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1989-09-23
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PS's WordStar Enhancement Instructions
Table of Contents
Introduction ........................... 1
Distribution ........................... 2
Requirements ........................... 2
Installation ........................... 2
Modifying WordStar ................... 3
Installing the WordStar Patches ...... 3
Configuring WS.COM ................... 4
Operation .............................. 6
The Dynamic Function Key Prompts ..... 6
Control-Q on the Keypad .............. 7
Using the Keypad with KEYSx.PAT ...... 7
The Character Undelete Feature ....... 8
Modifying the Function Keys .......... 8
Repeat Rates and Zenith Computers .... 9
PS's WordStar(tm) Enhancement Instructions
** Introduction
PS's WordStar Enhancement is a "parent" program that runs Word-
Star release 4.0, 5.0, or 5.5 as a "child", and adds features to
enhance its operation. One of the features added is "dynamic
function key prompts". This feature makes it possible to display
prompts for all 40 function key assignments on the screen using
only one screen line. The prompts displayed are determined by
the keys used. For example, if you press the Ctrl key, the
prompts for Ctrl-F1 through Ctrl-F10 are shown. This feature is
especially handy if you draw lines and boxes, because you can see
the drawing characters assigned to the Alt-function keys.
Another feature provided is character undelete. WordStar can
restore deleted lines or blocks, but it cannot restore characters
deleted with Back Space or Del. (It can restore a single deleted
character if it is modified with WSCHANGE.) PS's WordStar En-
hancement stores characters deleted with BackSpace and Del in a
buffer, and lets you restore them by pressing a special key
sequence.
A third feature that PS's WordStar Enhancement adds is enhanced
utilization of the keypad keys. This feature is useful for those
who have 84-key keyboards, and those with 101-key keyboards who
use the numeric keypad (with Num Lock off) instead of the sepa-
rate arrow keys. It lets you perform a greater variety of cursor
movements without having to bother with the Ctrl key, by causing
the keypad 5 key to produce ^Q when pressed. This allows you to
jump to the right edge of a line by pressing the 5 and 6 (rt
arrow) keys, or to jump to the bottom of a file by pressing 5 and
3 (Pg Dn). An optional auto-patch file is provided to add more
functionality by rearranging the keypad layout. If you install
this patch, you can perform just about any type of cursor move-
ment you need from the keypad without using Ctrl, and you can
also enter the Find and Find-and-Replace commands from the key-
pad.
PS's WordStar Enhancement can also switch the Caps Lock and left
Ctrl keys on 101-key keyboards, eliminating the need for
SWITCH.COM (which does not work properly with the Enhancement
anyhow).
The dynamic function key prompts, keypad enhancements, and key
switching are optional, and you can use the program just to add
character undelete if you wish.
Note: This document will refer to the disk containing the PS's
WordStar Enhancement files as "this disk". These instructions
assume that you are familiar with general DOS operation, and that
you know how to copy files, create directories, and assign a
drive/directory as the default. If you are unfamiliar with these
terms, consult your DOS manual.
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** Distribution
This program is distributed as "user supported software", and you
are free to use it and distribute it to others, as long as you
include this documentation with the other files, and as long as
you do not modify either the program or the documentation.
You may not sell this program for any amount, but you may charge
a nominal fee (e.g. $5.00) for the disk on which it is distribut-
ed. If you are a shareware distributor, it is recommended that
you combine this program with other utilities on a disk to pro-
vide your customer a greater service.
If you feel that this program is of value to you, please send a
contribution of up to $15 to
Patrick Swayne
155 Baker St.
Coloma, MI 49038
Warranty
This program is provided AS IS without any warranty, expressed or
implied, including but not limited to fitness for a particular
purpose.
Disclaimer
In no event will Patrick Swayne be liable to you for any damages,
including any lost profits, lost savings, or other incidental or
consequential damages arising out of the use of or inability to
use this program, even if Patrick Swayne has been advised of the
possibility of such damages, or for any claim by any other party.
** Requirements
To use PS's WordStar Enhancement, you will need a PC-compatible
computer capable of running WordStar 4.0, WordStar 5.0, or Word-
Star 5.5, the appropriate version of MS-DOS or PC-DOS, and enough
memory to run your version of WordStar. WS.COM itself (the
"parent" program that enhances WordStar) uses about 3k, but there
is usually enough leeway in the specified memory requirements for
WordStar to allow for it.
** Installation
The first thing that you should do before installing this package
is to make back up copies of this disk and all of your WordStar
disks. The WordStar distribution disks are all write protected,
and cannot be modified (and should not be modified in any case).
NOTE: If you intend to configure your WordStar to use 43 screen
lines on an EGA video system, or 50 lines on a VGA video system,
and you want to use the dynamic function key prompts, use WIN-
STALL or WSCHANGE to set up that configuration BEFORE you install
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the following modifications.
Modifying WordStar
This section describes the patches that must be made to WordStar
so that it can run with the PS's WordStar Enhancement's dynamic
function key prompts, and the alternate keypad layout. It also
describes a patch that you may install, if you wish, that changes
the on-screen colors used to those used by Pat Swayne. All
modifications are made only to the patch area of WordStar, and
are reversible. If you do not intend to install these patches,
skip this section and proceed to "Configuring WS.COM".
If you have a hard disk, perform these steps:
1. Copy the files WS.COM, PC25.PAT, PC43.PAT, PC50.PAT,
COLORS.PAT, and KEYS5.PAT (if WordStar 5) or KEYS4.PAT (if
WordStar 4) from this disk to your WordStar directory.
2. Make sure that you have copied all of the files from your
WordStar Program and Installation disks to your WordStar
directory. Make your WordStar drive and directory the
default drive and directory.
3. Type WSCHANGE WS and press Return.
4. Go to "Installing the WordStar Patches", below.
If you have a dual floppy disk system, perform these steps:
1. Copy the files WS.COM, PC25.PAT, PC43.PAT, PC50.PAT,
COLORS.PAT, and KEYS5.PAT (if WordStar 5) or KEYS4.PAT (if
WordStar 4) to your WordStar Program disk. Delete one of
the sample .DOC files if you need room.
2. Put your Program disk in drive A: and your Installation disk
in drive B:.
3. Type B: and press Return. Type WSCHANGE A:WS and press
Return.
Installing the WordStar Patches
Follow these steps to install the PS's WordStar Enhancement
patches:
1. Select E (General patches) from the main WSCHANGE menu.
2. If you want dynamic function key prompts, select A (Auto-
patcher) from the next menu. If your WordStar is configured
for normal operation using 25 screen lines, type PC25.PAT at
the file name prompt, and press Return. If your WordStar is
configured for 43 line operation on an EGA video system,
type PC43.PAT and press Return. If your WordStar is config-
ured for 50 line operation on a VGA video system, type
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PC50.PAT and press Return. If you are setting up a floppy
only system, type A: before the patch file name (as in
A:PC25.PAT). Press Return again when the "Patching com-
plete" message appears.
3. If you want to install the keypad patches, select A (Auto-
patcher) again, and enter KEYS5.PAT (or A:KEYS5.PAT) for
version 5 or 5.5, or KEYS4.PAT (or A:KEYS4.PAT) for version
4 at the file name prompt and press Return. Press Return
again when the "Patching complete" message appears. If you
decide that you want to remove the key patches later, select
E from the main WSCHANGE menu, and C from the next menu.
This will remove all patches, so you will have to reinstall
the PCxx.PAT patch, the COLORS patch (below), and any indi-
vidual modifications you may have made.
4. If you want to install the color patches, select A (Auto-
patcher) again, and enter COLORS.PAT (or A:COLORS.PAT for a
floppy installation) at the file name prompt and press
Return. Press Return again when the "Patching complete"
message appears. Later, you can change the colors to your
taste by selecting A from the main WSCHANGE menu, C from the
next menu, and A from the next menu. (With WordStar 4.0,
just select C and then A.)
5. Type X twice, and Y to cause your changes to be written to
WordStar.
6. If you have a floppy only system, type A: and press Return.
Configuring WS.COM
WS.COM is the "parent" program that runs WordStar (WS.EXE) as a
"child" and adds features to enhance the operation of WordStar.
To configure WS.COM to work properly with your WordStar, perform
the following steps (your WordStar disk/directory should be the
default):
1. Type WS INSTALL and press Return.
2. When you are prompted for the name of "this program", press
Return. (Later, if you decide to use a command other than
WS to start WordStar, you must rename WS.COM, not just
WS.EXE, and you will have to enter your new name at this
prompt.)
3. WS.COM will prompt for your WS execution path. Enter the
complete path describing the location of your WS.EXE file.
For example, if you have WS.EXE on drive C: in a directory
called WS5, enter C:\WS5\WS.EXE. Press Return after your
entry. If you have a floppy only system, you should include
the drive that the WordStar program disk will be in during
normal operation.
4. WS.COM will ask "Does BACK SPACE delete characters?".
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Normally you should answer Y to this question. However, if
you have modified your WordStar to work like WordStar ver-
sion 3 (Back Space moves the cursor back without deleting
characters), answer N to this question. WS.COM needs the
answer to this question and the next one so that its charac-
ter undelete feature will work correctly.
5. WS.COM will ask "Does DEL work like Control-G?". Answer Y
to this question unless you have modified your WordStar so
that the Del key works as it did in WordStar 3.
6. WS.COM will ask "Do you want Caps Lock and Ctrl switched?
Answer Y if you have a 101-key keyboard and you would rather
have the Ctrl key in its old position. Do this whether you
have SWITCH.COM installed or not, because it does not work
correctly with WS.COM.
7. WS.COM will ask "Do you want ^Q from keypad 5 (with Num Lock
off)?". Answer Y to this question if you have installed the
KEYS patch. You may also want to answer Y if you have not
installed the KEYS patch, but you still want ^Q from the
keypad 5 key.
8. WS.COM will ask "Do you want Dynamic Function Key Prompts?".
Answer Y or N depending on whether you want them or not.
9. If you answered Y at step 7, WS.COM will ask "How many lines
does your WordStar use? (A=25, B=43, C=50)". Type A if it
is configured for normal 25 line operation, B if it is
configured for 43 line EGA operation, or C if it is config
ured for 50 line VGA operation. Note: If you change the
line setting later, you will have to install the correct
patch (PC25.PAT, PC43.PAT, or PC50.PAT) using WSCHANGE, and
run WS INSTALL again.
10. If you answered Y at step 7, WS.COM will ask "Do you want to
change the function key prompt colors?" The function key
prompts are maintained by WS.COM, not by WordStar (the
PCxx.PAT patch turned WordStar's prompts off). The function
key prompt consists of a key number and a 7 character label
for each of the keys F1 through F10. If you answer Y, you
will be prompted for the key foreground color, the key
background color, the label foreground color, and the label
background color. The default colors are white (light gray)
on black for the key numbers, and black on white for the key
labels. Colors should be entered as hexadecimal numbers
from the following chart:
0 black 4 red 8 dk gray C lt red
1 blue 5 magenta 9 lt blue D lt magenta
2 green 6 brown A lt green E yellow
3 cyan 7 lt gray B lt cyan F white
You should use only colors 0-7 for background colors.
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11. If you answered Y at step 7, WS.COM will ask "Do you want to
change the function key prompts?". Answer N for now. Lat-
er, if you change the function key assignments with
WSCHANGE, you can run WS INSTALL again and answer Y to this
question. WS.COM will then display the existing prompt for
each key and allow you to type in a new one. See "Modifying
the Function Keys" later in this document for more informa
tion.
After you either answer N to the "change function key prompts"
question, or finish providing the new prompts, WS.COM will modify
itself with your changes.
This completes the basic installation of PS's WordStar Enhance-
ment. If you have a hard disk system, you should copy the files
from the various WordStar disks that you will be using (for
example, the Page Preview disk, the Spelling Dictionary/Thesaurus
disk, and the Definitions disk) to your WordStar directory if you
have not already done so.
** Operation
Starting WordStar with PS's WordStar Enhancement installed is the
same as starting WordStar without it. Once WordStar has started,
however, there are some differences in operation, and some addi-
tional commands.
The Dynamic Function Key Prompts
When you first start WordStar with the Enhancement installed (and
the key prompts enabled), there will a single line of function
key prompts on the bottom screen line if WordStar is running in
the normal 25-line mode. If your WordStar is set up to run in
the 43 line or 50 line mode, there will be no function key
prompts at first, but they will appear if you tap a Shift, Ctrl,
or Alt key. The function key prompts will always be on no matter
whether you use the new WordStar 5 pull-down menus or the classic
WordStar menus.
If you press a Shift, Ctrl, or Alt key, the function key prompts
will automatically change to indicate the correct response with
that key held down. When you release the Shift, Ctrl, or Alt
key, the function key prompts will again show the unshifted re-
sponses.
If you run Page Preview, the function key prompts will be gone
upon return to the edit mode, but you can tap a Shift, Ctrl, or
Alt key to restore them. If you start WordStar from ProFinder by
typing the + key, and then flip back to ProFinder by typing +
again, WS.COM will still have control of the bottom screen line.
If you should type a Shift, Ctrl, or Alt key while you are in
ProFinder, the WS.COM key prompts will over write the ProFinder
key prompts. You can restore the ProFinder prompts by typing F1
and then Esc while ProFinder is in the File List mode.
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Control-Q on the Keypad
If you installed WS.COM so that the keypad 5 key (with Num Lock
off) produces Control-Q, you can use it to issue extra commands
from the keypad without having to hold down the Ctrl key. Assum-
ing that Num Lock is off, here are the extra commands that are
available (5+8 means to type 5 and then 8, but not the +).
Key combination Command
5+8 Move cursor to screen top
5+2 Move cursor to screen bottom
5+4 Move cursor to left side of screen
5+6 Move cursor to right side of screen
5+9 Go to beginning of file
5+3 Go to end of file
Using the Keypad with KEYSx.PAT
If you have installed the KEYSx.PAT patch, the keypad number keys
can be used as the following diagram indicates.
-------------- -------------- --------------
| | | |
| Page Backward| Cursor Up | Page Forward |
| | | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 |
| | | |
| Top of File | Top of Page | Bottom of |
| | | File |
-------------- -------------- --------------
| | | |
| Cursor Left | Control-Q | Cursor Right |
| | | |
| 4 | 5 | 6 |
| | | |
| Left Side | | Right Side |
| of Page | | of Page |
-------------- -------------- --------------
| Cursor Left | | Cursor Right |
| One Word | Cursor Down | One Word |
| | | |
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
| | | |
| Find and | Bottom of | Find |
| Replace | Page | |
-------------- -------------- --------------
The descriptions above each number in the diagram indicate the
response if the key is pressed by itself. The descriptions below
each number indicate the response if the 5 key is pressed first.
For example, pressing the 5 key and then the 2 key moves the
cursor to the bottom of the page. Notice that in addition to a
complete set of cursor movement commands, the Find and Find-and-
Replace commands are built into the keypad with this arrangement.
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The Character Undelete Feature
One of the features added to WordStar by WS.COM is the character
undelete feature. If you delete characters from the screen one
at a time (rather than a line at a time or by deleting a marked
block), the deleted characters are stored in a buffer, and they
can be restored one at a time beginning with the most recent
character deleted. The character undelete buffer holds 256 char-
acters, so if you have deleted more, only the last 256 will be
preserved.
There are two different ways to restore deleted characters, de-
pending on how they were deleted. If they were deleted with the
Back Space key, press Alt-U for each character you want to unde-
lete. If they were deleted by the Del key, use Alt-I. Note: In
order for Alt-I to work correctly, the Insert mode must be on
(the word Insert will be at the top of the screen).
Since the character undelete feature is maintained outside of
WordStar itself, it cannot keep up if you delete too fast. If
you hold down the Back Space or Del key and allow it to repeat,
some deleted characters may be missed and not placed into the
undelete buffer, especially if the repeat rate is fast. WS.COM
can usually handle a slow repeat rate, however.
If you mistakenly use Alt-U to undelete characters deleted with
Del, or Alt-I to undelete characters deleted with Back Space, the
undeleted characters will be backwards on the screen. For exam-
ple, if "house" was deleted and then restored incorrectly, it
would come out "esuoh". To fix the situation, use Del to remove
text incorrectly restored with Alt-I, or Back Space to remove
text incorrectly restored with Alt-U, and then use the correct
key combination to restore it.
If you would like to purge all of the deleted characters from the
character delete buffer, press Alt-P.
Note: WordStar 4 or 5 can be modified to work like previous
versions. If you have done that modification, substitute Del for
Back Space in the above discussion, and substitute Control-G for
Del. With or without the previous version modification, charac-
ters deleted with Control-G should be restored with Alt-I.
The character undelete feature does not always restore deleted
characters correctly. Soft Spaces are restored as hard spaces,
and tabs (in the document mode) may not be restored at all or
restored as spaces. Non-document mode tabs will be restored as
spaces (one space for each deleted tab character.
Modifying the Function Keys
If you want to modify the responses assigned to the function
keys, you can do it with WSCHANGE, but do not turn on the func-
tion key prompts from within WSCHANGE (do not type L). After you
make your changes, run WS INSTALL as instructed previously and
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answer each question with the value that is currently set until
you get to the "Do you want to change the function key prompt
colors?" question. You can answer Y here if you want to change
the colors, or N if you do not. Then answer Y to the "Do you
want to change the function key prompts?" question.
WS.COM will show you the current prompt for the unshifted F1 key.
You can enter a new prompt of 1 to 7 characters, or you can press
Return by itself to accept the old prompt as it is. Then WS.COM
will display the prompt for the F2 key and allow you to enter a
new one, or accept the old one, and so on until you have hand an
opportunity to modify the prompts of all 10 function keys. Then
WS.COM will display the prompts as they will appear during opera-
tion (using any new colors you may have selected), and ask "Is
this OK?" If you answer N, WS.COM will start over with the un-
shifted F1 key. If you answer Y, WS.COM will start with prompt
for Shift-F1. This process will continue until you have had the
opportunity to change all 40 prompts.
You can enter a graphic character into any prompt by typing a
dollar sign ($) followed by the hexadecimal value of the graphic
character. See Appendix D in the WordStar 5 manual, or appendix
F in the WordStar 4 manual for the appropriate hexadecimal codes.
If you want to put a dollar sign into a prompt, type two dollar
signs.
Repeat Rates and Zenith Computers
WordStar 5.0 has the ability to control the key repeat rate (when
a key is held down and allowed to repeat) on certain models of
computers. Zenith and Heath PC-compatible computers have a var-
iable repeat rate built in. When a key is held down and allowed
to repeat, it starts repeating at a slow rate, and then speeds
up. When WordStar takes over the repeat rate, it disables this
feature, and leaves it disabled when you exit WordStar. The
Zenith and Heath models affected by this problem are all models
containing 80286 and 80386 processors.
If you do not want to have your variable repeat rate disabled,
run WSCHANGE and select E from the main menu, and press = to
enter the patcher. Enter KSPEED as the address to patch, and
patch the first four bytes to FF FF FF FF. Type X three times
and then Y to write the patch to WordStar.
If you have WordStar 5.5, a patch file called KSPEED.PAT is
provided that you can load with the auto patcher in WSCHANGE to
fix the problem.
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