Questions and Answers

Questions

1. How do I enter the address of a page or link so I can look at it? (How do I enter a URL?)
2. How do I get the latest version of Webster?
3. How do I report Bugs?
4. Does Webster support Forms? (or Authentication (username & passwords))
5. What HTML tags does Webster support?
6. How do I use Webster from a ReadOnly Filesystem or Disc?
7. How do I configure Webster to access the Internet / World Wide Web?
8. Where's Webster's Home Page?
9. Why does the screen look so bad? Why is the text so hard to read?
10. Why does Underlining and Strikethrough look so bad?
11. Why don't I get any images even though everything is configured correctly

Answers

1. How do I enter the address of a page or link so I can look at it?

There are several ways to do this...

• Open the Goto Page window (See Below) Now type the destination you want in the text field.
• Open the Goto Page window (See Below) and Select the link value in the Editor or Viewer and save the selection to the 'Goto Page' window.
• Find a page that contains a link to the correct page and simply click on it.
• Use the facitity provided in your viewer application. (One of the Standard Procotol messages can be used to request a URL to be opened)

Notes

You can open the 'Goto Page' window in three ways.

1. via the 'Move option' in the main menu.
2. by Ensuring Webster owns the caret by clicking anywhere in the main window other than an icon and typeing CTRL and G
3. Clicking on the world button

2. How do I get the latest version of Webster?

Check the Original archive on Demon's ftp site (ftp.demon.co.uk). Webster is currently in /pub/archimedes/developers.

This archive is also mirrored at Stuttgart and (I think) Hensa.

3. How do I report Bugs?

Simple, Smail or Email the Author. But please read the Bugs documentation first. This tells you what you need to send me so I stand a chance of solving your problem.

You should also check the place where you obtained this version, as I usually add a list of fixes that you can apply your self, as I find and fix problems.

4. Does Webster support Forms? (Or Authentication)

Not if you use KA9Q as the link to your internet provider. This is because KA9Q is an Application that allows only limited access from other applications.

To get Forms (or Authentication), you must use either Acorns TCP/IP software or FreeNet.

• Acorns TCP/IP is available from Acorn. There is a free version on their ftp server, but it does not support modem connections.
• FreeNet is available in several places including Demon. (Probably in /pub/archimedes/www/) It is currently still in development and so does not have all the applications required to support everything you will need (You will need a copy of KA9Q as well for mail and news), but should support the Internet access that Webster requires.

You will also need a 'poster' application. There are currently two available -

• FreeWeb. This is included with this version of Webster. As this is a recent development it is supplied disabled. See the FreeWeb documentation for details of how to enable and use this fetcher.
• ArcWebTCP this is included in the ArcWeb archive. This is available from cslib.ecs.soton.ac.uk, micros.hensa.ac.uk and ftp.demon.co.uk).

5. What HTML tags does Webster support?

All HTML 2 tags are supported (atleast according to the HTML 2 documentation I have found) along with many of the extensions supported by Netscape such as centering and tables. A fairly complete list is supplied with webster.

6. How do I use Webster from a ReadOnly Filesystem or Disc?

You Only need to alter Webster's !Run file and provide values for the following variables.

Variable Name	Suggested Value	What it's used for
Webster$CacheDir	<Wimp$ScrapDir>.WebsterI.Cache	Main Cache for retrieved files
Webster$XCacheDir	<Wimp$ScrapDir>.WebsterI.XCache	Cache for images in Sprite format
Webster$Choices	<Wimp$ScrapDir>.WebsterI.Choices	Where all your configuration information is stored
Webster$HotLists	<Wimp$ScrapDir>.WebsterI.HotLists	Where all your HotLists are stored

This ensures that Webster can write to it's Choices files and it's CacheData file. It is possible to use Webster without making this minor change, but you will only be able to access local files. (Nothing would be able to write to the Cache!)

Note you should not use <Wimp$ScrapDir>.Webster. for any part of these variables as this directory is used for temporary files and is wiped when Webster quits.

7. How do I configure Webster to access the Internet / World Wide Web?

Depends on the software you are using to connect to your service provider.

KA9Q (A free application)

No Configuration is required, as Webster comes set up to use some simple fetchers that will work with his Application.

With the supplied fetchers only the 'http' method is supported well. This will allow you to access 'World Wide Web sites', but not the rest of the internet. To access everything on the internet you need somthing like WebGopher.

FreeNet (A free TCPIP stack)

With FreeNet, you need 'Fetcher applications'. (See Question 4 for details of suitable fetchers)

Acorn's TCP/IP (Now also a free TCPIP stack, but the Serial access part costs)

With Acorn's TCP/IP (A free version of which is available from Acorn's FTP site), you need 'Fetcher applications'. (See Question 4 for details of suitable fetchers)

8. Where's Webster's Home Page?

Currently under development. It will probably be at http://www.sn.no/~2rs/webster. Detailed negotiations are still in progress, so there isn't much there at the moment.

I intend it to provide latest news, tips, things to be done and pointers to suitable fetchers and Viewers etc.

9. Why does the screen look so bad? Why is the text so hard to read?

Firstly you are probably using screen mode with either 16 colours and/or a screen mode in which each pixel is 4 OS units high.

The best cure is to use a mode with at least 256 colours and that has a pixel 2 OS units (or less) high, i.e. those with a Y size of 480 or more.

Alternatively you can try changing the Fonts from the Edit Fonts option on the Menu bar. It's the proportional font that causes the problem! You may have a font that looks better than the default on your machine.

10. Why does Underlining and Strikethrough look so bad?

You are using a screen mode in which each pixel is 4 OS units high and although the icon making the line is only 2 units in depth, the OS displays the lines making the top and bottom of the icon on separate screen lines.

Unfortunately there appears to be no way to get RISC OS to display a single line in modes where pixels are 4 OS units high. Switching to a mode with pixels only 2 OS units high cures the problem though.

11. Why don't I get any images even though everything is configured correctly?

Assuming that even these help Pages don't show any images except all those that are sprites...

Then all this is probably because you have Webster and/or !Scrap too far down on your disc. When <Webster$Dir> and <WimpScrap$Dir> are expanded as the image decoder is called, the command line overflows the RISC OS 255 character limit for command lines. Then instead of RISC OS giving an error, invalid filenames get passed to the image decoder and it gives the error instead (It may also fail silently, which is even less useful).

The solution is to move !Webster to a subdirectory of the root of your Hard Disc. e.g. ADFS::HardDisc.$.Internet.

You should also ensure that the !Scrap Application is near the top as well. Best of all, put it in the root directory, this should ensure it's always seen by RISC OS as well. (Note The Location of !Scrap on a RISC PC is ok, provided Webster is near the top as suggested above)