

     |||||| |||||| ||  || |||||| ||||||
     ||     ||     ||| ||   ||   ||
     || ||| ||||   ||||||   ||   ||||               Your
     ||  || ||     || |||   ||   ||
     |||||| |||||| ||  || |||||| ||||||             GEnieLamp Computing

     ||    |||||| ||    || ||||||                   RoundTable
     ||    ||  || |||  ||| ||  ||
     ||    |||||| |||||||| ||||||                   RESOURCE!
     ||    ||  || || || || ||
     ||||| ||  || ||    || ||


                     ~ WELCOME TO GENIELAMP A2Pro! ~
                       """""""""""""""""""""""""""
               ~ A Busy Month ~ Spectrum 2.0 A2U Course ~
              ~ BRUN for Help ~ A Visit from the Tandy RT ~
                ~ Spectro Oil Contest ~ Custom Controls ~
                  ~ HOT NEWS, HOT FILES, HOT MESSAGES ~

/////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
 GEnieLamp A2Pro   ~ A T/TalkNET OnLine Publication  ~  Vol.4, Issue 24
 """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
 Editor.....................................................Tim Buchheim
  Publisher.................................................John Peters
 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////////////////////
  ~ GEnieLamp IBM ~ GEnieLamp ST ~ GEnieLamp PPC ~ GEnieLamp Windows ~
        ~ GEnieLamp A2Pro ~ GEnieLamp Macintosh ~ GEnieLamp TX2 ~
          ~ GEnieLamp A2 ~ LiveWire (ASCII) ~ GEnieLamp MacPRO ~
              ~ 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? <<<
          """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
                              ~ March 1, 1995 ~

 FROM MY DESKTOP ......... [FRM]        HEY MISTER POSTMAN ...... [HEY]
  Notes From The Editor.                 Is That A Letter For Me?

 A2PRO ROUNDTABLE STAFF .. [DIR]        DEVELOPERS CORNER ....... [DEV]
  Directory of A2Pro Staff.              News From Online Developers.

 LIBRARY BIT BONANZA ..... [LIB]        RTC WATCH ............... [RTC]
  HOT Files You Can Download.            Real Time Information.
  
                       LOG OFF ................. [PUB]
                        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)
        _____________|   _____|__  _|___    |____ |_____________
       |Name of sender   CATegory  TOPic    Msg.   Page number|

    In this  example, to  respond to  Smith's  message, log  on to  page
530 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 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.  GEnie's non-prime time connect rate is
 $3.00 an hour.  To sign up for GEnie, just follow these simple steps.

1.  Set your communications software to half duplex (local echo) 8 bits, no
 parity and 1 stop bit, at 300, 1200 or 2400 baud.

2.  Call (with modem) 1-800-638-8369.  Upon connection type HHH.

3.  Wait for the U#= prompt.  Type:  JOINGENIE and hit RETURN.  When you
 get the prompt asking for the signup/offer code, type: DSD524  and hit
 RETURN.

4.  Have a major credit card ready, as the system will prompt you for your
 information.  If you need more information, call GEnie's Customer Service
 department at 1-800-638-9636.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""


[EOA]
[FRM]//////////////////////////////
                 FROM MY DESKTOP /
/////////////////////////////////
Notes From My Desktop
"""""""""""""""""""""
by Tim Buchheim
 [A2PRO.GELAMP]

     o TOP OF THE PAGE

           o   LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


                          >>> TOP OF THE PAGE <<<
                          """""""""""""""""""""""

SUCH A BUSY MONTH FOR ONE SO SHORT!   Wow, this month flew by.  But that's
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""   to be expected, with only 28 days in
February.  But what has really surprised me is how much has actually gone
on in the past month!  New programs like Animasia 3-D, Faxination,
Wolfenstein-3D, and Spectrum 2.0 are available to entertain us and keep us
busy.

     For us programmers, that last one is especially important.  Not only
does it now allow one to write XCMDs, like HyperCard or HyperStudio, but it
has a very powerful scripting language which blows away all the others. And
A2Pro is proud to announce an A2 University class to teach everyone how to
use this wonderful scripting environment.  And who could be a better
professor than the man who has been involved with the Spectrum upgrade from
day one, making sure that all sorts of nifty commands have been added?
That's right, Mr. Spectrum Scripting himself, Ken Lucke is teaching this
course!  So if you have ever had an urge to learn to script Spectrum, now is
your chance!  But hurry, class has already started.  Sign up in Category 22,
Topic 31 of the A2Pro Bulletin Board.  Classes meet Sunday night at 9:30 PM
Eastern Standard Time.  Lessons and RTC transcripts are available in the
library.

     But that's not all!  A2Pro is a part of the Golden Spectro Programming Contest!  You can win cool prizes by writing a simple program and uploading
it to A2Pro library 53.  The complete rules are located in the library, and
for your convenience they're reprinted right here in GEnieLamp.  Because
this is a cross-platform contest, I urge everyone to write a program, to
show everyone just how alive the Apple II really is!

     Wow, I know I'm forgetting something.  But don't worry, if I did, I'll
cover it in next month's issue.  Until then, be sure to keep up with the
A2Pro Bulletin Board so you don't miss anything!


                                                Tim Buchheim
                                               GEnieLamp A2Pro



                       >>> LETTERS TO THE EDITOR <<<
                       """""""""""""""""""""""""""""
 
Tim,

Loved the February 1995 Lamp. And I'm not just saying that because I
appeared more times than anyone else... Well... Maybe it did have a little
effect on my reaction, but I love it all the same!

Regards,
 Richard

                    (RICHARD.B CAT1, TOP15, MSG:87/M530)

                                 [*][*][*]

    Do you have something to say about GEnieLamp A2Pro?  Please
    post any questions or comments you may have in Category 1,
    Topic 15 in A2Pro's BB (m530;1).  Or, feel free to talk to me
    (A2PRO.GELAMP) anytime you see me in a Real Time Conference.


                                 [*][*][*]


[EOA]
[DIR]//////////////////////////////
          A2PRO ROUNDTABLE STAFF /
/////////////////////////////////
                          ______________________________________________

                           APPLE II PROGRAMMERS & DEVELOPERS ROUNDTABLE
       _____  ______      ______________________________________________
      /_____|/______\
     /__/|__|  ___|__|         Head Sysop: Hangtime         (HANGTIME)  
    /__/_|__| /_____/         Your Sysops: Greg Da Costa    (A2PRO.GREG)
   /________|/__/       __ __ __           Todd P. Whitesel (A2PRO.TODDPW)
  /__/   |__|__/______ /_//_// /           Nathaniel Sloan  (A2PRO.HELP)
 /__/    |__|________//  / \/_/            Tim Buchheim     (A2PRO.GELAMP)

                                 [*][*][*]


[EOA]
[HEY]//////////////////////////////
              HEY MISTER POSTMAN /
/////////////////////////////////
Is That A Letter For Me?
""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Tim Buchheim
 [A2PRO.GELAMP]

     o   BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS

           o   WHAT'S NEW
           
                 o   PROGRAMMER'S TIPS

                       o   MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT                             


                      >>> BULLETIN BOARD HOT SPOTS <<<
                      """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

 [*]  CAT1,   TOP24, MSG{1}...........Golden Spectro Programming Challenge
 [*]  CAT2,   TOP8,  MSG{26}..........Assembly language and AppleSoft BASIC
 [*]  CAT9,   TOP7,  MSG{196}.........Applesoft BASIC help please!
 [*]  CAT11,  TOP14, MSG{1}...........Gif Files
 [*]  CAT15,  TOP16, MSG{141}.........Control Manager


                              >>> WHAT'S NEW <<<
                              """"""""""""""""""

CONTEST
"""""""
The Golden Spectro Programming Challenge

GEnie and the Motorcycling RoundTable are the official online service of
Spectro Oils of America, a division of Intercontinental Lubricants Corp.
Spectro Oil is America's #1 high performance motorcycle lubricant. Spectro
also manufactures a complete line of lubricants for snowmobiles, ATV's and
other recreational vehicles. Spectro supports a worldwide distribution
network from their U.S. headquarters, located in Brookfield, CT.

One of the most frequently asked questions of Spectro is "what is the ratio
of fuel to oil that I should use in my two-stroke motor?"

Answer that question by designing a program that will calculate oil mixture
ratios by solving for the unknown variable and you can win one of these
great prizes!

Grand Prize:  Spectro Pro Racing Jacket ($100 retail value), a case of
Spectro oil of the winner's choice ($100 retail value) and $100 in GEnie
online time.

Best in Class Winners: Spectro 1994 US Superbike Championship T-shirt, ball
cap and a 4-pack of Spectro oil of the winner's choice ($50 retail value)
and $50 in GEnie online time.

Entry classifications are: Amiga, Apple, Commodore, DOS/IBM- Compatible,
Macintosh, OS/2, Windows, Other.

The program must include the following elements in addition to the
calculation portion of the program:

 1. A statement that the program is freely distributable; modifications are
not allowed.
 2. The GEnie mail address of the programmer.
 3. The GEnie mail address of Spectro Oils. (SPECTRO.OILS) and the Spectro
Customer Service number (800-2-GET-OIL).
 4. The Spectro logo (not required for text-only programs) and the program
name:
      GOLDEN SPECTRO....THE COMPETITION CONCENTRATE
      FUEL TO OIL RATIO CALCULATOR
 5. Complete documentation, either incorporated into the program or as a
separate text file.
 6. A standard disclaimer.


Program Example: If you have 5 gallons of gas and want a 60:1 ratio how
many ounces of oil should be added to the gas?  The program should also
convert U.S. to metric measurements.  To help our European motorcycle
riders, they like to refer to a 50:1 ratio as a 2% ratio so be sure to
include percentage equivalents.

 Required Elements:
 Oil Ratio ie. 50:1 (User will enter ratio)
 Oil Percentage
 Fuel in Liters
 Fuel in Gallons
 Oil in Liters
 Oil in Ounces

 Optional:
 Fuel in Imperial Gallons

 Important Statistics:

 32 Ounces = 1 quart
 128 Ounces = 1 gallon
 1 U.S. Quart = .946 Liters
 1 Liter = 1.056 US Quarts
 1 Imperial Gallon = 1.201 U.S. Gallons
 1 Imperial Gallon = 4.564 Liters


Upload all files in your submission in ONE file to any one of the
participating RoundTables. Please upload to the library specified for
entries by the RoundTable you choose.

 NAME                                   PAGE KEYWORD
 *Starship*, the Amiga RoundTable       555  AMIGA 
 Apple II Programmers RoundTable        530  A2PRO
 Apple II RoundTable                    645  A2
 BBS & Telecommunications RoundTable    610  BBS
 Commodore 64/128 RoundTable            625  COMMODORE
 IBM PC RoundTable                      615  IBMPC
 Macintosh Programmers RoundTable       480  MACPRO
 Macintosh RoundTable                   605  MAC
 Microsoft RoundTable                   505  MICROSOFT
 Motorcycling RoundTable                1155 MOTO
 OS/2 RoundTable                        1400 OS/2
 PowerPC Programmers and Developers RT  1440 PPCPRO
 PowerPC RoundTable                     1435 PPC
 Programming & Languages RoundTable     1445 PROGRAMMING
 Tandy/TRS-80 RoundTable                635  TANDY
 Windows RoundTable                     1335 WINDOWS

 1. Only original entries with no undocumented software calls or features
will be accepted. Entries for different categories may be based upon
similar source code.
 2. All entries must include an executable version of the program, a text
copy of the original, documented source code, and any supporting files.
 3. Entries may only be submitted by uploading the program and all required
accompanying materials, along with Name, Address, daytime telephone,
evening telephone, GE Mail address, and classification to any participating
GEnie RoundTable library. Entries must be submitted not later than
11:59 PM EDT on Monday, May 15, 1995, as time stamped by the completion of
the upload process.

 4. Winning entries will be selected on the basis of program suitability to
the described tasks, usability, and creativity of design.  In the event of
a tie, cross-platform source code portability will be used to determine the
winner.
 5. The decision of the judges is final.
 6. Prizes are non-transferable.  Online time prizes cannot be redeemed for
cash and expire if not used within 6 months from the date of award
announcement. Usage credits will be applied only to the entrant account and
only if that account is in good standing at the time of the prize award.
 7. Entries will not be returned.
 8. All entries will be made available for public download in the Library
of the participating RoundTable where the entry is uploaded.
 9. Winning entries, including compiled binaries, program source and
documentation become the property of Spectro Oils of America, a division of
Intercontinental Lubricants Corp.  Winning entries may be distributed by
whatever means deemed appropriate by Spectro Oils of America. Spectro Oils
of America reserves the right to modify the source code and compiled
binaries of winning entries.
 10. By submitting an entry you agree to all of the contest rules.
 11. This contest is open to GEnie members. Staff members of the sponsoring
RoundTables are not eligible for prizes.

                     (JUST.DAVE, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:1/M530)


>>>>>   The Entry Form for the Spectro contest is in file #4578 in the A2Pro
"""""   Library.

The Spectro Logo is available in GIF format in file #4579 in the A2Pro
Library.

All submissions in the Apple II category are to be uploaded to Library 53.

                     (JUST.DAVE, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:2/M530)

<<<<<   I don't have both time nor resources to do this, but for anybody
"""""   that does:

A little pep would be an additional calculation: Instead of calculating how
much oil is needed for a given amount of fuel, I found that I need to
calculate with fixed sizes as well. That is I have a 20l canister and want
to add fuel and oil into it. The formula for this is:

o = V/(x+1)

where 
o ... amount of oil
x ... ratio (for 1:50 --> x = 50)
V ... volume of tank (canister)

ratios here in German speaking Europe are among (in case you are using
pop-ups):
1:20   very old
1:25   standard low cost engines
1:30  \
1:40  - no idea where they are used, but my manual lists it
1:50    standard for modern engines
1:1000  to mix lead like additives (oldtimers)

hope this is any help
Alex 

                     (A.CORRIERI, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:4/M530)


<<<<<   I was thinking about some kind of "trick" user interface for
"""""   this...

It would be neat if there was a popup for setting the desired ratio, and
then dragable thermometers for the quantities required....

These would be custom controls, and would look almost like a standard
thermometer, except that when the "top" of the bar was clicked & dragged
the "marker column" would move with it. [Anyone here who's seen the
Kensington TurboMouse software for the Mac (the Custom settings area) has
seen =exactly= the type of control I'm refering to]

Lets say the user drags the fuel control to xx gallons (Oh, yeah, have to
have a popup for measurement systems... Gallons, Imperial Gallons, CC's,
Ounces, etc) The oil control would automatically position itself to the
correct quantity of oil for the fuel specified. If the oil control was
dragged, then the fuel control would auto position itself instead. (This
should be driven by a heartbeat routine so that as one control is moved by
the user the other tracks at seemingly the same time)

Besides having a calibrated scale next to each of these custom controls,
there should also be a LineEdit control next to each bar, which would
display (probably in decimal format, but fractions should be do-able) the
exact quanties of each item.

If anyone decides to try doing this, feel free to borrow any ideas from
here... I won't be entering the contest.

Oh, one other thing... If someone does write up a custom control such as I
describe here, a fitting name would be a "Drawbar" control. (and please
write up the control such that it could be easily used by others, and make
the source avail to us all... thanks :)

-Harold

                     (HAROLD.H, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:5/M530)


<<<<<   Harold, I don't have a Kensington TurboMouse on the Mac.  :)  How's
"""""   this for a description of your control, though:  A thermometer that
you can adjust using scroll-bar style arrows or by dragging the top of the 
"mercury".

Mike Westerfield

                    (BYTEWORKS, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:10/M530)


<<<<<   Darned close!!! :) :)
"""""
I don't know about the scroll-bar style arrows (maybe these could be
included / skipped based on a flag in the passed extended control template?
:) but the idea of adjusting the setting via "dragging the top of the
mercury" is =exactly= the kind of thing I was thinking of. [Gee, how'd you
manage to say it so simply when I've taken ??? messages to say this? :)]
To elaborate a bit further on the general idea...

1) A flag to indicate horizontal or vertical orientation
2) Passed minimum and maximum values so the control proc could
   automatically display a properly graduated scale next to the control.
3) A flag to indicate if the scale should be drawn
4) A flag to indicate which side of the control the scale should be drawn
   on. (left/right for vert, top/bottom for horz) 
5) Info for displaying the absolute value of the control (dec, fraction,
   etc) and the placement of this information.

I'm just sorta musing about what could be a neat and usefull new control
here, I'm not posting a plea for someone to write such a beast up or
anything. Just tossing out an idea for general chewing on by the resident
"Herd of Nerds" :-)

 -Harold

                    (HAROLD.H, CAT1, TOP24, MSG:11/M530)


                        >>> PROGRAMMER'S TIPS <<<
                        """""""""""""""""""""""""

MORE ABOUT CUSTOM CONTROLS   I have written a custom control and want to
""""""""""""""""""""""""""   turn it into a multi-part control (I want to
add a scroll bar).

Well judging from TB3, I set the multi part flag in moreFlags, but where do
I register that scroll bar to the control manager. There is no control
message from control manager, that would suggest to define more than one
part of the control.

Or is the Control manager recursive, that is am I allowed to issue a
NewControl2 within my control definition procedure (while processing the
InitCtl message)?

Alex
                    (A.CORRIERI, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:141/M530)


<<<<<   I've been told by someone that has disassembled the Control Manager
"""""   that it is reentrant.

                     (POWERPC.PRO, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:142/M530)

 
<<<<<   Control Mgr. is one of the few reentrant toolsets.
"""""
-Greg Templeman, GS Software Engineer
 Softdisk Publishing

(and author of II Scroll, a large patch to the Control Mgr. that gives two
arrows at both ends of scroll bars... also somebody that Sheppy knows who
has disassembled the Control Manager... :)

                    (BARNABAS, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:143/M530)


<<<<<   I've never heard of adding an existing control to be part of
another control. IMO, controls seem to have a single purpose. For example,
if you were to call the standard SetCtlValue (val, ctlHndl), how would you
differentiate the use of "val" between the scroll part to your custom part?

Does the scroll bar *have* to be part of your control, or, for all intents
and purposes, can it be a separate control?

Have you looked at the way TextEdit handles this situation?

Michael

                   (ANIMASIA, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:155/M530)

 
<<<<<   Michael, I did the same thing.  It works great.  In QCCalc, the
"""""   split screen controls are a single control made up of a _variable_
number of controls (one split screen control and either one or two scroll
bars). All you need is a mechanism for keeping things separate at the top
level.  If you get desperate, you have a longword you could use as a
pointer to more complex control values.

Mike Westerfield

                  (BYTEWORKS, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:145/M530)


>>>>>   Yes, a NewControl2 within the initCtl message did the trick. I
"""""   would not have assumed this easy way otherwise :)

thanks!

Alex

                    (A.CORRIERI, CAT15, TOP16, MSG:146/M530)


RBUN FOR HELP   Gurus...
"""""""""""""   What is the difference between BRUN'ing an object file and BLOAD'ng it and CALL'ing it's start address?

     Been playing with Merlin, and doing the lessons that A2.Jay uploaded
years ago.

     When I BRUN the object file, the programs execute and when they are
done, I can still issue DOS (ProDOS actually) related commands like CAT,
Delete, Save etc... But if I BLOAD and CALL, I get ?SYNTAX ERROR messages
after the DOS commands.

      Is this normal?

                      (C.OREM, CAT2, TOP8, MSG:26/M530)


<<<<<   Sounds like you're disconnecting KSW/CSW ($36-$39) in your program.
"""""   BRUN and BLOAD are BASIC.SYSTEM commands. When you BRUN something,
upon return, BASIC.SYTSTEM re-installs it's KSW/CSW hooks.

CALL is an Applesoft command, so when you return, it doesn't touch KSW/CSW.

If you're not directly touching $36-$39, see if you're making an F8 calls
involving PR#/IN# etc. I can't remember which ones directly, because I'm
not at home at the moment.

Regards,
 Richard

                    (RICHARD.B, CAT2, TOP8, MSG:27/M530)

 
HOLD IT RIGHT THERE   Hi,
"""""""""""""""""""   I am NOT swift at programing at all, and I am down
here at the U of FL, with my books up in Missouri. I have forgotten how to
pause a program, I am writing a short and simple program for my wife to
practice for her new job, I want a random number to move down the screen,
pause in the middle, and then continue on to the next. I am sure my
solution is not very compact, but it all works fine except for a pause in
the middle of the screen. It needs to have an adjustable speed (no sweat),
and some way to time the pause too, ANY help is appriciated, the simpler
the better!
Thanks, Robert

                    (R.MARSH10, CAT9, TOP7, MSG:196/M530)


<<<<<   I normally use a "FOR X = 1 to 1000 : NEXT X" loop. to adjust the
"""""   pause, change the value in place of 1000. 2000 makes it longer and
500 makes it shorter.

You could add in a

   IF PEEK (-16384) > 127 THEN POKE -16386,0: X = 1000

This would check the keyboard strobe to see if the user had pressed a key
and if they have it aborts the timing loop and continues. The POKE simply
prepares the keyboard for another keystroke. Remember to put the NEXT X on
the next line in the program so the IF statment doesn't skip right over
it...  ;)

SCOTT

                    (S.JOHNSON89, CAT9, TOP7, MSG:197/M530)


>>>>>   The FOR X = 1 TO 1000 (actually 1600 gave me the timing I needed)
"""""   worked like a charm.

Thanks,
Robert

                    (R.MARSH10, CAT9, TOP7, MSG:198/M530)


<<<<<   Robert,
"""""   I once setup a demo will the single purpose of wasting some time
till a Profile hard drive was ready to be accessed. The user could turn on
the entire system at once and either walk away and make some coffee or
watch the demo run till the HD was ready to go. It was sorta cute.  ;)
The thing I hate most is having to watch the computer do it's thing when I
could be off doing other stuff. That was the MAIN reason I purchased a tape
drive a couple years ago. I HATE FLOPPY BACKUPS! (and it's much harder to
lose 800K out of the middle of a tape than just losing one floppy out of a
set of 50 or so.  Hehehe)

SCOTT

                    (S.JOHNSON89, CAT9, TOP7, MSG:199/M530)


                        >>> MESSAGE SPOTLIGHT <<<
                        """""""""""""""""""""""""

ORPHANS HELPING ORPHANS   Well ... here is a nice un-used topic :).
"""""""""""""""""""""""   I wandered from over at the Tandy RT.  I've
searched all over trying to find information on the LZW compression used in
GIF files.  No luck AT ALL in getting this info anywhere on GEnie...until I
dropped by here.  (Come to think of it, this is also the place that had
some fax info I wanted a year ago... Way to go, fellow orphans!)  Anyway,
there are some files I need but I do not know what the bxy file format is.
I am specifically interested in files 3067,3068, and 4015.  These all
relate to the GIF format and/or the LZW compression used therein.  (There
is also a nifty text file about it, but I'll have to spend more time trying
to understand what it is telling me.)  Could anyone grab these files and
change them over to ASCII for me?  I'd really appreciate it. OR, if someone
can show me the specs for BXY then I'll just write my own decompressor :).
Any help will be appreaciated.  Thanks!

     Allen @ Tandy RT

                    (COCO-SYSOP, CAT11, TOP14, MSG:1/M530)


<<<<<   ok, I just grabbed these files and am about to go decompress them
"""""   for you..

a *.BXY file is a Shrinkit (*.SHK) file inside a Binary II wrapper.
(uncompressed file within Binary II would be *.BNY)  Shrinkit is the
standard compression method used on the Apple II (interesting coincidence:
it uses LZW, too!:) and Binary II is a short header put on files to retain
filename, filetype, creation date/time, modification date/time, etc.

Tim Buchheim

                    (A2PRO.GELAMP, CAT11, TOP14, MSG:2/M530)


<<<<<   oh, and BTW, there should be specs for ShrinkIt and Binary II in
"""""   the library somewhere :)

                    (A2PRO.GELAMP, CAT11, TOP14, MSG:3/M530)

 
<<<<<   Yeah, they're probably in .BXY format.  <grin>
"""""
  Ken Lucke

                       (K.LUCKE, CAT11, TOP14, MSG:5/M530)

 
>>>>>   Thanks Nate!  (er, Tim!)  <grins>
"""""   [For a while, my email address was labeled "Nate Trost" --Ed.]

Ken ... that would figure.  Like under OS-9, we finally got an LZH
compressor.  When the upgraded version was released, it was in .LZH format
meaning if you didn't have the earlier version, you had to download it just
to use the newer one <g>.

Is there anyone out there with experience in coding the LZW routines in C?

     Allen
     who used to help A2 BBS owners program voting booths for their
     Net-Works systems back in Houston in 1982-84, back when A2s
     ruled the BBS scene and no one had ever heard of an IBM PC.  :(

                     (COCO-SYSOP, CAT11, TOP14, MSG:6/M530)

                               [*][*][*]


    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 II, 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]
[DEV]//////////////////////////////
              DEVELOPER'S CORNER /
/////////////////////////////////
News From The A2Pro Online Developers
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Tim Buchheim
 [A2PRO.GELAMP]


     o   ONLINE SUPPORT IN A2PRO

           o   GNO/ME SERIAL PORT DRIVERS


                      >>> 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
          38   EdIt-16 (Bill Tudor)

     30        PROCYON, INC.
     31        SOFTDISK PUBLISHING
     33        GS+ MAGAZINE
     34        JEM SOFTWARE
     35        PRODEV, INC.
     36        THE BYTE WORKS

     Each month this column feature highlights and news from various
developers who provide support via A2Pro.



                    >>> GNO/ME SERIAL PORT DRIVERS <<<
                    """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""


OBTAINING SOURCE CODE   This topic has been fairly quiet for awhile so I
"""""""""""""""""""""   thought I'd ask something maybe controversial...

What parts of the GNO/ME system code are private, copyrighted and not
available?

The reason for my question is I'd like to experiment with the serial port
driver code to try and put something together that would work with a real
Super Serial Card.  I've tried to disassemble the driver but since I have
no idea as to its layout I wasn't very successful.

My main question would be 'If the serial port driver code is part of the
source which is available, would it be possible to get it uploaded
somewhere?'.

                                                       Thanks,
                                                       Doug M.

                    (D.MITTON, CAT30, TOP1, MSG:87/M530)

 
<<<<<   The serial port drivers are available.
"""""
They needed some kernel modifications, though, which is why I've been
holding off.

I'll go ahead and send the beta 2.0.5 kernel and SSC driver to anyone who
has a SSC who wants it. Go ahead and email me, and I'll get the copies out
next week.

Jawaid

                    (PROCYON, CAT30, TOP1, MSG:88/M530)


>>>>>   See your EMail as I am definitely interested.
"""""
As I mentioned in that EMail, wouldn't it be just as easy to place it in
the A2Pro Library #41 which is only available to GNO/ME registered users?

Another 'by-the-way'; thanks for a very nice environment!!!

                                                     Doug M.

                    (D.MITTON, CAT30, TOP1, MSG:89/M530)

 
<<<<<    Now that you mention it, yes, that might be a good idea. :-)
"""""
                     (PROCYON, CAT30, TOP1, MSG:90/M530)

                               [*][*][*]


[LIB]//////////////////////////////
             LIBRARY BIT BONANZA /
/////////////////////////////////
HOT Files You Can Download
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Tim Buchheim
 [A2PRO.GELAMP]


                  >>>  SPECTRO OIL PROGRAMMING CONTEST  <<<
                  """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

File # 4577  S.C.RULES.TXT  (ALL)
Uploaded on 2/11/95 by JUST.DAVE
About 5K (d/l time approx. 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)

Spectro Oil is having a programming contest with some really cool
prizes!  All you have to do is write a simple program for them.  Download
or <L>ist this file for the complete rules and descriptions of the
prizes.
The entry form for the contest can be found in file #4578, S.C.ENTRY.TXT
Spectro's logo is in GIF format in file #4579, SPECTROLOGO.GIF


File # 4578  S.C.ENTRY.TXT  (ALL)
Uploaded on 2/11/95 by JUST.DAVE
About 3K (d/l time approx. 20 seconds @ 2400 baud)

Spectro Oil is having a programming contest with some really cool prizes!
This file contains the entry form for enterring the contest.  You can
download it, or <L>ist it online.  The complete contest rules can be
found in the file S.C.RULES.TXT, which is file #4577.
Your completed entry should be uploaded to Library 53 in the A2Pro Library.


File # 4579  SPECTROLOGO.GIF  (ALL)
Uploaded on 2/11/95 by JUST.DAVE
About 6K (d/l time approx. 1 minute @ 2400 baud)

This is the logo of Spectro Oil.  This is a must-have if you're entering
their programming contest. :)   See file #4577 for complete rules.



                  >>> A2U COURSE - SPECTRUM 2.0 SCRIPTING  <<<
                  """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

File # 4591  SP.A2U.INTR.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/18/95 by K.LUCKE
About 5K (d/l time approx. 30 seconds @ 2400 baud)

This is the introduction to the A2U course in Spectrum v2.0 Scripting.  It
contains a syllabus of the course and course requirements/goals.


File # 4593  SP.INTR.RTC.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/19/95 by K.LUCKE
About 10K (d/l time approx. 1 minute @ 2400 baud)

This is the RTC from the introduction week to the Spectrum Scripting A2U
course.  It has been edited to remove the comings and goings and extraneous
stuff but all contectual items have been left intact.  Some spelling errors
have been corrected to protect the guilty  :)


File # 4594  SP.A2U.WK1.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/19/95 by K.LUCKE
About 9K (d/l time approx. 1 minute @ 2400 baud)

This is lesson #1 for week 1 of the Spectrum scripting A2U course.


File # 4603  SP.A2U.WK1A.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/26/95 by K.LUCKE
About 2K (d/l time approx. 15 seconds @ 2400 baud)

The answers to the quiz at the end of Week 1's lesson in the Spectrum
Scripting A2U course.


File # 4604  SP.A2U.WK2.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/26/95 by K.LUCKE
About 11K (d/l time approx. 1 minutes @ 2400 baud)

Lesson #2 - Week 2 for the Spectrum Scripting A2U Course



                      >>>  MISCELLANEOUS  <<<
                      """""""""""""""""""""""

File # 4599  IPC.SPY.BXY  V1.3.2  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/24/95 by RICHARD.B
About 22K (d/l time approx. 2 minutes @ 2400 baud)

This is my FINAL version of IPC Spy, the CDA which tracks IPC traffic.
Enjoy.


File # 4557  RJB.EXE.BXY  (GS)
Uploaded on 2/2/95 by RICHARD.B
About 57K (d/l time approx. 6 minutes @ 2400 baud)
Number: 4557  Name: RJB.EXE.BXY
Address: RICHARD.B                Date: 950202
Approximate # of bytes: 58368
Number of Accesses: 10  Library: 19
Description:
Updates to many of my Merlin EXEs, and a couple of new ones. Includes:
INSTALL, SHUTDOWN, RATALOG, RCOMPACT, SETOPENMSG, SETPFX, CREATE,
SHOWRVERSION, SETRVERSION, HEXDUMP, WAITFILE, NOTE, COPYFORK,
MAKERES (rewritten), ADDRECT and DELRES.

                               [*][*][*]


[EOA]
[RTC]//////////////////////////
                   RTC WATCH /
/////////////////////////////
Bits and Pieces from A2Pro Real Time Conferences
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
By Tim Buchheim
 [A2PRO.GELAMP]


     o   A2Pro WEEKLY RTC SCHEDULE

           o   HYPERCARD TRICKS FROM THE MASTER



                     >>> A2Pro WEEKLY RTC SCHEDULE <<<
                     """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
      _______    __________   _________
     /_______|  /_________/  /________/     SEVEN days a week!!
    /__/__/__/     /__/     /__/
   /________/ EAL /__/ IME /__/ ONFERENCES in A2Pro!!
  /__/  /__|     /__/     /__/_____
 /__/  /__/     /__/     |________/      WEEKLY SCHEDULE
 
  Stop in and say "Hi!" at one of these conferences.  We've been giving
away quite a few GEnie usage credits (free time) at these conferences,
and you may just win the next one! :)
 
 Day      Time        Event                                Host
 --- ---------------  -----------------------------------  -----------
 Sun  8:30pm-11:00pm  Weekly Programmers' RTC              Sloanie
 Mon  9:30pm-11:00pm  GS/OS and Toolbox Calls              Dave Miller
 Tue  9:30pm-11:00pm  8-bit Programming                    Russ Nielson
 Wed  9:30pm-11:00pm  HangTime's HyperBar & Grill          HangTime
 Thu  9:30pm-??:??    Informal - Q&A, chat, whatever       A2Pro Staff
 Fri  9:30pm-11:00pm  Getting Started with Programming     Tim Buchheim
 Sat  8:30pm-10:00pm  Assembly Language Programming        Brian Wells
 
           NOTE: All times are in Eastern Standard Time.



                   >>>  HYPERCARD TRICKS FROM THE MASTER  <<<
                   """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

<Brian>      I have a small question.. I've been setting up a background to
             be used with several cards. So far I've got a title field and
             two buttons that move to the next or previous card. All that
             works.

             What I'm trying to do now is have a script intercept
             'openCard' messages and hide the next or previous button as
             appropriate. But I've been unable to find where to put the
             script.

             I'd like to have only one copy of it in memory, rather than on
             each card. But the script doesn't work in the stack or
             background.

<HangTime>   If you did want to do it your way, then putting an OpenCard
             handler in the BG would work, but the cleaner/faster/more
             typical HC way would be place an opaque button on the card
             layer of each card where you want to cover something up.
             Set its color to the same as the BG and it will look like the
             buttons are not there.

             Brian did you understand that?

<Brian>      Hang -- So you'd do that opposed to changing the Visible
             property of the button?

<HangTime>   Yes, it is faster

             Locking the screen, hiding the button and then unlocking the
             screen takes time

<Tim!>       Brian: this way, nothing would get changed.  You'd simply have
             the next and previous buttons covered up on the first/last cards

<HangTime>   Right.  Also remember EVERY card you opened (any inbetween
             cards) would have to run through the script.  No need to this
             way.

<Brian>      So I wouldn't have to run an 'openCard' script. Great!

<HangTime>   Sounds like a kludge, but it's actually the most elegant solution


                               [*][*][*]

    Join HangTime for help with HyperCard every Wednesday night,
    between 8:30 and 11:00 PM EST in A2Pro's Real Time Conference
    (m530;2 from most GEnie prompts)

                               [*][*][*]


[EOA]
[LOG]//////////////////////////////
                         LOG OFF /
/////////////////////////////////
GEnieLamp Information
"""""""""""""""""""""

    o   COMMENTS: Contacting GEnieLamp

         o   GEnieLamp STAFF: Who Are We?


 GEnieLamp Information   GEnieLamp is published on the 1st of every month
 """""""""""""""""""""   on GEnie page 515.  You can also find GEnieLamp on
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 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
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      o To reach GEnieLamp on Internet send mail to genielamp@genie.geis.com

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                     """"""""                    """""""""""""""""
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                     GEnieLamp ST ................... GLST
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     o We welcome and respond to all E-Mail. To leave comments, suggestions
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     o If you would like to meet the GEnieLamp staff "live" we meet every
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     o The Digital Publishing RoundTable is for people who are interested
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                           >>> GEnieLamp STAFF <<<
                           """""""""""""""""""""""

  GEnieLamp    o John Peters         [GENIELAMP]    Publisher/Editor
  """""""""
        IBM    o Bob Connors         [DR.BOB]       IBM EDITOR
        """    o Nancy Thomas        [N.NOWINSON]   MultiMedia Editor/Writer
               o Brad Biondo         [B.BIONDO]     IBM Staff Writer
               o Tika Carr           [T.CARR4]      IBM Staff Writer
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    WINDOWS    o Tippy Martinez      [WIN.LAMP]     WINDOWS EDITOR
    """""""    o John Osarczuk       [J.OSARCZUK]   Asst Editor/Columnist
               o Rick Ruhl           [RICKER]       Windows Sysop/Columnist
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  MACINTOSH    o Richard Vega        [GELAMP.MAC]   MACINTOSH EDITOR
  """""""""    o Tom Trinko          [T.TRINKO]     Mac Staff Writer
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   ATARI ST    o John Gniewkowski    [GENIELAMP.ST] ATARI ST EDITOR
   """"""""    o Mel Motogawa        [M.MOTOGAWA]   ST Staff Writer
               o Sheldon Winick      [S.WINICK]     ST Staff Writer
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 ATARI ST/TX2  o Cliff Allen         [C.ALLEN17]    EDITOR/TX2
 """"""""""""
   APPLE II    o Doug Cuff           [EDITOR.A2]    EDITOR
   """"""""    o Gina E. Saikin      [A2.GENA]      A2 Staff Writer
               o Charlie Hartley     [C.HARTLEY3]   A2 Staff Writer

    A2PRO      o Tim Buchheim        [A2PRO.GELAMP] EDITOR
    """""
   POWERPC     o Ben Soulon          [BEN.GELAMP]   EDITOR
   """""""
       ETC.    o Jim Lubin           [J.LUBIN]      Add Aladdin Scripts
       """"    o Scott Garrigus      [S.GARRIGUS]   Search-ME!
               o Mike White          [MWHITE]       (oo) / DigiPub SysOp
               o Susie Oviatt        [SUSIE]        ASCII Artist
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[EOF]
