Simtel MSDOS 1992 June/SIMTEL_0692.cdr/msdos/sysutl/clkprogs.arc/RTCLK.DOC

Text File | 1988-08-07 | 7.3 KB | 136 lines

                   THE STRICKLAND REAL-TIME CLOCK PROGRAMS

             Copyright (C) 1988, Tom Strickland, Alexandria, VA

  The Strickland RT clock programs CLKDRV.SYS, RTCLOCK.COM, REALTIME.COM, and
DOSTIME.COM are designed to provide a standard, universal method of
addressing a certain widely used species of real-time (RT) clock that is not
an AT-CMOS.  Depending on the manufacturer, the supporting software that
comes with these clocks can have names like GETTIME, SETTIME, TIMER, CLSET,
etc.  All of these manufacturer-supplied programs act and feel different, and
they all talk to the RT clock in different ways, even though the clock
supplied by all the manufacturers is essentially the same one.

  The most important difference between manufacturers is the way they handle
the year with these clocks.  No two seem to do it the same way.  Another
important difference is that some of the proprietary programs allow you to
put new time and date on the command line, while others insist on making you
respond to prompts for that information.  Some of the manufacturers supply
one program to set the RT clock and another program to read it, while other
manufacturers use one program to do either, depending on what command line
parameter is used.  Finally, some manufacturers fix things so only their
programs can even detect the presence of the RT clock, even though it's
basically the same clock that all the other manufacturers are using.  In
short, each manufacturer locks you into his particular way of dealing with
the same clock, and in the process makes it practically impossible for anyone
else to write programs that can work directly with all these clocks.

  Strickland's free RT clock programs talk to all these clocks in the same
way, and this brings some distinct advantages that are not available with the
original proprietary software that came with them.

  The chief advantage of Strickland's programs is that they open the way for
programmers to write application software that can work with all such clocks,
regardless of brand.  The first such program is TIMESET, version 4.00, which
can set virtually any brand of this type of RT clock to Naval Observatory
time.  But Strickland's programs open the way for many more applications to
be written that can work directly with these clocks.  The AT CMOS clock is
handled essentially the same way by all manufacturers, to the benefit of the
owners of those clocks.  Now, with Strickland's RT clock software, the owners
of these other RT clocks will be able to enjoy the same benefits of
standardization that the owners of AT CMOS clocks do.

  There are some important rules to follow in using the Strickland programs.
Remember that these rules apply only to RT clocks that are not the AT CMOS:

Rule 1.   IF YOU WANT TIMESET.EXE VER. 4.00 TO SET YOUR REAL-TIME CLOCK
          BY THE NAVAL OBSERVATORY, YOU HAVE TO USE STRICKLAND'S RT CLOCK
          SOFTWARE.  Put your clock's original programs away because they
          and TIMESET are incompatible.


Rule 2.   YOU CAN'T USE BOTH YOUR ORIGINAL RT CLOCK SOFTWARE AND
          STRICKLAND'S SOFTWARE.  It has to be one system or the other.

  If you set your RT clock with Strickland's RTCLOCK.COM (or with
TIMESET.EXE, Version 4.00) you should not use the original software that came
with your RT clock to try to read that clock, because it will return the
wrong date.  Conversely, if you set your RT clock with your original
software, it's futile to try to read it later with Strickland's REALTIME.COM
because it, too, will return the wrong date.

  You have to pick one system or the other -- either Strickland's or somebody
else's -- and stick with it for both setting and reading the RT clock.  This
also means that if you choose Strickland's software, you have to change your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file to remove the name of any original software for your RT
clock that is there and replace it with a comparable one from Strickland's
set.  Thus, if your AUTOEXEC.BAT file has a line that tells the proprietary
program TIMER.COM to move RT time and date to DOS on boot-up, you have to
replace it with a line that tells Strickland's RTCLOCK.COM to do the same
thing, like this:

                               RTCLOCK -G

(unless you are using the Strickland RT clock driver--see below).  The -G
means get the time/date from the RT clock and send it to DOS.

  Later, if you change the time or date in DOS, either directly or through
the action of some program, you can send the new time or date to the RT clock
with:

                               RTCLOCK -S

(unless you are using the Strickland RT clock driver--see below).

  Thereafter, you can read the RT clock's time and date by running
Strickland's REALTIME.COM in DOS, but not by running the comparable program
that came with your RT clock.  If you use the original software you'll get
erroneous readings.

  Remember: pick one system or the other and use it consistently.  If you
want TIMESET version 4.00 to set your RT clock, however, you have no choice:
it has to be Strickland's system, because that's the system TIMESET 4 uses.

Rule 3.   IF YOU INSTALL STRICKLAND'S RT CLOCK DRIVER YOU SHOULD NOT USE
          ANY OTHER CLOCKSETTING SOFTWARE TO CHANGE THE TIME OR DATE IN YOUR
          RT CLOCK -- NEITHER STRICKLAND'S RTCLOCK.COM NOR THE CLOCKSETTING
          SOFTWARE THAT CAME WITH YOUR RT CLOCK.

  With the driver installed, there is no need to use RTCLOCK.COM or any other
program to move time/date between DOS and the RT clock.  The driver takes
care of that any time you change time or date in DOS, or even look at it.
You also do not need to use any special software to read the RT clock when
the driver is installed, because the driver moves that information to DOS
whenever you ask the DOS clock/calendar to report the time or date.

  You will get strange results if you try to set your RT clock with special
software if the driver is installed.  Don't do it, because the program that
sets your RT clock gets into an unwholesome competition with the driver.
Think of it this way:  RTCLOCK (or any other program for accessing the RT
clock) is like a messenger that knocks on the door separating the DOS
clock/calendar and the RT clock to deliver messages from one to the other.
But CLKDRV.SYS knocks the whole wall down, so there is no need for an outside
messenger and no need for knocking.  If you nevertheless send RTCLOCK or
another program to pound on a door that no longer exists, it just gets in the
driver's way and causes confusion.  CLKDRV.SYS wants to hog the whole show.
Let it.

  To install Strickland's CLKDRV.SYS you have to put this line in your
CONFIG.SYS file:

                         DEVICE = CLKDRV.SYS.

Then reboot your system--but only after you have removed any RT clock program
names from your AUTOEXEC.BAT file.


  Questions about the Strickland RT clock programs should be directed to Tom
Strickland, co-sysop of the Corral BBS, (703-360-5097, 1200/2400 baud, 8 data
bits, no parity).

NOTE:  The manual for TIMESET version 4.00 contains an error in the
description of how to use RTCLOCK.COM.  It says the command to move time and
date from the RT clock to DOS is RTCLOCK /G and that the command to move DOS
time and date to the RT clock is RTCLOCK /S.  The slash is incorrect.  It has
to be a hyphen.  Make it RTCLOCK -G, and RTCLOCK -S.