP and this mode will be automatically terminated. The built-in error handling routine attempts to also prevent an accidental attempt to load a "page" from a file that is not, in fact, a WhizPage file. This logic is not 100% fool-proof, however (can't be). It might be wise to do an off-line backup of ùWhizNews.WPG before attempting this if unsure of what's where in a particular path or disk. This same risk is potential for a non-existing page (see ùConfiguring for how this could happen). |Clearing ùWhizNews shows consist of Pages; after each page has "played", the screen can be cleared in a variety of ways... Nine of the Clearing routines built into ùWhizNews.EXE are done with the monitor still operating in text mode. Three of these control how the next page is introduced (useful for achieving smooth continuity of multi-page subjects). The other six options in this category use "spaces" to clear the screen; one of these is typically used to make a smooth transition when the next page is to have a background color different than the current one. The six ùCGA graphics routines are useful as "mental intermissions" between subjects. They are also useful for attracting attention (although primitive, they are pretty and entertaining). These routines are built in and require no parameters; they are pre-set to run for a fixed amount of time. The other choice for clearing is "Load WhizDraw Icon". A number of pages in this file pertain to this one subject, viz: ùWhizDraw ùIcon ùSpeed ùEGA/VGA Whatever the choice, Clearing options are "set up" when a Page is "saved"--when it is moved from the ùEditing buffer into a numbered slot in the WhizPage file... (cont) | Function Key is usable anytime to get to the Save menu. Save copies an ù Edit page to a slot in ùWhizNews.WPG Parameters selected on this screen are stored with the Page. A page can be copied into a slot other than back to the one from which an ù Load was done. The Save function can also be used to ERASE a Page; if is hit a safety-prompt pops up to preclude accidents. This option DOES NOT alter ùIndex (q.v.) entries. switches the Clearing options to those for ùIcon actions only if the cursor is on "Load WhizDraw Icon"; any values set up here are ignored if, later, a different type of ùClearing action is selected. |Speed Without a doubt, Speed is a critical factor in ùWhizNews productions. For those doing the ùEditing this is probably the hardest thing to get "right". There are a number of things to consider, and in the end, a lot depends on your intuition: This is art, not science. A 486 runs faster than a 286; a lot faster than an 8086, as we all know. Disk access times can vary considerably, even on a given computer. Video display times differ too, in different modes, on any given model. ùWhizNews.EXE first addresses speed like this: There is an automatic ticker built into the electronics of all computers that "clicks" approximately 18 times a second. WhizNews utilizes default "click counts" that are preprogrammed for certain actions. When ùAction lines are displayed, "Walk right" is consistently faster than "Spell right" because their base Time Units have been adjusted by the start-up timer loop. (This auto-adjust algorithm can be defeated; see ùStart for how.) Having gained an intuitive feel for the pace of the various ùAction options --study ùViewing if you have not already--see how "on screen time" can be managed by doing things like printing a few invisible spaces. Controlling the pace of ùIcon animation is done differently... (cont) | Animated graphics are relatively slow, even on the fastest computers. The canned ùCGA routines in ùWhizNews.EXE are paced by factors in the TU table in much the same way that ùAction text is pre-programmed to produce fairly consistent results. The TU table is used for ùSpeed control of ùIcon displays in ùEGA/VGA modes as well, but the permutations of size and color complexity are so vast that no simple formulae can be devised that would satisfy everybody. So, we let you be the judge (and the programmer). Study screen . Notice the list of options when you hit after selecting "Load WhizDraw Icon" as a ùClearing action. The "paceTU" parameters are used as additional multipliers for controlling on-screen animation and display duration. A higher factor means go slower (5 TU takes 5 times longer than 1 TU, for example). All Icon images are rectangles; height vs. width must be considered when choosing how to display and clear a graphics image, and at what speeds. The "Spin erase" option, for example, works best if the Icon image is a square, rather than a rectangle. "Flip over" and "Turn around" performance times are dramatically different for wide vs. tall rectangles. Again, trial and error is the pragmatic way to determine what works best; see ùStart for some ways to make experimenting fairly easy. | Function Key can be used anytime to get to ùEditing mode. This function is similar in concept to Word Processing, i.e., you can "type" whatever is wanted, anywhere on the screen. See the next page for a list of special functions useful in this mode... |Text Text editing functions while in ù Edit mode ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ Use to print a space and move left (reverse of space-bar). to move cursor to upper left corner of screen. to move cursor to end of current line. to jump to the right... to jump to the left. Tabs are at positions 1, 8, 16, 24, 32, and 40. to delete a character and shift rest of line left. Right-most character will be a blank. Color = Switch . to begin inserting characters and shift rest of line right. Color = cursor's position. Switch is ignored. to move cursor one position in indicated direction. Use or to shift entire page up or down 1 line. Use with to Erase a line. to Blank from the beginning of a line. to Hash (erase) to the end of a line. to Copy line above (overlaying current line). to Delete a line and up-scroll lines below. to Insert a blank line and down-scroll lines below. Note: These functions kill any ùAction marks on all lines modified. |Start ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ The conventional way to start ùWhizNews.EXE is as a DOS command. There ³ ³ are a number of alternatives and, some useful start-up options as well. ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ Batch files: WHIZNEWS (or your compiled version's name) can be used just like any other dot-EXE or dot-COM program. Shell: Most programming languages provide an ability for "calling" another program. (In BASIC the command is SHELL "".) Timer: ùAutoWhiz (q.v.) is a TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) program. It can be conditioned to monitor keyboard activity; if no keys are hit for a predetermined time, it will auto-start another program. Switch options in the start-up command string, viz: WHIZNEWS 7 #9 The dot (an <249> character) means start the show with this page number rather than 01; a handy jump-start ùViewing trick. The pound-number is used as a ùSpeed TU factor, rather than the one ùWhizNews.EXE generates itself for deciding how fast it should run. (cont) | The ability to jump-start a show at a page other than 01 and the option for defeating the automatic ùSpeed regulating algorithm were both devised for the benefit of show programmers. (Neither of these options are typically needed for end-use productions.) Jump-start option: The syntax is critical, a dot-character followed by a one or two digit number (1-60), with a space fore and aft. If ùWhizNews.WPG is the WhizPage file, the dot-number can be after the end-of-show page. In the event, the show will continue from that point, run through page 60, restart at page 01, but recycle as usual, when the end-of-show page is encountered. If the named WhizPage file is other than WhizNews.WPG, the dot-number must not be higher than the last page in the file. (In the event, what happens next is anybody's guess, but a re-boot will likely be necessary. ùSpeed over-ride option: The syntax is critical, a pound sign followed by a digit (1-9), with a space fore and aft. The higher the number, the slower the show runs. A special test is made for #-1 (a negative value); this will make the show run as fast as your computer can go...a handy trick for ùViewing a show's overall continuity, quickly. |AutoWhiz ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ AutoWhiz is another ùWhizWare invention available from WhizWare. ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ It is a TSR program with a number of features, all described in AWhelp, a self-contained free standing on-line programmer's manual. Scenario: A computer is used for POS (Point of Sale) like a cash register, but it often sits idle for varying amounts of time. The monitor is readily visible to shoppers strolling through the store. AutoWhiz senses no sale is in progress so it invokes a ùWhizNews advertising show. A customer approaches with a purchase selection; the sales clerk hits any key on the keyboard, and bingo, the show stops and the machine reverts to its role of being a cash register. AutoWhiz is feature rich; far too comprehensive to fully describe here. Contact ùWhizWare and ask for a free copy of AWhelp to discern its usage potential for specific environments. |WhizWare WhizWare is a software Research and Development firm ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿ ³ WhizWare ³ ³ 635 Kendrick Road ³ ³ Milner, GA 30257 ³ ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ All of our software packages are referred to by name; most of them have names beginning or ending with "Whiz", gee whiz. Our products are all fully documented on disks; we use our own ùWhizHelp package. Who wants to fool with paper manuals today? No, we are not like Microstuff and most others: To keep you from being able to use pirated copies of their software they make you buy the book. Our prices are so low you can afford to be honest and pay us. |