Gold Medal Software 3

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Text File | 1994-02-11 | 15.4 KB | 272 lines

MILABEL Written by John M. Haro Version 2.6 02/11/94 MILABEL (pronounced My-Label) was created as a need for a multi-purpose label printing utility that supports IBM Proprinter II, and Epson LX-800 printers. It now also supports IBM Proprinter X24, and Epson LQ-2500 which were needed for a Panasonic KXP-1124 printer, Toshiba 321SL which changes it's emulation to the Proprinter mode, and a Epson LQ-850. LaserJet III and HP 500 printer support has now been also added which only print to selected Avery label sheets. This program is submitted to the public under the ShareWare concept. Please pass this program on to others at no charge. If you find this program useful please register it by sending the registration form and $15.00 to: John M. Haro P.O. Box 13031 Omaha, NE 68113 For registering this program you will receive a registration number and simple instructions to register your program. After being registered, the program will not display the registration screen at the beginning or at the end of the program. If the version you have is not the latest version, you will also be sent the latest version. The registration number will be valid on this and all future versions of MILABEL. As a registered user I will also provide any customer support you might need with the program. Also for $10.00 more, I will add a customized printer routine for any other printer type "IF" possible. For this option, supply the required information listed on the registration form. If your printer will not support the required functions and you paid the additional $10.00, it will be refunded with the registration number returned. This program should require very little assistance. If you copy the MILABEL.EXE file to any directory located in your path statement you can run the program from anywhere with the command of MILABEL. The unregistered version will display an introduction screen before starting. The program starts out displaying pull down menus across the top of the screen. If you have a mouse, the mouse cursor will be displayed and you can use the left button to select any pull down menu choice. The following will describe each menu choice: Label - Select the size of label you want printed. Label sizes are listed in Width x Length. A labels size in length is measured from the top of one label to the top of the next label. The options Print & Dump and Read & Dump will dump the floppy disk contents to a selected file. See below. If laser type printers have been selected, then only the Avery label numbers will be available to select from. ************************************************************************** * NOTE: If you have already read in a disk, changing the Label size * * to one of different columns can effect the sorting structure * * You must reread the disk in again to be sorted with new * * selection! * ************************************************************************** Drive - Select the drive you want to read a disk from. The drive choices automatically adjust to the total floppy drives you have installed in your computer. You can also select "No Drive" which will allow you to create a label with notes only and no disk reading. Sort - Select the method you want the files to be sorted. You can select "Horizontal" (across columns), "Vertical" (down the column), or "No Sorting" (just as they are read in). ************************************************************************** * NOTE: If you have already read in a disk, changing the Sort will * * not affect the current files stored. You must reread the * * disk in again to be sorted with new selection! * ************************************************************************** Format - Select the format of the printed label. You can select "Files Only" (prints the label title, reference, disk info, and files), "Notes Only" (prints the label title, reference, disk info, and only notes you enter in), and "Both Notes/ Files" (prints the label title, reference, disk info, and three lines of notes you enter in followed by files). Go - "Read Disk" - Before a disk is read in, this is the only choice selectable. Selecting this choice will immediately read in the disk in the selected drive. After the drive is read in, the disk information will be displayed in the Status window and you can then select "Print Label". "Print Label" - allows you to enter in the title, reference, and any notes if selected. Then label is printed. If laser type printers are selected, this choice actually saves the label information in a specific file for the selected label type. "View Files" - allows you to see the files, maximum that can fit on the screen, and you can also press the <Del> key to delete the highlighted file from being displayed in your label. Use your arrow keys to move the highlight bar between files. There are marker lines across the screen which point to the last files that can be printed with the Files Only label Format. This is to let you know if the disk has more files than can be printed on one label. If there are more files, you will be given the option before printing if you want to print more labels for the extra files. Otherwise, you could delete unimportant files in the view mode so you can get all the important ones on one label. For the laser type printers, the extra files can not be printed! "Print Sheet" - only present if laser type printers have been selected. This will prompt you with a simulated display of the Avery label form to select the starting position of your first label to be printed at. If no labels are saved for the selected label type, then this option will not be selectable. After the labels are printed, the label file will be deleted. NOTE: If there are duplicate file names present on a disk in different directories, all duplicate file names will be eliminated. Utility - "Choose Printer" - you will be given a list of stored printer drivers that have been included in MILABEL. Select the closest printer type that your printer is or can emulate. Selecting either the laser type will also change the labels available. "Dump File Name" - to change the default file that will be used to dump the read in files to. See NOTE below. "Left Margin" - to change the default print start position of all labels printed. This has no effect for the laser type printers. "Full Title" - will toggel the "Print Full Title" display. Setting this to "Yes" will allow a full title to be printed across the top of the label instead of the shorter title and label reference. "Save Defaults" - all the current defaults that are displayed on the left side of the Current Status will be stored back into the MILABEL.EXE program (including the dump file name.) After these defaults are stored, the next time MILABEL is ran, the pulldown menu choice is initiated at the "GO" menu choice since you should not have to make any changes for future labels. NOTE: The LEFT MARGIN sets the printer to the margin inputed. You will probably have to turn off your printer to reset it when done to clear out any margin set in. Also, a margin of 10 on some printers forces it to automatically do a line feed upon initializing of the margin. Try not to use a 10 if possible for your left margin! NOTE: Since MILABEL does modify itself by saving the configuration back to itself, MILABEL can not be compressed with any run time compression program such as PKWARE's PKLITE program. Also beaware that virus checkers might think it has been affected since it will be changed from a previous scan. Quit - Quit MILABEL and return to DOS. If you have not registered your version of MILABEL, the unregistered screen will again be displayed. To select any menu choice, you can move the highlight menu bar with the left/right arrow keys, or press the key of the first letter of each menu choice. If you use the arrow keys and have the menu choice highlighted, press the <Enter> key to open up the pulldown menu. You can then use the up/down arrow keys to select any of the displayed choices or press the key of the first letter of wanted choice (this is available for all menu choices except for the Label pulldown menu). The program will also automatically detect most mouse drivers. If you have a mouse installed, a mouse cursor will present on the screen. You can use the mouse cursor to click on any menu choice to select it. When you select to print out the label, a new screen will be displayed allowing you to enter in the label title, reference (of the full title was not selected), and any notes if selected. You can move the cursor prompt between fields with the arrow keys, or press <Enter> to skip to the next field. If your cursor is sitting in either the title or reference field, you can press <Ctrl-R> to restore a previous entry from the last label you entered. If you have not selected to print a full title, and your cursor is still in either the title or reference field, you can also press <Ctrl-S> to swap the title and reference data. When the disk is read in, if the disk label is less than 7 characters long, it will be automatically be placed in the reference field. This was to allow disk reference numbers (like I use on my disks, such as 0001, 0035A, etc.) to be automatically put in the disk reference position. If your disk has a short name and is read incorrectly into the reference field, just press <Ctrl-S> to put it back into the title. You can press <F1> on any field to open a help window that will explain the above special editing keys. If you have selected to not print a full title, then any reference label entered (if different from what was present before) can be written back to the floppy disk. To do this, enter a "Y" at the Write Reference prompt to the left of the reference field. This Y/N prompt will retain what was last entered into it for as long as the program stays running. Otherwise, it always defaults to a "N" since writing back to the disk will slow down your printing of labels. To the right of the "How many labels to print" prompt, if the files exceed what can be printed on one label, you will also be prompted if you want additional labels to be printed. If you answer this prompt with a "Y" then additional labels will be printed without titles or disk information until all files have been printed. You can press <ESC> at any time to cancel printing of the label. You will be returned back to the main menu screen. "Read & Dump" will prompt you to press <ENTER> when you want to read in a disk and dump its file contents to the selected file name. You can press <ESC> when you are done with this feature. "Print & Dump" will dump the files read in to the selected file name after the label has been printed. When this choice is active you will see a flashing "P&D" displayed next to the label size on the Current Status screen. Both the "Read & Dump" and "Print & Dump" will create the file selected if not currently found. If the file is already present, it will add the current disk to the end of the file. The disk information will be added to the file in the following format. Each field is separated by a comma and is in a one line format with a Carriage Return character at the end of the line. Label Title - 46 characters, Reference Title - 6 characters, Total Directories - 2 characters, Total Files - 3 characters, Disk Total Space - 9 characters, Disk Free Space - 9 characters, File Names - 12 characters, (this is repeated for all remaining file names.) I hope you enjoy this program. REGISTERING MILABEL When you register this program, you will be sent back a registration notice including your name and a registration number. You will be given simple instructions at that time as to how to enter your name and registration number into MILABEL. If the version you have is not my latest version, you will be sent back the latest version on a 5¼" disk. If you can not use this size disk, check the 3½" disk size on the registration and include an extra $1.00 to receive the next update on a 3½" disk. Your name will be displayed on the main screen so insure you supply your name (or company name if you are paying for a Site License) correctly and readable. The Site License will authorize the full usage of MILABEL throughout your company on all computer systems. NOTE: The registration process can only be done once, so retain your master copy of the program, in case you want to change the registration name or to give the program to someone else.