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╔══════════════════════════════════╗
║ How Can Make A Mess Help Me? ║░░
╚══════════════════════════════════╝░░
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Make A Mess is a powerful, flexible, easy to use tool. (On top of that, it's
fun too!). Make A Mess can be used in a wide variety of situations.
The program can be used in Doctor's/Dentist's waiting rooms to inform patients
about new treatments, provide general health information, outline changes in
business hours, etc.
Make A Mess can be used by restaurants to let customers know about specials,
new prices, new menu items, waiting times, etc.
Make A Mess can be used by educators as a kind of automatic flash card system
for help in memorizing things like State capitols, the order of Presidents, or
even Bible memory verses.
Make A Mess can be used as an exercise tool to help keep track of the number of
repititions you have performed, which exercise you should be doing, and how
long you should wait between each set of repititons.
Make a Mess can be used in office settings to let colleagues know when you will
return from lunch, where you have gone, who to talk to in your absence, the
phone number where you can be reached, etc.
Make A Mess is also a good general tool for any business. It can inform
customers when you will reopen, what your office hours are, new services or
products offered by your business, etc.
Make A Mess is only limited by your imagination. It takes very little work to
produce attractive, attention-getting messages. Once you begin using Make A
Mess, you will find more and more ways to take advantage of its features. The
following section provides information on registering Make A Mess. Please read
this section and consider registering if you find Make A Mess to be useful.
╔═══════════════════════════════════╗
║ Thank You For Trying Make A Mess! ║░░
╚═══════════════════════════════════╝░░
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If you find Make A Mess useful and continue to use it, you are under legal and
moral obligation to pay for it. The registration fee is only $25 (for 1 copy),
and with registration you get a typeset manual, the latest uncrippled version
of the program, free updates for a year, and my gratitude.
No guarantee is offered about the compatibility of Make A Mess. If the
shareware version of the program does not work on your computer, then the
registered version will not work either.
I do guarantee that if you purchase the software and you find a bug, the bug
will be fixed immediately at no charge to you.
If I am not able to repair the bug that you find, your money will be refunded,
and you can keep the materials you received with registration.
Prices for Make A Mess go down with the number of copies you buy. The program
costs $25 for 1 copy, $22 each for 2-5 copies, $20 each for 6-10 copies, and
$19 each for more than 10 copies.
I have provided a registration form in several formats to make it easy to mail
in your order.
To print the registration form, you have 3 options. First, you can run the
program INSTALL by changing to the disk and directory where the Make A Mess
files are stored, typing INSTALL, and pressing Enter. (If you need further
instructions on how to run the INSTALL program, refer to the section titled
THE INSTALL PROGRAM which begins at line 180). This program will allow you
to print out the form to an ASCII compatible dot-matrix or laser printer. (The
INSTALL program also allows you to install the program to the hard drive and to
read and/or print out this documentation).
Second, you can continue viewing this file until the form (which appears
between lines 122 and 144 of these instructions) is displayed on the screen.
Then, you can print the form by pressing SHIFT-Print Screen.
Finally, the form has been provided in WordPerfect format in a file called
REGISTER.WP. Simply load this file into WordPerfect and it will be ready to
print.
╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔
╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
If you don't have a printer or don't want to worry with one, you have the
option of just writing out the information and mailing it in.
If you choose to write out the information, here is all that I need:
Your Name:
Your Company Name: (if applicable)
Your Mailing Address:
Floppy Disk Size: (5.25" high density, 5.25" low density, 3.5" high
density, or 3.5" low density)
Number of Copies:
Total Amount Enclosed:
╒═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╕
│ The price will be: 1 copy - $25, 2-5 copies - $22 per copy, │
│ 6-10 copies - $20 per copy, more than 10 copies - $19 per copy. │
╘═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╛
Write this information down and mail it in with your check or money order.
Make your check or money order payable to: Russell Holloway
The mailing address is: Russell Holloway
305 Lindenhurst Drive
Apartment 1138
Lexington, KY 40509
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The form can also be printed out at this point using Print Screen. Make sure
that the form is aligned on the screen between the dashed line following these
instructions and the dashed line following the form. Then, just press Shift
and Print Screen at the same time and the form should be printed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your Name: ______________________________________________
Your Company Name: ______________________________________________
Your Mailing Address: ______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Floppy Disk Size: ( )3.5" High Density ( )3.5" Low Density
( )5.25" High Density ( )5.25" Low Density
Number of Copies: _______ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Prices: 1 Copy-$25, 2-5 Copies-$22 each │
│ 6-10 Copies-$20 each, 11 or more │
│ copies $19 each. │
Total Amount Enclosed: $______ └──────────────────────────────────────────┘
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Make your check or money order payable to: Russell Holloway.
The mailing address is: Russell Holloway
305 Lindenhurst Drive
Apartment 1138
Lexington, KY 40509
╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔╗╔
╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS │
└──────────────────────────────────────┘░░
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To run this program, you must have 420 Kilobytes of free memory, and a VGA
monitor and VGA video card. It is highly recommended that you run the program
from a hard disk drive, and that you have a 80386-20 Megahertz computer or
faster. However, the program will run from a high density floppy, and on a
computer as slow as the original IBM PC.
The program has a limitation of 300 messages. Each message can have up to 999
lines, and each line can have up to 20 characters. The registered version of
the program does not have any time restrictions, but this shareware version
will display for a maximum of 7 minutes.
Now, let's get to what you're really reading this file for:
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┌─────────────────────────────────┐
│ HOW TO GET MAKE A MESS TO WORK. │░░
└─────────────────────────────────┘░░
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┌─────────────────────┐
│ THE INSTALL PROGRAM │░░
└─────────────────────┘░░
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To get Make A Mess to work, you first need to run the INSTALL program that
comes with Make A Mess. If you received this program through the mail, then
you will be installing it from a floppy disk drive. If you downloaded Make A
Mess from a bulletin board, then you will most likely be installing it from a
hard disk drive.
If you are installing from a floppy disk, first make sure that the computer is
at the DOS prompt. This prompt will look something like A:> or B:> if you have
a floppy-based system, or like C:> or D:> if you have a hard disk-based system.
Next, make sure that the Make A Mess disk is in the floppy disk drive, and that
the drive is ready to be used. Now, enter the name of the floppy drive that
the Make A Mess disk is in. For example, if the Make A Mess disk is in drive
A:, type A: and press Enter. If the disk is in drive B:, type B: and press
Enter. Next, type INSTALL and press Enter. You should now see a screen with a
heading at the top that says Make A Mess Installation Program. If you see this
screen, you are ready to install the program. If you get an error such as FILE
NOT FOUND, or BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME, you are either using the wrong floppy,
or you are trying to run the program from the hard drive. If this is the case,
go back to the top of this paragraph and follow the instructions again.
If you are installing from a hard drive, first make sure that you are at the
DOS prompt. The prompt will look something like C:> or D:>. Next, make sure
that you are in the directory where you uncompressed the Make A Mess files.
Now, type INSTALL and press Enter. You should see a screen with a heading at
the top that says Make A Mess Installation Program. If you see this screen,
you are ready to install the program. If you get an error such as FILE NOT
FOUND, or BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME, you are most likely not in the proper drive
or directory. Make sure that you are trying to run INSTALL from the proper
drive and directory, then try typing INSTALL and pressing Enter again.
When you start the INSTALL program, you are given a menu with 6 choices:
1) Install Make A Mess, 2) Read Documentation, 3) Print Documentation,
4) Print Registration Form, 5) Display Registration Form For Print Screen,
and 6) Exit.
You can select these choices either by pressing the number next to the choice
that you want, or by moving the highlighted bar up and down with the cursor
keys, and pressing Enter when the choice you want is highlighted.
1) Install Make A Mess: If you select this choice, you will be presented with
a screen that allows you to install the Make A Mess files to a hard drive.
This option really doesn't do anything other than copy the Make A Mess files
from one disk to another. So, if you already have the files in the directory
where you want them, this step is unnecessary.
The Install screen will ask you for the disk drive letter as well as the
directory to which you want to install the Make A Mess files. Make A Mess
defaults to copying the files to hard drive C:, and to putting the files in a
directory called MAKAMESS (C:\MAKAMESS). These settings should work for most
users. If these settings do not apply to you, change them to reflect your
configuration. When the settings are the way you want them, press Enter and
the installation procedure will begin. If the program detects that you don't
have enough room, it will inform you of this, and return you to the Main Menu.
Make A Mess needs about 1 megabyte of disk space to work properly. If you
don't have enough room, clear up some disk space and run the INSTALL program
again.
If you prefer to do things the hard way, you can use DOS to install the program
for you. To use DOS, go to the hard drive where you want to install the files,
type CD \ and press Enter, type MD MAKAMESS (or whatever DOS name you want to
use), type CD MAKAMESS (or whatever name you used), then type copy A:*.* or
B:*.* (depending on which floppy drive the Make A Mess disk is in) and press
Enter. After the files have been copied, Make A Mess should be ready to run.
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2) Read Documentation: This choice allows you to read the file you are reading
now. Move through the document with the cursor keys, the Page-Up and Page-down
keys, and the Home and End keys. To exit back to the Install Menu, press the
Esc (Escape) key.
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3) Print Documentation: This choice allows you to print the file you are
reading now. This option prints only to a printer that accepts straight ASCII
codes. This applies to just about every printer on the market with a few
exceptions (Early HP-Laserjet printers, Postscript printers, etc.). If you
have one of these printers, just load the file DOCUMENT into your word
processor, and print it that way.
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4) Print Registration Form: This choice allows you to print the registration
form on a printer that accepts straight ASCII codes. If your printer cannot
print these codes, try using choice 5 (Display Registration Form For Print
Screen). If choice 5 doesn't work, I have included the file REGISTER.WP, which
is a WordPerfect version of the form, and REGISTER.DOC which is a text-only
version of the form. If you are unable to use any of these methods to print
the form, refer to the first page of these instructions for details on writing
out your order by hand.
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5) Display Registration Form For Print Screen: This choice will display the
Registration Form to the screen so that you may either copy down the
registration information by hand, or press SHIFT-Print Screen to print the
information out.
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6) Exit: This choice takes you out of the INSTALL program and back to DOS.
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╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
┌───────────────────┐
│ THE SETUP PROGRAM │░░
└───────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
There are two ways to run the SETUP program. First, SETUP is run automatically
the first time MAKAMESS is run. The second way is to type SETUP when you are
at the DOS prompt in the MAKAMESS Sub-Directory. SETUP can be run from the DOS
prompt any time you want to change the defaults that MAKAMESS uses to create
messages.
When SETUP is run, it presents you with a screen that asks for your preferences
on justification, screen color, text color, display speed, and display font.
Remember, you are not locked into these choices when you run Make A Mess, you
can change any of them as you are writing or editing a message.
The SETUP program shows exactly how your choices will look as you select them.
This is the same way the lines will look when Make A Mess shows messages.
However, when Make A Mess shows real messages, you have 10 lines of display
with up to 20 characters on each line.
Don't worry if you're not exactly sure how you want things to look the first
time SETUP is run. If things aren't the way you want, simply exit Make A Mess
and run the SETUP program again.
The SETUP program will give you an initial indication of how Make A Mess works.
You are given all possible choices on the screen at the same time, and you can
immediately see the results of any changes that you make. Written instructions
are really not necessary in most cases, and options do pretty much what you
expect them to.
Next we will assume that you have run the SETUP program and are now ready to
begin using Make A Mess.
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╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
┌─────────────────────────┐
│ THE MAKE A MESS PROGRAM │░░
└─────────────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
┌──────────────────────┐
│ STARTING MAKE A MESS │░░
└──────────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
To start Make A Mess, first change to the disk drive and directory where you
installed the program. Most likely, this will be a directory called MAKAMESS
on drive C:. If you used a different drive or directory when you installed
the program, just substitute that drive and directory for C:\MAKAMESS.
To change to the MAKAMESS directory, first get to the DOS prompt. This will
look something like A:> or B:> if you are running DOS from a floppy disk drive,
or like C:> or D:> if you are running DOS from a hard disk drive. When you get
to DOS, change to the disk drive where you installed MAKAMESS. Most likely,
this will be hard drive C:. After you have changed to the proper disk drive,
type CD \MAKAMESS (If you used a name other than MAKAMESS, substitute it here)
and press Enter. You should now be in the directory where you installed Make
A Mess.
Make A Mess will not run properly if it is run from another program. For
instance, if you are running WordPerfect and you use SHIFT-F1 to shell to DOS,
there won't be enough memory to run Make A Mess. However, Make A Mess runs
fine under Microsoft Windows.
Now, to start running MAKAMESS, just type MAKAMESS and press ENTER. If you get
an error like BAD COMMAND OR FILE NAME, make sure that you are trying to run
the program from the right disk drive and directory (refer to the first two
paragraphs under STARTING MAKE A MESS to see how to do this).
If this is the first time that you have run MAKAMESS, the program will
automatically run the SETUP program. The SETUP program sets the defaults that
Make A Mess uses during message creation. If you see the SETUP PROGRAM screen,
go now to the next section on THE SETUP PROGRAM.
If you have already run SETUP, you should see a menu with four choices: 1) Show
Messages, 2) Change Messages, 3) Create Messages, and 4) Exit Program. If you
do not see this menu or the SETUP menu, read through the instructions under
STARTING MAKE A MESS again. If you do see this menu, go now to the section
titled THE MAKE A MESS PROGRAM.
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╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
┌───────────────────┐
│Things To Remember │░░
└───────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
────┐
I: │ The first thing to remember is that just about any key that you are
────┘ allowed to press is marked on the screen. If the screen indicates that
you are allowed to press function keys F1 - F4, then there will be no action
when you press F5.
The program is written this way because I know it will not be the only program
that you run on your computer. There is no reason to have to remember the keys
when the program is capable of displaying them on the screen for you. Leaving
instructions off the screen does make for a prettier display, but after two or
three uses, you really start wishing they were there.
The only exceptions to the above rule are that you can press the Escape key to
exit from the (Y)es, (N)o, or (C)ancel instructions, and in the Message Create
section, you can press the Enter key instead of Escape to get out of the Message
Format section.
(It is also important to remember that when these instructions state that you
should press SHIFT and a function key, i.e. SHIFT F6, make sure that you press
and hold the SHIFT key while pressing the function key at the same time.)
────┐
II: │ The second thing to remember is that the Escape key can be used whenever
────┘ you run into a problem. For instance, if you accidentally ask the
program to save a message and you don't want to, just press Escape to cancel.
Repeatedly pressing Escape will eventually take you out to the opening menu
from any screen you happen to be using.
────┐
III:│ The third thing to remember is that this is a graphical program. While
────┘ this won't make much difference on computers from 20-megahertz 80386's
and up, the program will run a little sluggishly on slower computers. If you
are using an older computer, don't be surprised if the program seems to have
stopped momentarily. It just takes longer to process graphical information
than textual information. The program was written this way both to improve its
general appearance, and to allow you to see exactly what you are doing as you
are doing it.
Now, let's get the program to do something!
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╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝╚╝
┌───────────────────────┐
│Make A Mess Main Menu. │░░
└───────────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
After SETUP has been run and a configuration has been saved, Make A Mess will
start by showing you the Main Menu.
The opening menu presents you with four choices: Show Messages, Change
Messages, Create Messages, and Exit Program.
┌──────────────┐
│Show Messages:│░░
└──────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
STEP 1: │ The normal way to show messages that you have already created is to
────────┘ use SHOW MESSAGES. (The other way is to use SHIFT F10 Message
Preview which is documented in the CREATE MESSAGES section). When you select
this option, the program checks the current directory for stored messages. If
it does not find any, it informs you that you must first create a message and
then takes you back out to the main menu.
If the program finds one or more messages, it then presents you with a list of
these messages in a window at the right center of the screen. This menu will
list up to 50 messages at the same time. If more than 50 messages are found,
you can display them by using cursor keys displayed on the screen.
To aid in the selection of the proper messages for display, the first 22 lines
of each message are shown in a window at the left side of the screen as you
highlight them.
To select a message for display, highlight it using the keys shown on the
screen, and then press the space bar. The box to the left of the message will
then be highlighted in red. If you change your mind, just highlight the
message again and press the space bar. The box will then turn to black and the
message will no longer be selected. You can highlight as many of the messages
as you like.
I have included 6 demonstration messages in this shareware version. You can
modify these messages in any way you choose.
The first message, ADVERTIS, will give you an example of how you can use MAKE A
MESS to advertise specials, events, new products or services, etc.
The second message, DEMO, gives an overview of the features of Make A Mess, and
provides some ideas about how to create your own messages.
The third message, EDUCATE, shows how you can use Make A Mess in an educational
setting. Make A Mess can be used much like an automatic flash card system.
The fourth message, EXERCISE, shows how to use Make A Mess to assist you when
you are doing repititous exercises. How often have you lost count when doing
exercises? Make A Mess will keep up with your repititions, as well as provide
an accurate time delay between sets of repititions.
The fifth message, HOURS, is an example of how to use Make A Mess to inform
customers about business hours. The colorful, animated messages in Make A Mess
are much more attractive and attention getting than any paper sign. Also, Make
A Mess gives a more professional image to your establishment.
The last message, ILLBBACK, is a short message that can be used to inform
others about what time you will return, how long you take for lunch, who to
talk to in your absence, etc.
You can change any of these messages to suit your tastes, or you can just
delete them and make new messages from scratch.
After you have selected the messages you want to display, press the Enter key
to advance to step 2. If you press Enter and you haven't selected any
messages, the program will take you back to step one where you can either
select a message or return to the main menu.
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
STEP 2: │ At this stage you are asked about the order in which you would like
────────┘ to display your messages. There are only two choices, but there
differences are important.
F1-RANDOM │ will display all of the messages you have selected, and do it
──────────┘ randomly. There is a possibility that a message can be shown
several times in a row, but the odds of this happening decrease with the number
of messages that you select for display.
F2-ALPHABETICAL │ will display all of the messages you have selected, and do it
────────────────┘ alphabetically. Unless you have selected only 1 message,
there is no possibility that a message will be displayed twice in a row. The
alphabetical order is determined from the name of the message itself.
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
STEP 3: │ At this stage you select the number of times that you want to display
────────┘ the selected messages.
F1-CONTINUOUS │ will display your messages until you press a key. (In this
──────────────┘ unregistered version, the program will stop after the 7 minute
demo time has elapsed).
F2-TIMED │ will display messages in random or alphabetical order until the
─────────┘ amount of time you have entered has elapsed, or until you press a
key. You can enter a time of up to 999 Hours, 59 Minutes. (Once again, in
this version, the program will stop after the 7 minute demo time has elapsed).
F3-COUNTED │ will display messages in random or alphabetical order the number
───────────┘ of times you have entered, or until you press a key. Each message
counts once, so if a message is displayed randomly twice in a row, that counts
as two messages. (Again, in this version, the program will stop after the 7
minute demo time has elapsed).
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
STEP 4: │ At this stage, you select the amount of time you want to wait between
────────┘ messages. If you want messages to show with no break between them,
just select a time delay of 0 Minutes, 0 Seconds. There will be some extra
delay between messages depending on the size of the next message, and the speed
of your computer. (In this unregistered version, the program will stop once
the 7 minute demo time has elapsed).
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
STEP 5: │ In this step, you select the intermission effect that will be shown
────────┘ between messages. If you selected a time delay of 0 in the last
step, the choice you make at this step is irrelevant. If you want the screen
to stay black between messages, select F1. If you want the program to randomly
pick between the intermission effects, select F2. Otherwise, the program will
show only the effect that you choose. For instance, if you select F3 Lines,
the program will only show the Lines Intermission between messages. If you
picked F2 (Random), each display will appear on average 1 out of every 5
messages.
In this shareware version, F8 (Logo) has been disabled. If you register the
program, you will have this option available to you. This selection will allow
you to specify a 16-color PCX, GIF, or BMP file to display. The picture will
be scaled to fit the screen, so its resolution is not important. This picture
can be provided by you, or we can scan any picture that you would like to
display (for a $25 fee). Further details about this function appear in the
documentation that comes with the registered version.
░░▒▒▓▒▒░░
────────┐
Step 6: │ In this step you review the choices that you have made. If all looks
────────┘ correct, just press Enter and the show will begin. If something is
not right, press the Backspace key until you get to the step that will correct
it. Pressing Escape at any time will take you back to the main menu.
During Display, you can press any key to stop. You will then be taken back to
step 6. From here, you can return to the main menu, restart the display, or
modify the display settings.
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┌────────────────┐
│Create Messages:│░░
└────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
The first step to take in making a new message is to select CREATE MESSAGES.
When this option is selected Make A Mess will first present you with a master
format window. This window will give you a preview of the overall format of
the message. You can change each line as you enter the message, but each line
will default to this master format. You can go back and change the master
format any time you want while you are entering the message. However, you
should remember that any changes you make will effect the entire message. If
you change the colors in the master format, each line in the message will then
take on these new colors. The same holds true for any changes you make in
display speed and justification. If, for example, you have a message with ten
lines already entered, and you make a master format change, each of these ten
lines will take on this new format. This happens regardless of any changes you
have already made to these lines.
Since the Master Format initially takes on the values you saved using the SETUP
program, you will not usually need to make any changes to this format. So,
when you enter the Create Messages menu option, you will usually just want to
press Enter or Escape immediately to start entering the message. However, this
option will always be available if you want to make any changes.
It is important to remember that each message is totally independent of any
other messages. Any changes you make using the Master Format or the SETUP
program will have no effect on messages you have already saved.
O.K. we're now ready to start entering a message. Try entering a few
characters and see how they look. For the purpose of speed, the program will
let you keep typing as it draws characters at the bottom, so if it appears that
the characters are disappearing, stop typing and they will quickly catch up.
After you have typed a few characters, you can then see how some of the
commands work (Note that all possible commands are listed on the screen).
Cursor Up │ This key moves up the display by one line. When you reach the
──────────┘ first line, this key no longer has any effect.
Cursor Down │ This key moves the display down by one line. When you reach line
────────────┘ 999, this key no longer has any effect.
Page Up │ This key moves the display up by 15 lines. When you reach the first
────────┘ line, this key no longer has any effect.
Page Down │ This key move the display down by 15 lines. When you reach line
──────────┘ 999, this key no longer has any effect.
Delete │ This key deletes the current line. Be careful, it doesn't ask whether
───────┘ or not you are sure you want to do this, it just does it.
Insert │ This key inserts a new line. It pushes any text below it down by one
───────┘ line and makes a new line that conforms to the settings made in the
Master Format window.
Home │ This key takes you to line 1 of the message.
─────┘
End │ This key takes you to the last line you have edited.
────┘
Esc │ This key gets you out of Create Messages and takes you back to the Main
────┘ Menu. If the current message contains any text, you will be asked if you
want to save the current message. If you do, press Y and follow the
instructions. If you do not want to save, press N. Otherwise, press C or
Escape again and you will return to the message without saving or exiting.
F1: Justification │ This key changes the justification of the text on the
──────────────────┘ screen. If you have typed less than 20 characters,
pressing this key will move the text in both the Preview Window and the Entry
Window. Try using this option a few times to see what occurs. Make sure that
you refer to what happens in the preview window because this is exactly the way
that the text will appear when the message is displayed. Remember, any changes
you make with this option will affect only the line that you are currently
editing. Any lines that have not yet been edited will default to the settings
shown by the Master Format window.
Note that as you make changes with F1, the window just to the right of the
Entry Window will indicate these changes. This window is also important for
other functions because it reflects changes in Underline, Text Type, Font, and
Speed.
F2: Text Color │ This choice should be fairly obvious. When you press F2, the
───────────────┘ text color on the current line changes. There are 16 possible
text colors, but the program will not allow you to set a text color equal to
the screen color (If you want the text color to equal the screen color you
really want a blank line). The text color will cycle through all of its colors
as long as you press F2. Once again, any changes you make with this option
will affect only the line that you are currently editing.
F3: Screen Color │ This choice works in exactly the same way as the text color,
─────────────────┘ except that it changes the color of the text background. As
with the text color, you cannot set the screen color to equal the text color.
Also, once again, any changes you make with this option will only affect the
line that you are currently editing.
F4: Display Speed │ This choice changes the display speed of the line you are
──────────────────┘ currently editing. Changes to this setting do not appear
in the preview window. The speed varies from 100% to 25%. At 100%, the
message will display as fast as the hardware in your computer and display card
will allow. However, at 75% and below, the message text will display with a
delay between each character. This decreased speed should be about the same
regardless of the hardware used to display it.
Try using this option a few times and then preview the results. You can then
better judge what speed settings do what on your equipment. As usual, any
changes you make with this option will only affect the line that you are
currently editing.
F5: Text Size │ This choice allows you to select Normal or Double sized text.
──────────────┘ This is a good effect for calling attention to a particular
line. One thing to remember about this choice is that it cuts down on the
number of lines that can be displayed on the screen at the same time.
Normally, you can have 10 lines of text from top to bottom. However, since
Double text is twice as high as Normal, it takes up twice as much screen space.
Therefore, if every line is Double size, you can only have 5 lines of text on
each screen. The width of the display is not affected, you will still have 20
characters per line. And again, any changes you make with this option will
only affect the line that you are currently editing.
F6: Underline Text │ This choice allows you to turn underline on and off. Both
───────────────────┘ Normal and Double sized text is underlined. The only
thing to remember about this option is that if you select Blinking Text (F9),
the underline does not blink, only the text it underlines. And guess what, any
changes you make with this option will only affect the line that you are
currently editing.
F7: Pause Display │ This option is pretty straightforward. It will stop the
──────────────────┘ display for as many seconds as you tell it to. When you
press F7, it will examine the line that you are currently working on. If this
line contains information, Pause Display will insert a line so that this
information is not lost. If the line is blank, then Pause Display will simply
replace it. If you fail to enter a number when Pause Display asks you for a
delay time, it will default to 0 seconds and have no effect on the message
display. Pause Display is also used in conjunction with F9 (Blinking Text).
To get text to blink, you must first select it with F9. This alone will not
cause the text to blink. You must then issue a pause display. The text will
not blink until the message reaches this pause. You can put the pause display
on the line below the blinking text, or you can put it several lines below,
just so long as the text that is to blink stays on the screen.
F8: Clear Screen │ This option also does just what it says. It clears off the
─────────────────┘ screen and starts the display from the top. There is
something extra to remember about this option though. If you have selected a
top title (F6), a bottom title (F7), or both, Clear Screen will not affect
them. Only text that is between the top and/or bottom title will be cleared
away. However, if you issue two Clear Screen commands in a row, the top and/or
bottom title will be cleared away.
F9: Blinking Text │ This option provides a way to make text on the screen blink
──────────────────┘ to attract special attention. Any text can be made to
blink (except for the top and bottom titles), however, only one line on each
screen can be made to blink at a time. Also, to get text to blink you must
issue a pause command (see F7 Pause Display for details) at least 1 line after
the blink command.
F10: Next Font │ Unlike any of the above choices, Next Font affects the entire
───────────────┘ message. In this version of the program, 3 fonts are
provided: Courier, Roman, and Helv. You can see what each of the fonts will
look like by repeatedly pressing F10. The only restriction with this command
is that you can only have 1 font per message.
(When the following sections refer to pressing SHIFT and a function key, i.e.
SHIFT F6, remember to press and hold the SHIFT key while pressing the function
key at the same time.)
SHIFT F6: Make Top Title │ This option allows you to make a title that will
─────────────────────────┘ stay at the top of the screen regardless of what
happens with the rest of the message. Text is scrolled beneath the top title,
and if a Clear Screen command is issued, only the text below this title is
cleared away. To get rid of this top title, you must issue two Clear Screen
commands in a row. This function works along with the Make Bottom Title (SHIFT
F7). One thing to remember about this function is that whenever it is used in
the message it will clear away the rest of the screen.
The only exception to the above rule occurs when you have a bottom title.
Selecting a new Top Title will not clear away the current bottom title. Also,
the top (as well as the bottom) title is not affected by the Blinking Text
command. All other commands work normally. You can issue the Make Top Title
command whenever you want in a particular message. Just remember that it
clears away all but the bottom title (if there is one) when it is issued.
SHIFT F7: Make Bottom Title │ This option allows you to make a title that will
────────────────────────────┘ stay at the bottom of the screen regardless of
what happens with the rest of the message. Text is scrolled above the bottom
title, and if a Clear Screen command is issued, only the text above this title
is cleared away. To get rid of this bottom title, you must issue two Clear
Screen commands in a row. This function works along with the Make Top Title
(SHIFT F6). One thing to remember about this function is that whenever it is
used in the message it will clear way the rest of the screen.
The only exception to the above rule occurs if you have a top title.
Selecting a new Bottom Title will not clear away the current top title. Also,
the bottom (as well as the top) title is not affected by the Blinking Text
command. All other commands work normally. You can issue the Make Bottom
Title command whenever you want in a particular message. Just remember that it
clears away all but the top title (if there is one) when it is issued.
SHIFT F8: Master Format │ This option allows you to change the current Master
────────────────────────┘ Format. It calls up the same screen that is
presented when you first select Create Messages. The functions work the same
way when they are called from the message as they do when Create Messages is
first selected. It is important to remember that any changes you make here
affect the entire message. If you change the colors, all lines in the message
are changed, including any lines you have already edited. The same goes for
changes made in justification and display speed.
SHIFT F9: Save Message │ This option allows you to save the message you are
───────────────────────┘ currently editing. This option also comes up
automatically when you press Escape to exit the message and the message
contains information. The screen should then present you with any necessary
instructions. It is a good idea to use a name that is indicative of the
contents of the message so that you can find it more quickly. However, this is
not absolutely necessary since all messages are automatically previewed before
you load them back in.
SHIFT F10: Preview Message │ This option allows you to preview the message you
───────────────────────────┘ are currently editing. This is the way the
message will appear when displayed using the Show Messages selection from the
Main Menu. The message will repeat until you stop it by pressing any key.
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┌────────────────┐
│Change Messages:│░░
└────────────────┘░░
░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
This selection works essentially the same way as CREATE MESSAGES. The only
two exceptions are: A Load Message menu initially appears in place of the
Master Format menu, and a SHIFT F5: Load Message choice appears on the screen.
Since CHANGE MESSAGES differs so little from CREATE MESSAGES, I will only
document the two exceptions listed above. Just refer to the CREATE MESSAGES
section for information on all the other functions.
When you first select CHANGE MESSAGES, you will be presented with a menu asking
you what message you want to load. The directory is searched for all messages
that have been saved, and then they are presented on a selection list. You can
move up and down through this list like you move up and down through a message.
All of the allowable keys are displayed on the screen, and no other keys have
any function.
You can get an idea of the contents of each message as you highlight it in the
Load Menu. At the left of the screen in the Entry Window, a preview of the
first fourteen lines of each message will appear. When you have highlighted
the message you would like to edit, press Enter and the message will load.
SHIFT F5 │ Pressing SHIFT and F5 brings up the Load Messages Menu. This can be
─────────┘ done at any time during editing. This menu is the same as the one
that first appears when you select CHANGE MESSAGES from the MAIN MENU. You
should remember that if you load a new message with this function, it will
first erase the message that you are currently working on. When you first
press this button it will ask if you want to save your current message. If you
select (N)o, the program will then erase the message you are currently editing.
It will not erase it from the disk, but it will erase any changes you have
made.
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