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Text File | 1980-01-01 | 29.1 KB | 672 lines

A. What is Good about PC-Outline ? 1. What is PC-OUTLINE ? a) An outline program b) A word processor c) Both together ! 2. What's Great about PC-Outline ? a) It's powerful b) It's easy to use c) It's cheap 3. Why Use PC-OUTLINE ? a) You can brainstorm in an outline form, make indented outlines ...or write your next novel in an organized manner. b) At any time you can move an outline entry from anywhere to anywhere as your thoughts get organized; or insert a new entry; or change the level of an entry; or split or join or sort entries....Renumbering is automatic. c) You can attach text (as much as you want) to any outline entry just by typing; this text is moved with the outline entry even if hidden. You can later go back an omit outline numbering if you don't want numbers in your novel. d) You can open up the document showing all outline entries and text or you can (selectively) suppress text and/or lower level entries. This zoom-in/zoom-out capability really helps writing. e) When finished you have an automatic table of contents. And you can export your entire document to WordStar or ASCII. f) The word processor automatically reformats paragraphs on the fly! Also, block operations, find and alter, print controls, indentation... g) Works with Turbo Lightening for spelling check. 4. FEATURES a) Can be used as wordprocessor without outline features b) Flexible outline structures, editing and formatting c) Text editing, block moving, string searching d) Menu selectable printer control e) Windows for multi-file editing f) Optionally RAM resident g) Execute DOS commands h) Export/import files i) Drop down menus j) Macros k) Lots of other goodies - look around. 5. GETTING STARTED a) Loading 1) Type PCO at DOS prompt. 2) Use menus (Press INS, point with arrows, select with RET). 3) Follow directions on the bottom status line. b) Keys - here are a few keys to get you started 1) F1 help 2) esc quit 3) ins calls the drop down menus 4) ctrl-N inserts a new outline level 5) grey plus hide children toggle 6) ctrl-pgdn hide text toggle c) Building an outline 1) to create a new outline entry after the cursor, type ^N. While the entry is in inverse video, use the arrow keys to move it left or right, up or down. 2) to move an existing outline entry, mark it with ^M drag the entry to where you want it and press RET. 3) for operations on the outline structure - OUTLINE for paragraph display and outline numbering - DISPLAY for word processing - EDIT or PRINT B. What is not so good about PC-Outline ? 1. PC-Outline should allow more than 64K RAM for editing documents. I need to edit documents of 40 - 50 pages. The limitation of 64k RAM means I can only edit documents of about 20 pages in length. (Yes, I know about windows, but I need the whole document in one window.) This is THE most serious limitation of the product for me. 2. The OUTLINE, EDIT and DISPLAY menus are organized poorly and confuse me. This is the second most serious criticism. A reorganized functional grouping of the commands found on these menus follows. (This list includes a few miscellaneous ones from the PRINT, WINDOW and ADVANCED menus that don't really belong there.) a) [GLOBAL] Commands affecting the entire outline structure and layout: set global outline style place an outline entry reset all places start new numbering skip numbering reset numbering title toggle flatten outline structure sort outline entries (Other commands could conceivably go here such as a command to turn off the outline processing and just use the product as a word processor. This is something that beginners would want and later they could grow into the outline capabilities.) b) [OUTLINE EDIT] Commands affecting a single outline entry: create new entry divide current entry into two join current entry and following entry promote current entry indent current entry Commands affecting an outline family: create new family (same as create new entry) move current family delete current family copy current family (possibly across windows) move current family (possibly across windows) sort family children Commands affecting several outline families: mark family unmark family promote marked families indent marked families copy marked families move marked families copy marked families to be children move marked families to be children c) [TEXT EDIT] Commands affecting paragraphs: indent paragraph unindent paragraph indent and hang center a paragraph set current paragraph style set range paragraph style set default paragraph style set even right margins set the ruler Commands affecting text blocks or strings: move block of text copy block of text erase block of text (better mnemonic than delete) find string find string again replace string Commands inserting special control characters: insert the on/off printer control codes insert the live/static date/time insert the page eject and conditional page eject toggle code display 3. The convention of PC-Outline text move is go to start of block * call menu/use control key mark end of text point to new position complete operation It would be more in line with other products like Lotus 1-2-3 (tm) to change the order slightly * call menu/use control key mark start of text mark end of text point to new position complete operation The same comments apply mutatis mutandis to other block/entry operations. 4. PC-Outline should permit changing of screen colors. Every user has his color preference and I don't like the default colors. (No criticism of your color taste - we're just different.) While on the subject of colors, the CAPS and NUM indicators are nearly unreadable. Also, when running Turbo-Lightning (Tm) screen check, the misspelled words are nearly illegible because of the combination of colors used. (In both cases the inverse video color combination does not have enough contrast.) 5. When using windows other than #1, PC-Outline should display the window number using a conspicuous video attribute. It's too easy to overlook. 6. PC-Outline should accept graphics ASCII characters (above 128). I need to use the box graphics characters in my work. 7. PC-Outline should import and export WordStar (tm) print control codes and page eject codes. (Not that I like WordStar - but I have a lot of documents with a lot of control codes. PC-Outline doesn't have to accept them all, but it should do most of the work for me.) There should be a means of indicating a multi-line header and footer and alternating (left right) page numbers. 8. The ^Y delete line doesn't work on the last line of the entry. 9. The copy family and move family commands on the WINDOW menu should also be on the EDIT menu as they are also very useful within one document. The flatten whole outline in the ADVANCED menu should be moved to the OUTLINE menu. 10. The ^-> and ^<- keys should be changed to skip word right and left instead of delete right and left. It's too easy to make a mistake. Instead the ^del and ^bksp keys should be used for deleted word right and left. While I'm on the subject the delete word right and left functions also delete to the other side - an annoying characteristic. For example suppose while working in insert mode I've corrected a word and the text now reads: thehte * and the cursor is under the second h. The a delete word right deletes both the old incorrect "hte" as well as the correct "the". 11. The key help screen does not contain all keys. For example, the alt-F9 alt-F10 are not on the screen. I believe the help screen should contain all the keys sorted alphabetically by key, and the menus should contain all the keys sorted by function. C. The Menu Structure of PC-Outline FILE +---------------------------------------+ | S - Save Current Outline (^S) | | L - Load Existing Outline | | N - Start New Outline | | R - Rename Current Outline | | C - Change Current Drive or Directory | | F - File Options | | D - Run Another Program From Dos | | I - Input Other File Types | | Q - Quit PC-Outline | +---------------------------------------+ +-----------FILE-----------+ | Pick a Sub-Directory | | Set Parent Directory | | Create new Sub-Directory | | Erase an Outline | | Quit this Menu | +--------------------------+ +-------------INPUT-------------+ | A - Read in an Ascii File | | W - Read in a Wordstar File | | S - Read in a Structured File | | Q - Exit this Menu | +-------------------------------+ OUTLINE +------------------------------------+ | M - Move Outline Entries (^M) | | D - Delete Outline Entries (^D) | | C - Create New Outline Entry (^N) | | O - Mark/Unmark Outline Entry (F2) | | P - Promote Marks (F7) | | I - Indent Marks (F8) | | Y - Copy Marks (F9) | | V - Move Marks (F10) | | J - Join Outline Entries (^J) | | U - Divide Outline Entries (^U) | | S - Sort Outline Level | +------------------------------------+ +------------------------------SORTING-------------------------------+ | | | Sort Direction: Increasing Order | | Type of Sort: Dictionary Order | | Field Number to Sort: 0 | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ EDIT +-----------------------------+ | F - Find String (^F) | | R - Find and Replace (^R) | | A - Find Again (^A) | | C - Copy Block (^C) | | M - Move Block (^B) | | D - Delete Block (^E) | | O - Printer Format | | I - Indent Paragraph (^I) | | H - Indent and Hang (^O) | | X - Clear Indent (^X) | | P - Page Breaks | | T - Tab Stops | +-----------------------------+ +--------------------------SEARCH--------------------------+ | | | Search for what string: | |Force case to be the same ? No | | Search scope: Only ON entries | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+ +--------------------SEARCH AND REPLACE--------------------+ | | | Search for what string: | | Replace with what string: | |Force case to be the same ? No | | Search scope: Only ON entries | | Ask before replacing ? Yes | | All occurrences ? No | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+ +--------PRINT FORMAT---------+ | U - Underline On (^F1) | | Y - Underline Off (^F2) | | B - Boldface On (^F3) | | N - Boldface Off (^F4) | | I - Italics On (^F5) | | O - Italics Off (^F6) | | S - Superscript On (^F7) | | C - Subscript On (^F8) | | F - Both Script Off (^F9) | | D - Double Strike ON (sF5) | | L - Double Strike OFF (sF6) | | Q - Quit This Menu | +-----------------------------+ +----------------------PAGE CONTROL CODE-----------------------+ | | | Enter Code: | | | | TYPE IN A PAGE CONTROL CODE | | Enter .P for a hard page break. | | Enter .C n for a conditional break of n lines that | | will keep the next n lines together on the same page. | +--------------------------------------------------------------+ EDIT THE RULER L---|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----|----R----|- Column = (1) PRESS: ESC to cancel changes, RET to set USE: Arrows, Home, End, Tab, and Backtab to position T = Set tab, E = Erase one tab, C = Clear all tabs DISPLAY +----------------------------------+ | C - Current Paragraph Style (^T) | | R - Range Paragraph Style | | D - Default Paragraph Style | | G - Global Outline Style | | P - Place Outline Entry | | A - Reset All Places | | N - Start New Numbering | | S - Skip Numbering | | U - Reset Numbering | | T - Title Toggle | | E - Even Right Margins | +----------------------------------+ +----------------------CURRENT PARAGRAPH FORMAT----------------------+ | | | Paragraph alignment: JUSTIFIED | | First line alignment: SAME AS REST OF PARAGRAPH | | Left Margin: 1 | | Right Margin: 65 | |Make these settings the defaults also? No | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---------------PARAGRAPH FORMAT FOR THE MARKED BLOCK----------------+ | | | Paragraph alignment: JUSTIFIED | | Left Margin: 1 | | Right margin relative to start of entry: 65 | | Right margin relative to left edge of page: 67 | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ +----------------------DEFAULT PARAGRAPH FORMAT----------------------+ | | | Paragraph alignment: JUSTIFIED | | First line alignment: SAME AS REST OF PARAGRAPH | | Left Margin: 1 | | Right Margin: 65 | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ +------------------------OUTLINE STYLE-------------------------+ | | | Indent per Outline Level: 0 | | Spaces for Numbering: 2 | | First entry number: 1 | | Numbering Type: Sequential: A, 1, a, ... | | 1st Level Letter: Upper Case Letters A-Z | | 2nd Level Letter: Numbers 1-99 | | 3rd Level Letter: Lower Case Letters a-z | | 4th Level Letter: Numbers 1-99 | | 5th Level Letter: Lower Case Letters a-z | | 6th Level Letter: Numbers 1-99 | | 1st Level Punctuation: . | | 2nd Level Punctuation: . | | 3rd Level Punctuation: ) | | 4th Level Punctuation: ) | | 5th Level Punctuation: > | | 6th Level Punctuation: > | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------+ +--------------------EVEN RIGHT MARGIN ON A BLOCK--------------------+ | | | Right margin relative to left edge of page: 67 | | | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ PRINT +------------------------------+ | G - Go Start Printing (^P) | | R - Set Range to be Printed | | D - Set Device For Output | | F - Set Page Format | | S - Set Printer Font | | L - Advance Printer One Line | | P - Advance Printer Page | | I - Printer Code Display | | C - Configure Printer Codes | +------------------------------+ +----SELECT AND CHOOSE GO-----+ | P - Send to Printer | | F - Send to File | | A - Send to Ascii File | | W - Send to Wordstar File | | S - Send to Structured File | +-----------------------------+ +-----------------------PAGE FORMAT------------------------+ | | | Top Margin: 5 | | Bottom Margin: 7 | | Lines per Page: 66 | | Left Print Margin: 5 | | Printer Feed: Continuous | | Page Numbering: Centered | | Page Column for Numbering: 1 | | Start Page Numbering With: 1 | | Page Breaks: Yes | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+ +--SEND TO PRINTER--+ | Bold ON | | Bold OFF | | Italics ON | | Italics OFF | | Double Strike ON | | Double Strike OFF | | Condensed ON | | Condensed OFF | | Elite ON | | Elite OFF | | Reset | | Quit | +-------------------+ +------------------PRINTER CONFIGURATION-------------------+ | | | Underline ON: 27,45,49 | | Underline OFF: 27,45,48 | | Boldface ON: 27,69 | | Boldface OFF: 27,70 | | SubScript ON: 27,83,49 | | SuperScript ON: 27,83,48 | | Both Scripts OFF: 27,84 | | Italics ON: 27,52 | | Italics OFF: 27,53 | | DoubleStrike ON: 27,71 | | DoubleStrike OFF: 27,72 | | Condensed ON: 15 | | Condensed OFF: 18 | | Elite ON: 27,77 | | Elite OFF: 27,80 | | Reset Code: 27,64 | | Print Driver File/Path: PCODRV.CFG | | Printer Name: EPSON | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+ HIDE +-----------------------------------+ | A - Current Entry's Children (^H) | | B - All Children At Level (^L) | | C - Current Entry's Text | | D - All Text At Level | | E - All Text In Outline | +-----------------------------------+ SHOW +------------------------------+ | A - Current Entry's Children | | B - All Children At Level | | C - Current Entry's Text | | D - All Text At Level | | E - All Text In Outline | | F - All Children in Outline | | G - All Text And Children | | H - All Family Children | | I - All Family Text | +------------------------------+ WINDOW +--------------------------------+ | L - Load Outline New Window | | N - New Outline New Window | | C - Close Window | | M - Move Window | | S - Size Window | | A - Arrange Windows | | T - Transfer Windows (Alt 1-9) | | I - List Windows (^Z) | | Z - Zoom Window | | Q - Copy Family (^Q) | | W - Move Family (^W) | +--------------------------------+ +-SWITCH TO ?-+ | 1 | | 2 | | 3 | | 4 | | 5 | | 6 | | 7 | | 8 | | 9 | | Quit | +-------------+ +------------------------- WINDOW STATUS -------------------------+ |# SIZE CHANGES FILENAME | | | |1 15k Y D:\PCO\SLAVERY.PCO | |2 Not Open | |3 Not Open | |4 Not Open | |5 Not Open | |6 Not Open | |7 Not Open | |8 Not Open | |9 Not Open | | | +-----------------------------------------------------------------+ ADVANCED +------------------------------+ | C - Config. Settings | | K - Key Definition (^K) | | O - Key Def. Options | | D - Insert Static Date (sF1) | | V - Insert Live Date (sF2) | | T - Insert Static Time (sF3) | | X - Insert Live Time (sF4) | | E - Export Block | | I - Import Block | | H - Key Help (F1) | | F - Flatten Whole Outline | +------------------------------+ +--------------------------CONFIGURATION---------------------------+ | | | Starting Directory Path: | | Macros File/Path: PCOMAC.CFG | | Print Driver File/Path: PCODRV.CFG | | Configuration File/Path: PCO.CFG | | Automatic Timed File Saving ? No | |Time Between Automatic Saves (minutes): 6 | | Create Automatic Backup Files ? Yes | | Prompt before overwriting a file ? Yes | | Video Retrace: Yes | | Printer Port: LPT1 | | Force Black and White: No | | | +------------------------------------------------------------------+ +--------KEY FUNCTIONS--------+ | Clear a Key Definition | | Save All Key Definitions | | Inhibit All Key Definitions | | Restart All Key Definitions | | Quit This Menu | +-----------------------------+ +----------------------EXPORT OPTIONS----------------------+ | SET THE WAY SPECIAL CHARACTERS ARE TRANSLATED | | | | Export Mode: Wordwrap | | Hard Carriage Return = Hard Carriage Return | | Soft Carriage Return = Space | | Soft Space = Nothing | | Leading Space = Space | | Start each line with: Nothing | | Export Speed: Medium | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+ +----------------------IMPORT OPTIONS----------------------+ | SET THE WAY THE ENDS OF LINES ARE TREATED | | | | Translation mode: Non-word wrapped lines | | | +----------------------------------------------------------+