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Started by Tom Haapanen
Wed, 27 Jan 1993 16:59
Windows FAQ: ASCII format, 03/06
Author: Tom Haapanen
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 16:59
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 16:59
1014 lines
47855 bytes
47855 bytes
The following is part 03 of 06 of the ASCII text version of the
Microsoft Windows FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions). While some of you
may find this the best format, the more popular format is the WinHelp
file. These are posted simultaneously with the ASCII version to
comp.binaries.ms-windows.
You can obtain a copy of the WinHelp version as "faqwin01.zip" by ftp
from sonygate.sony.com [192.63.138.2], in /pub/comp.binaries.ms-windows.
It will also be placed on ftp.cica.indiana.edu once disk space permits.
BEGIN--------------cut here--------cut here------------cut here----------
DOS application performace is also degraded by using a .PIF file (such as
the default .PIF) with the Monitor Ports option enabled, but to a much
smaller degree. With Monitor Ports disabled, DOS session performance
should be within 5-10% of the performance under bare DOS.
...........................................................................
4.13.8. Problems creating a permanent swapfile in Windows 3.0
--------------------------------------------------------------
First of all, you must be running in real mode to be able to create a
permanent swapfile. Second, You must not have any SUBSTed drives or
Windows won't create the swapfile. Once the swapfile has been created, you
can re-SUBST your drives (although the use of SUBST is not recommended in
general). You also can't create a permanent swapfile on a drive
partitioned with third-party software such as SpeedStor.
If you are installing on a Novell client, you must first disable the
receive network messages feature (using the network icon in the Control
Panel) and reboot. Once you have installed the swapfile, turn messages
back on again.
...........................................................................
4.13.9. Program Manager claims only 8 KB of free memory
--------------------------------------------------------
In Windows 3.1, it is possible that Program Manager (and other Windows 3.1
programs) will claim that you have only 8 KB memory when you really have 8
MB (that is, it chops off the kilobytes part and displays only megabytes --
but with "KB" after the figure).
This is caused by a null thousands separator in Control Panel's
International settings. Set the
separator to either blank or some character to restore correct behaviour.
...........................................................................
4.13.10. Using a slow expansion memory board with Windows
----------------------------------------------------------
If some of your memory is on a slower memory expansion board (such as a
standard ISA bus memory board, operating at 8 MHz in a 33 MHz system, you
may experience serious performance deterioration as soon as Windows starts
using the slower memory on the expansion board. (For example, see section
Performance deterioration in a 386 Enhanced mode DOS session.)
Unfortunately Windows 3.1 does not allow you to specify memory ranges to be
used for a RAMdisk or disk cache, and thus you can't control which memory
gets used first. In this case, the best solution is to use QEMM-386, which
allows you to do just that. Place your RAMdisk and disk cache in the slow
memory (they will not suffer a significant performance drop), and leave the
fast memory on the motherboard available for Windows' use.
...........................................................................
4.13.11. Windows 3.0 refuses to run without a file called WINA20.386
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Quoting from the MS-DOS 5.0 readme.txt file:
4.3 WINA20.386 File
Setup installs a read-only file named WINA20.386 in your root directory.
If you move the WINA20.386 file to a different directory, do the following:
* Add a SWITCHES=/W command to your CONFIG.SYS file.
* Add a DEVICE=[drive:][path]]WINA20.386 command to the [386Enh]
section of your Windows system.ini file.
Windows 3.1 does not require this file to be present.
...........................................................................
4.13.12. Windows 3.1 hangs or crashes during startup
-----------------------------------------------------
Try starting Windows with the command line
win /b
If it repeats the same crash or hang, take a look at the file bootlog.txt
in your Windows directory. It will have two lines such as
LoadStart = SYSTEM.DRV
and
LoadSuccess = SYSTEM.DRV
for every driver succesfully loaded; the culprit driver will show a line
such as
LoadFail = WIN3-64S.DRV Failure code is 05
If it's a standard Windows driver, try reloading it from diskettes;
otherwise, for a third-party driver, try to locate an updated driver either
from cica, your supplier or direct from the manufacturer.
...........................................................................
4.13.13. Windows 3.1 hangs or waits a long time on exit
--------------------------------------------------------
Windows 3.1 tries to reset the mouse driver on exit, and some IBM PS/2
models have great difficulty with this procedure, timing out only after an
extended wait. In order to avoid the problem, add the line
InitPS2MouseAtExit=False
to the [386Enh] section of your system.ini file.
...........................................................................
4.13.14. Windows 3.1 Resource Kit won't install
------------------------------------------------
The most common WRK installation problem is an excessively long path. If
you have problems, try reducing the length of your path for the
installation, and you should be OK.
...........................................................................
4.13.15. Windows 3.x waits a long time on startup
--------------------------------------------------
One possible reason is the use of a serial mouse on COM2 instead of COM1.
If you have a serial mouse, Windows will first attempt to find it (with
great persistence) on COM1, before it looks on COM2. If your mouse is on
COM2, move it to COM1.
Using a temporary swapfile instead of a permanent one for 386 enhanced mode
also slows down the startup process, but not to even nearly the same extent
as the serial mouse problem.
With Windows 3.0, it has also been reported that adding too many fonts
through the Control Panel will drastically slow down the startup, and with
both Windows 3.0 and 3.1, a very large number of ATM fonts will also slow
down the startup process.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
5. WINDOWS AND DOS
===================
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.1. Configuring DOS sessions
==============================
...........................................................................
5.1.1. DOS in a window
-----------------------
You can run a both the standard DOS command interpreter (command.com) and
other DOS applications from within Windows. In Real mode, you are limited
to a single session. In Standard mode, you can have multiple sessions, but
they must still run full-screen. In 386 Enhanced mode, you can have
multiple sessions, and they can run in a window.
You can control the starting up in a window vs. full-screen by setting up a
.pif file for the program (command.com or any other DOS program). You can
also switch the state by pressing Alt-Enter.
...........................................................................
5.1.2. Lotus 1-2-3 in Windows
------------------------------
Lotus 1-2-3, versions 1.x, 2.x and 3.1 run in all modes, but do not support
any of the features of the Windows environment. For all intents and
purposes, version 3.0 doesn't run under Windows.
If you want to use a spreadsheet in the Windows environment, however, you
will be best off buying a real Windows spreadsheet such as Excel, WingZ, CA-
Compete! or 1-2-3 for Windows.
...........................................................................
5.1.3. Reducing the amount of "jerkiness" in DOS window updating
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Windows 3.1 updates the DOS windows by default every 50 ms. To increase
the update frequency, specify another update interval (such as 20 ms) by
adding a line to the [386Enh] section of system.ini:
WindowUpdateTime=20
A smaller interval will provide smoother updates but impose a higher load
on the system.
...........................................................................
5.1.4. Extended memory in DOS sessions
---------------------------------------
After you run Windows, a utility such as Norton SI will often report that
you don't have any extended memory. This is not a bug, but rather a result
of the Windows memory management system.. Windows requires applications to
access extended memory using one of two mechanisms, known as "XMS" and
"DPMI". These mechanism are implemented in himem.sys and emm386.exe. If
you have device=himem.sys in your config.sys, the first XMS call (by
Windows or SmartDrive, for example) will transfer control of the extended
memory to himem.sys, and thus make it inaccessible to non-XMS/non-DPMI
applications.
...........................................................................
5.1.5. Changing the font size for a DOS window
-----------------------------------------------
All video drivers updated for Windows 3.1 allow on-the-fly font changes; to
get the same functionality using older 3.0 drivers (in Windows 3.1), add
the line
FontChangeEnable=1
to the [NonWindowsApp] section of the system.ini file. If you experience
strange cursor behaviour or missing characters, remove the line from
system.ini.
There are also alternate Windows 3.0 DOS fonts available at
ftp.cica.indiana.edu.
...........................................................................
5.1.6. Changing the number of lines inr a DOS window
-----------------------------------------------------
To use more than 25 lines in a DOS window, add the line
ScreenLines=50
to the [NonWindowsApp] section of the system.ini file.
If your screen doesn't quite fit 50 lines in a DOS window with a decent
font, you may want to follow this procedure:
* Use a VGA font editor (such as VFONT) to create a DOS VGA screen
font with more than 25 lines.
* Start up a DOS session (in a window)
* In that window, change the font (and thus screen size) to your new
font/size. Voila!
...........................................................................
5.1.7. Mouse in a DOS window
-----------------------------
In Windows 3.0, if you are running a DOS application in a window, Windows
will retain control of the mouse for cutting and pasting. You can use a
mouse in a full-screen DOS session if you install a mouse driver by running
mouse.com (either before starting Windows, or inside the DOS session), or
by including
device=mouse.sys
in your config.sys file. If you're running WordPerfect 5.1 inside Windows,
WordPerfect must be started full-screen in order to detect the mouse. Once
it has started, you can use Alt-Enter to run in a window, if you wish.
In Windows 3.1, the mouse will automatically work in a DOS window if you
have a video driver which has been updated for 3.1. Old 3.0 drivers do
work, but they do not by default provide mouse functionality inside DOS
windows, although you can force them to do so by adding the line
MouseinDosBox=1
to the [NonWindowsApp] section of the system.ini file.
If you have a Microsoft mouse, you should use the mouse driver version
8.20, included on the Windows 3.1 disks, named mouse.co_ and mouse.sy_.
Expand these files using expand.exe (also included on the disks) before
using them.
...........................................................................
5.1.8. TSRs in DOS sessions
----------------------------
Some TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) programs will not work if you
install them before running Windows. Some of them will not work if you
install them inside a DOS session. Generally the best idea is to avoid
TSRs completely unless you absolutely have to have them.
See also the description of winstart.bat in the Windows *.txt files.
...........................................................................
5.1.9. VGA graphics in a windowed DOS session
----------------------------------------------
Windows 3.1 will support VGA graphics in a windows DOS session if you have
the correct display driver. True Windows 3.1 display drivers (such as the
standard SuperVGA driver) will do this, but some partial implementations
may not.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.2. Troubleshooting DOS applications
======================================
...........................................................................
5.2.1. Out of Environment Space
--------------------------------
When Windows starts up a DOS session, it by default gives it an environment
of 224 bytes, or the space required to hold your current environment,
whichever is larger. If you need more space, there are two methods of
circumventing this. In order of desirability:
* Use a .pif file for each DOS application you run.
In this you can specify the environment size by using the /e:nnn option
(see your DOS manual). You will need a separate .pif file for each program
(although in Windows 3.1 you can create a _default.pif, which is used by
all DOS applications which do not have their own .pif files). You can just
create a command.pif with a suitable /e:nnn, and then specify in the
win.ini a line such as
[Extensions]
bat=command.pif ^.bat // for DOS users
ksh=sh.exe ^.ksh // for MKS users
With this, you can create batch file icons freely, and still get the
options specified in command.pif or sh.pif.
* Use a dummy variable
By specifying a dummy variable (such as DUMMY1=xxxxx...) before starting
Windows, you can reserve some space in the environment. Then, as the first
thing in each command.com session, do
set DUMMY1=
to reclaim the space used by DUMMY1 for use by other environment variables.
...........................................................................
5.2.2. Protected-mode software
-------------------------------
Many protected-mode applications currently on the market use an extended-
memory interface called VCPI (Virtual Control Program Interface), which is
incompatible with Windows' DPMI (DOS Protected Mode Interface). Microsoft
went against an established standard in choosing DPMI, but there are valid
technical reasons why VCPI was not chosen for Windows.
At this point, you have three choices:
* Run your protected-mode software under DOS
This means that you must NOT use Windows or SmartDrive before running your
VCPI software, and may require you to have two different config.sys files.
* Plead with your software developer
Call up the software vendor and ask them whether they are developing either
a Windows-based version, or, at the minimum, one which uses DPMI instead of
VCPI. They should already be working on it anyway, given the momentum that
Windows 3.x has.
* Buy QEMM/386 or 386Max
Both of these packages provide VCPI. You'll be able to run your protected-
mode software as well as Windows 3.0 and 3.1.
...........................................................................
5.2.3. Corrupted diskettes when copying files in a DOS session
---------------------------------------------------------------
If you are getting corrupted diskettes with a 0xff as every other byte when
copying files to a floppy within a DOS session, the most likely cause is an
expansion board using the same memory area also used by Windows for EMM.
You should check that you EMMExclude all areas used by your cards.
The Video-7 1024 SVGA board needs a more radical measure: you need to
change a jumper to do all ROM decoding in cooo - c7ff, and change a DIP
switch to force 8-bit ROM access.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.3. DOS shells and extenders
==============================
...........................................................................
5.3.1. QEMM/386 and DesqView/386
---------------------------------
You can use versions 5.0 of QEMM/386 and below with real-mode Windows 3.0
only. However, QEMM/386, versions 5.1 and higher, provides XMS services
for Windows, thus allowing Windows to run in all modes under QEMM/386, plus
providing compatability with VCPI applications.
Windows will run in Standard (Windows 3.0 and 3.1) and Real (3.0 only)
modes as a DesqView/386 task.
...........................................................................
5.3.2. MKS Toolkit: setting up
-------------------------------
There are two possible problems with running Windows from the MKS Toolkit.
First, with versions up to and including 3.1c of the Toolkit, the use of
login.exe precludes the use of Windows 3.0 in any but the real mode. To
avoid this, have your machine boot directly into the Korn shell or
command.com (you may use init.exe if you wish).
Second, somebody at Microsoft had a brain fade, and Windows gets confused
if it is started with a forward slash path. Thus, if you simply type "win"
in Korn shell, the shell invokes Windows with something like
c:/usr/windows/win.com
and Windows doesn't know where to find itself! To cure this, specify a
shell alias for Windows: I use
alias -x win='c:\\usr\\windows\\win.com'
Note that the double backslashes are necessary for the Korn shell, even
inside the single quotes.
The newer versions of MKS Toolkit allow (standard and 386 enhanced mode)
Windows to run directly from the login: prompt; but they still won't let
you run standard/386 enhanced Windows from the shell (if you used login).
An updated version of init.exe is available from MKS for users of older
versions of the MKS Toolkit.
...........................................................................
5.3.3. MKS Toolkit: maximizing DOS session memory
--------------------------------------------------
If you run MKS Toolkit by starting up init.exe from config.sys, and then
starting the shell from /etc/inittab, you will likely find that there isn't
much memory available in the DOS (shell) sessions you start from inside
Windows.
One way to address this is to start up Windows immediately upon booting,
avoiding loading the shell into the valuable DOS low memory. There are at
least two ways of doing this cleanly:
As the last line in your profile.ksh, add the command
exec c:\\windows\\win.com
(or whatever the path is to your Windows directory). Using the exec
command retains the environment you have set up in your profile.ksh and
environ.ksh files, but overlays the shell memory with Windows, avoiding
memory loss.
Since the startup script executes Windows at the end, make sure that you
so not run sh -L from Windows, as this would attempt to restart Windows.
Given that command.com uses much less memory than the shell, you can
specify (as the last line in /etc/inittab, instead of starting up the
shell) the following:
ms;35;respawn;c:/dos/command.com /c c:\etc\init.bat
Then, in /etc/init.bat, specify all your essential environment variables,
and as the last line start up Windows. This method wastest a few
kilobytes of low memory compared to hte first one, but allows you run sh
-L without risk.
...........................................................................
5.3.4. MS-SH
-------------
The basic problem is the MS-SH swap setting. In Real mode, you will need
to use swap disk. In Standard mode, you can also use swap extend, but you
will have to specify at least 200K of XMS memory in the MS-SH .pif file.
Alternatively, if you are using Standard or 386 Enhanced mode, you can use
swap ems, but again you will need to specify at least 200K of EMS memory in
your .pif file. A bug in the current (as of this writing) version of MS-SH
prevents swap extend from working in 386 enhanced mode; MS-SH will always
crash with a panic error.
With Windows 3.1, swap xms works as intended, and is the appropriate
setting.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
6. WINDOWS TIPS, TRICKS AND SECRETS
====================================
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1. General
=============
...........................................................................
6.1.1. Automatically opening applications on startup, with predefined window
positions
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------
You can load applications automatically in two ways:
* By adding them to the Startup group in Windows 3.1 Program Manager.
To run start them as icons, check the Run iconized checkbox in the
File / Properties dialog for the program.
* By specifying them on the load= or run= line in win.ini. This will
load the specified applications, respectively, either with their
default window sizes, or as icons.
If you need specific window sizes or positions, you will need to use
another utility, either shareware package (such as Layout, Command Post or
Aporia) or a commercial one (such as Batchworks, Bridge or NewWave).
...........................................................................
6.1.2. Changing or bypassing the startup logo
----------------------------------------------
To bypass the logo, you can start Windows with the command line such as
win :
Be warned, however, that some people have had problems with this. Also,
skipping the startup logo does not speed up the Windows startup process.
To change the logo to something else, you need to first create a .RLE file
(using a graphics utility package), with no more than 16 colours, and not
exceeding the VGA 640x480 screen resolution, and no more than 64K in size.
Once you have this file, say mylogo.rle, enter the following command in
your system subdirectory:
copy win.cnf/B+vgalogo.lgo/B+mylogo.rle/B win.com
If you use CGA or EGA, limit the .RLE file to the appropriate resolution,
and replace the vgalogo above with cgalogo or egalogo.
...........................................................................
6.1.3. Changing the font used for the icon labels
--------------------------------------------------
To use 10-point Arial (substitute your own favorite below), add the
following two lines to your [Desktop] section of your win.ini file:
Icontitlefacename=Arial
Icontitlesize=10
A shareware Control Panel utility, More Control also gives you control over
the icon fonts.
...........................................................................
6.1.4. Limiting the size of the temporary swap file
----------------------------------------------------
In Windows 3.1, you can add a line such as
MinUserDiskSpace=4096
to the [386Enh] section of the system.ini file to limit the temporary swap
file's size. The above line doesn't actually set the size of the swap
file, but rather limits its growth to always retain at least 4096 KB (4 MB)
of available disk space for your and your applications' own use.
...........................................................................
6.1.5. Making Windows 3.x act like 2.x runtime
-----------------------------------------------
The Windows 2.x runtime version would start Windows from the DOS prompt,
and exit back to DOS when you exit the application.
You can do this as follows (the example is for Excel; others are similar):
* Create a new directory called c:\excel (it doesn't have to be distinct;
it could be your normal Excel directory, as long as it's not the main
Windows 3.x directory).
* Copy the following to the new directory from the Windows directory:
win.com
win.ini
system.ini
* In the new directory modify the [boot] section of system.ini by
changing the shell= line to point to the one and only program you want
to run. The original line should read:
shell=progman.exe
and the modified line should be something like:
shell=c:\excel\excel.exe.
Remember to type the complete fileid of the program to be executed,
including the .exe suffix.
* To execute the dedicated Windows session just put the new directory
ahead of the normal Windows directory in your path and issue the 'win'
command, or start Windows with the command 'c:\excel\win'. What we're
doing here is making Windows think it's running on a network where the
actual executable files etc. are on a network server, and only the
basic control files (and win.com) are on the user's local disk.
Note that this technique isolates any changes in win.ini and system.ini
made in the dedicated task from any changes made in normal Windows;
this may or may not be desirable. If you need to keep the two flavors
of Windows in sync you'll have to provide an outboard copy function to
refresh the files.
...........................................................................
6.1.6. Printing PostScript files without a PostScript printer
--------------------------------------------------------------
To print PostScript files on a printer without PostScript, you'll need to
get a third-party PostScript interpreter. One such product is GhostScript,
available free from the GNU project. The current version, 2.52, can be
found by ftp as /mirrors/msdos/postscript/gs252win.zip on wuarchive.
...........................................................................
6.1.7. Search path in Windows
------------------------------
In addition to the standard MS-DOS search path, Windows will also search
the Windows and system directories. In general, the search order is as
follows:
* Current directory on current drive
* Windows directory
* System directory
* MS-DOS search path
* Current directory on network drives
...........................................................................
6.1.8. Swapping the Ctrl and CapsLock keys
-------------------------------------------
One method is to use the public domain program CCSwap, written by David
Michmerhuizen. You can find this as swap10.zip at your favorite FTP site,
Alternately, you may be able to use a different keyboard driver. A good
one comes with the distribution of Kermit for Windows, available either
from cica or from the official Kermit archive at watsun.cc.columbia.edu.
...........................................................................
6.1.9. Using a Dvorak keyboard
-------------------------------
Installing a Dvorak keyboard for Windows 3.1 is really simple -- just click
the International icon in Control Panel, and select the "US - Dvorak"
keyboard layout.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.2. Program Manager
=====================
...........................................................................
6.2.1. Changing the font used for the icon labels
--------------------------------------------------
To use 10-point Arial (substitute your own favorite below), add the
following two lines to your [Desktop] section of your win.ini file:
Icontitlefacename=Arial
Icontitlesize=10
A shareware Control Panel utility, More Control also gives you control over
the icon fonts.
...........................................................................
6.2.2. Changing the program icon
---------------------------------
Choose the item in Program Manager, and then select File Properties. Click
on Icon..., and then enter the name of the file containing the new icon.
If the icon file is a .DLL or .EXE containing multiple icons, you can
either scroll though the available icons (in Windows 3.1) or cycle through
them by clicking Next Icon (Windows 3.0). After selecting the correct
icon, click OK, and then OK again. You can also use icons from other
programs by the same method: just specify the name of the .exe file instead
of an .ICO or .DLL file.
The icon that is displayed by the application when it is minimized is
controlled by the application. It is not normally possible to change that;
however, several workarounds exist for changing the icons of running DOS
applications.
* Windows 3.1 will display the selected Program Manager icon for each
running DOS application.
* In Windows 3.0 you can use the iinject or puticon utility to replace
the standard DOS icon, which is contained in winoa286.mod and/or
winoa386.mod.
* The IconFixer utility monitors your DOS applicationsin Windows 3.0,
and updates their icons as you minimize them, allowing you to have
different icons for different DOS applications.
All three utilities are available from ftp.cica.indiana.edu.
...........................................................................
6.2.3. Changing the title of the Program Manager window
--------------------------------------------------------
In Windows 3.1, you can specify the title of the Program Manager window by
adding a Program Manager icon to your Startup group. Windows will not
start up a second copy of Program Manager, but will use the title you
specify in File / Properties for the icon.
...........................................................................
6.2.4. Creating your own icons
-------------------------------
You can create your own custom icons with either IconDraw (shareware),
Icon12 (shareware), Tamr11 (shareware), SDKPaint (a part of the Windows
SDK) or Resource Workshop (a part of Borland C++). Simply draw your icon,
and save it as an .ICO file.
...........................................................................
6.2.5. Creating your own wallpaper
-----------------------------------
You can save a .msp file as a .bmp from Windows Paintbrush. You can
convert a .gif file to a .bmp using the gif2bmp utility from cica. wingif
will also do a good conversion, including dithering 256-color images to 16
colors (rescale before dithering!). A third, and the most flexible,
conversion program is PaintShop Pro, which will do color conversions (16M,
32K, 256 and 16 colors), many format conversions, scaling and clipping.
Both wingif and PaintShop Pro are shareware, and available at
ftp.cica.indiana.edu.
A JPEG-format file can also be converted to a walppaper bitmap by first
uncompressing it with the cjpeg/djpeg utility (free, available at
wuarchive.wustl.edu and other sites) to a .gif, and then using one of the
utilities above to convert the .gif to a .bmp.
...........................................................................
6.2.6. Previewing PostScript output
------------------------------------
To preview PostScript output on Windows, you can use GhostScript, a free
utility from the GNU project. The current version, 2.52, can be found on
ftp.cica.indiana.edu and other archive sites as GS252WIN.ZIP.
...........................................................................
6.2.7. Restricting the Program Manager
---------------------------------------
If you want to prevent a user from changing the Program Manager
configuration, you can insert a combination of the following lines into the
[Restrictions] section of progman.ini:
NoRun=1 Disables the Run command
NoClose=1 Disables the Exit Windows command
NoSaveSettings=1 Disables the Save Settings command
NoFileMenu=1 Removes the File menu
EditLevel=(see below) Sets the edit restriction level
The following are the EditLevel restrictions:
1 Disables creating,deleting and renaming groups
2 As 1, plus disables creation/deletion of program items
3 As 2, plus disables changing program item command lines
4 As 3, plus disables changing program information
If you boot directly into Windows (and restart it immediately on exit),
don't allow any unrestricted DOS sessions from Program Manager, and make
progman.ini read-only, you can accomplish a reasonable level of protection
from users changing their configuration.
...........................................................................
6.2.8. Saving Program Manager settings without exiting Windows
---------------------------------------------------------------
In Windows 3.0, the trick is to try to select File / Exit with a DOS
sessionactive; Windows will save the settings, and then refuse to exit.
In Windows 3.1, you can press Alt+Shift+F4 at any time (while you are in
Program Manager) to save the settings.
...........................................................................
6.2.9. Starting Windows without activating the applications in the Startup
group
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---
You can do this by holding down the Shift key when the Windows startup
screen appears, and then releasing it once Program Manager is active.
...........................................................................
6.2.10. Starting an application in a different directory
---------------------------------------------------------
To start up a Windows application in a default directory other than the
Windows directory (or application executable directory), you have a number
of choices:
* In Windows 3.1, set the Working Directory under File Properties for the
application.
* Create a auto-execute macro for that application, which will change
your directory upon startup.
* Specify your application's path in Program Manager as something such as
d:\u\personal\letters\winword.exe. As long as the application is on
your path, it will be started as usual, but with the default directory
being the one you specified in Program Manager. Note that Program
Manager will complain of this when you enter the path (and may require
you to manually select an icon), but it will work.
* Create a dummy document for your application in the desired directory.
As long as you have your application listed under [Extensions] in your
win.ini file, starting that document from Program Manager (either with
File / Run or by adding it as an icon to a group) will then start the
application with that document loaded, and in the correct directory.
.
* For Word for Windows 2.0, add the line
Doc-Path=pathname
into the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of your win.ini file. This will
cause Word to start up in the specified directory every time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.3. Windows Accessories
=========================
...........................................................................
6.3.1. Cardfile: Converting to ASCII text
------------------------------------------
To convert a cardfile to a text file, use the WinCrd utility, available
from ftp.cica.indiana.edu.
...........................................................................
6.3.2. Clock: Windows 3.1 Clock limitations
--------------------------------------------
The Windows 3.1 clock is limited to one instance (simultaneously running
copy) by design, as it retains the position and size you last specified for
it. You can, however, run any number of Windows 3.0 clocks that you want
in 3.1. As an alternative, you may want to take a look at the TimeFrame
freeware program from ftp.cica.indiana.edu, which places the current time
in the title bar of the active window.
...........................................................................
6.3.3. Help: Changing the keyword colors
-----------------------------------------
To change the keyword colors in your Windows help files, you can add some
or all of the following lines to the [Windows Help] section of your win.ini
file:
JumpColor=255 0 0
PopupColor=0 0 255
MacroColor=0 128 0
IFJumpColor=128 0 0
IFPopupColor=0 0 128
The arguments are the intensities of Red, Green and Blue, respectively,
with
legal values between 0 and 255. This means that JumpColor (above) would be
an intense red. The IFJumpColor= and IFPopupColor= settings determine the
colors for inter-file jumps and popups.
...........................................................................
6.3.4. Notepad: F5 and current time
------------------------------------
F5 in Windows 3.0 Notepad inserts only a date and not the time as well --
it's a known bug. And it's fixed in Windows 3.1.
...........................................................................
6.3.5. Recorder: Recording more than 60 seconds of sound
---------------------------------------------------------
If you want to record, say, three minutes, follow this procedure:
* Record 60 seconds (Recorder will stop).
* Immediately record again for 60 seconds.
* Repeat one more time.
* Drag the scroll bar thumb all the way to the left
With this procedure, you will be able to record 180 seconds of sound.
Repeat more times if you need more than 3 minutes of sound.
...........................................................................
6.3.6. Terminal: Keypad
------------------------
Press ScrollLock to toggle the keypad between local and remote mode. The
default is local mode.
...........................................................................
6.3.7. General: "Can't open TEMP.WRI" (or similar message)
-----------------------------------------------------------
A message similar to this one is likely caused by an invalid definition of
the TEMP environment variable in your autoexec.bat. Havign a trailing
space on the definition line can cause various Windows applications to
generate invalid temporary filenames similar to the one noted. Correct the
problem by making sure there are no trailing blanks.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.4. Changing default directories
==================================
...........................................................................
6.4.1. Bitmaps
---------------
You cannot move the bitmaps from the Windows directory unless you use a
utility program such a PaperBoy.
...........................................................................
6.4.2. Fonts
-------------
To move your TrueType fonts to a different directory, follow the procedure
below:
*
...........................................................................
6.4.3. Icons
-------------
Yoy may place your fonts in any directory you wish, as long as you update
your Program Manager's File / Properties dialogs to point to the correct
location.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.5. Fonts
===========
...........................................................................
6.5.1. TrueType, ATM and FaceLift
----------------------------------
In case you were wondering whether Bitstream FaceLift, Adobe Type Manager
(ATM) and TrueType really work -- yes, they do.
Here are some things to consider:
* TrueType is included free with Windows 3.1 (and Apple System 7.0).
It's somewhat more flexible than ATM in its font description
capabilities, and renders very fast to LaserJet II-compatible
printers.
* ATM uses the ubiquitous Type 1 fonts, which are widely available, both
commercially and at FTP sites. It has had some compatability
problems, but version 2.0 is fully compatible with Windows 3.1.
* FaceLift provides the most user control of three, but has the poorest
native font support. Version 2.0, however, can use Adobe Type 1 fonts
directly. It also lets you generate LaserJet soft fonts for higher
printing speeds.
At street prices not much above $50, ATM and FaceLift were definitely worth
their prices, at least before Windows 3.1. Now, with the free TrueType,
you may wish to postpone your ATM or FaceLift purchase until you have
determined whether TrueType will satisfy your needs.
...........................................................................
6.5.2. Converting Font Formats
-------------------------------
There are at least two packages available to convert between Type 1 (ATM)
and TrueType formats: AllType ($79) and FontMonger ($99). AllType,
however, imposes its own copyright on any converted fonts, as well as doing
a generally unsatisfactory job of coverting from ATM to TrueType.
Macintosh TrueType fonts are also directly compatable with Windows (you
only need to strip off the resource fork from the Mac file).
...........................................................................
6.5.3. Viewing available fonts
-------------------------------
At least three shareware/freeware programs claim to be able to do provide a
listing of all available fonts: Fonter, FontShow and Compose are all
available at ftp.cica.indiana.edu.
...........................................................................
6.5.4. Foreign character sets
------------------------------
To create Cyrillic documents, you may wish to use the shareware CyrWin
package, available from ftp.cica.indiana.edu as well as other sources.
Cyrillic fonts are also available from Data-Cal (602-545-1234) and East
West Trade Consulting (+49-8230-4925 in Germany).
Hebrew fonts are also available from Data-Cal. Also, the WinGreek package
at ftp.cica.indiana.edu contains Hebrew fonts (for screen and LaserJets; an
ATM version is under development).
I am not aware of any Arabic fonts, but Eastern Language Systems in Utah
(801-377-2200) has an Arabic word processor called AlKatiib, as well as a
Persian one called Vazhe Negar.
Data-Cal's WorldFont for Windows package also includes some Japanese
language support, and a Japanese font called Shorai is reputed to be
available on FTP sites.
...........................................................................
6.5.5. Converting Macintosh Type 1 (ATM) fonts to Windows
----------------------------------------------------------
Thanks for this procedure to Norman Walsh, the maintainer of the comp.fonts
FAQ.
Converting Macintosh Type1 fonts into PC Type1 fonts can be done using
purely free/shareware tools. I've outlined the procedure below. Make sure
you read
the "readme" files that accompany many fonts. Some font authors
specifically deny permission to do cross-platform conversions.
The tools you need:
xbin xbin23.zip in /pub/msdos/mac on oak.oakland.edu (or other
mirrors)
unsit unsit30.zip in /pub/msdos/mac on oak.oakland.edu
uncpt ext-pc.zip in /pub/pc/win3/util on ftp.cica.indiana.edu
refont refont11.zip in /pub/pc/win3/fonts on ftp.cica.indiana.edu
bmap2afm bm2af01.zip in /pub/norm/mac-font-tools on
ibis.cs.umass.edu
xbin converts Mac BinHexed files back into binary format. BinHex is the
Mac equivalent of uuencoding: it translates files into hexidecimal digits
so that mailers can send them around without difficulty. It also aids in
cross-platform copying. BinHexed files generally have filenames of the
form "xxx.yyy.HQX".
unsit explodes Stuffit archives. Stuffit archives generally have
filenames of the form "xxx.SIT".
uncpt exploces Compactor archives. The ext-pc implementation is called
extract and does not require Windows (even thought it's in the Windows
section on cica). Compactor archives generally have filenames of the
form "xxx.CPT".
refont converts Mac type1 fonts into PC type1 fonts.
bmap2afm constructs AFM files from the metric information contained in
Mac screen fonts (.bmap files). The screen font files do not have any
standard name (although they frequently have the extension .bmap). The
screen fonts have file type "FFIL" which, in combination with some common
sense, is usually sufficient to identify them.
It's probably a good idea to check with archie for closer sites if you're
not in North America. These tools run under MS-DOS. xbin and unsit can
also be run under Unix.
How to do it:
Collect the Mac fonts from the archive or BBS of your choice. Most of
these files will be in BinHexed format. As a running example, we'll use
the imaginary font "Plugh.cpt.hqx". When you download this font to my
PC, you would use the name "PLUGH.CPX". The actual name you use is
immaterial.
Run xbin on PLUGH.CPX. This will produce PLUGH.DAT, PLUGH.INF, and
PLUGH.RSR. The data fork of the Mac file (the .DAT file) is the only one
of interest to
us, you can delete the others.
If the original file had been "Plugh.sit.hqx", we would be using the
END--cut here--cut here
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