ProfitPress Mega CDROM2 Shareware Freeware (MSDOS)(1992)(Eng)

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Text File | 1992-04-28 | 18.1 KB | 473 lines

Explosiv 2.02TM The DOS and Windows Graphic Screen Saver SHAREWARE VERSION AS THIS IS SHAREWARE AND NOT FREEWARE, A PAYMENT OF $20.00 U.S. IS REQUIRED IF YOU USE EXPLOSIV PAST AN INITIAL TRIAL PERIOD (NOT TO EXCEED 30 CALENDAR DAYS). SEE THE FILE ORDER.FRM FOR DETAILS. THIS VERSION OF EXPLOSIV IS A TRIAL VERSION WITH ONLY A LIMITED NUMBER OF DISPLAYS. YOU MUST REGISTER TO GET THE FULL VERSION. THE FULL VERSION FEATURES EXPLOSIV FOR DOS AND EXPLOSIV FOR WINDOWS WITH 16 BEAUTIFUL DISPLAYS EACH. Explosiv copyright (c) Reidar Gresseth & Chris Hook 1990, 1991. 1992. This product may be distributed freely to users. It may not be or packaged, either individually, or as part of any other product without the express written consent of the authors. All financial remunerations must be paid to the authors. This product may not be changed or altered and then distributed without the express written consent of the authors. DISCLAIMER: Explosiv is offered on an as-is-basis without any guarantee as to the correct functioning or fitness for specific purpose. The authors believe this program to work as described but the program is used at your own risk. The authors will not be responsible for any hardware or software damage, loss of data, or incidental or consequential damage that may result from its use, whether or not such use is in accordance with the instructions. All payments and/or enquiries regarding this program should be send to ( see the file order.frm for details ) : Hook and Gresseth P.O. Box #3013 Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6B 3X5 INTRODUCING EXPLOSIV 2.0 Explosiv 2.0 is the one screen saver that addresses all your DOS(R) and Microsoft(R) WindowsTM computing needs. You will find Explosiv 2.0 both entertaining and practical as beautiful displays save your computer screen from harmful burn-in. Compatible on machines running DOS 3.x and up, Windows 3.x and up, and PC networks, Explosiv 2.0 is designed to take care of your monitor without getting in the way of the work you need to do. The DOS version of Explosiv 2.0 is a TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) program that loads into memory when you like (for example, automatically at boot up time) and stays out of your way until you want it to come on. Occupying from 1 to 16 KB of memory (which can be loaded above the 640KB limit), the DOS version of Explosiv 2.0 renders beautifully animated displays. In fact, if you like, you can invoke the full screen user interface and just point and click on the displays you want to see. Just sit back and watch the show! The Windows version is a full-fledged Windows 3.0 application that perform the same functionality as its DOS counter part; that is, to give the user beautiful and animated displays while adding an important level of protection to your computer equipment. In addition to a highly intuitive MS Windows 3.0 standard user interface - complete with operation and demonstration modes - Explosiv 2.0 for Windows also includes the additional feature of password protection - an important security feature for users on stand-alone and networked PCs who need a level of confidentiality when not attending their machine. INSTALLATION Installation of Explosiv 2.0 for DOS and Windows is quick and easy. Simply insert your diskette and type install. You will then be greeted by a full screen menu that will request information about the type of installation you would like best. The options are: 1. To install Explosiv for DOS and Windows 2. Install Explosiv for DOS only 3. Install Explosiv for Windows only 4. Reconfigure the DOS version of Explosiv (This is especially useful if you find Explosiv 2.0 for DOS conflicting with another TSR. In that case, try changing either/or the Multiplex value or the Hot Key assignments). 5. Exit to DOS ( chose this option to NOT install Explosiv 2.0 ) Assuming that you selected one of the install choices 1 - 3, install then asks a second level of questions: 1. Which directory on your disk would you like to install Explosiv into (if no directory of the given name exists, the install program will create it). 2. The directory that is on your named path (as defined in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file) that the executable DOS file EXPLOSIV.COM will be installed into. 3. The directory where Windows 3.x resides. NOTE: At all times help is available in the box displayed at the bottom of the screen. Also, the ESC key may be pressed at any time to terminate the install process. Install will now create a custom version of Explosiv 2.0 for DOS and place it in the directory you have named. If you selected the Windows version of Explosiv 2.0 to be installed, Windows will be invoked, a new Windows Group will be created and Explosiv 2.0 for Windows will be placed in it. When this is done, windows will exit and you will be returned to the DOS command line prompt. Installation of Explosiv 2.0 will now be complete. If any part of the installation fails, a notice will be displayed as to what went wrong. You must then remedy the problem and re-install (from the distribution diskette) the sections of Explosiv 2.0 you wish. The steps needed to manually install Explosiv 2.0 are: a) Create a directory on your hard drive where you wish to install the program files. Assume that this directory is C:\EXPLOSIV. b) Copy all the files from the Explosiv disk(s) into that directory. c) Configure Explosiv for DOS so that it knows where to find the screen saver modules. This is done with the INSTALL command followed by the location of EXPLOSIV.COM and finally followed by the directory where the screen saver modules have been placed. In our example the command will be: C:\EXPLOSIV> INSTALL EXPLOSIV.COM C:\EXPLOSIV d) Copy EXPLOSIV.COM to a directory in your path. e) If you want Explosiv to run automatically when you boot your machine insert the line "EXPLOSIV -" in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file. f) If you want Explosiv to run automatically when you run windows then append "C:\EXPLOSIV\WX.EXE" to your load line in WIN.INI. g) Start Windows and create the Explosiv Program Group using the Windows Program Manager. USING EXPLOSIV 2.0 THE DOS VERSION Explosiv 2.0 consists of two different products. First there is Explosiv 2.0 for DOS, a modular TSR screen saver with a full screen interface. To invoke the DOS version of Explosiv simply go to the DOS command line prompt and type: C:\> EXPLOSIV and the full screen interface will be invoked. Or alternatively, to invoke Explosiv 2.0 for DOS WITHOUT invoking the menu system, simply enter: C:\> EXPLOSIV - If the full screen method of starting Explosiv 2.0 for DOS is used, then a combination of mouse and/or keyboard strokes will allow you to move about the menu and make the desired choices. The choices to be made are: 1. Which display you want to select as the active screen saver. 2. How many things you want Explosiv 2.0 for DOS to save for you once it becomes active as a screen saver. NOTE: Most of the selections in this box will be set for you automatically. If, for example, you find that you are exper- iencing certain restoration problems, such as a loss of special fonts or mouse pointers after returning from Explosiv, then set the "font" option. As a side effect, Explosiv will become larger in memory. 3. Determine what display parameters you want to set. Explosiv sets reasonable parameters by default, but you can make some of the displays faster, slower, denser, or sparser by modifying these controls. 4. Determine at what time you wish Explosiv to be invoked (i.e., after what period of inactivity). 5. Save the new settings, or Cancel and leave the settings unchanged. The full screen interface for Explosiv 2.0 for DOS can also be used as a module demonstrator if you wish. Simply invoke Explosiv and select a particular display by clicking the mouse on the display name, or by hitting the RETURN key once the cursor is on top of the desired display. A demonstration of the display will be shown (in full screen mode) until you hit a mouse button or keyboard key. THE WINDOWS VERSION To start the Windows version of Explosiv 2.0, do one of the following: 1. Choose Explosiv 2.0 For Windows to be activated during the install procedure. 2. Modify you WIN.INI file (usually found in your WINDOWS directory) with an ASCII editor (such as EDIT.COM as provided with MS-DOS 5.0) and append the name WX.EXE at the end of the load = line. For example, if you installed Explosiv 2.0 into the Hard Disk directory C:\EXPLOSIV, you would then append C:\EXPLOSIV\WX.EXE at the end of the WIN.INI file line that starts with the keyword load = . 3. Invoke Explosiv 2.0 for Windows by double clicking on the icon within the Explosiv group in the Windows Program Manager. This will run Explosiv 2.0 for the current Windows session ONLY. Once started, you can set, modify, and view all parameters through the Explosiv Icon menu-driven Dialog Boxes. There are two important menu choices to be made after clicking on the Explosiv Icon: 1. The Explosiv Setup Icon Menu Choice: This leads to a group of three Dialog Boxes; the Main Box (displayed after clicking on the Icon Menu choice), the Display Options Box (displayed after clicking on the Options... button in the Main Dialog Box), and the Password Box (displayed after clicking on the Password... button). 2. The About Explosiv Icon Menu Choice: This displays a simple box that gives reference to Date and Authors of Explosiv 2.0. The Setup Dialog Box controls are similar in functionality to those from the DOS version of Explosiv 2.0. To begin with, the Select Display: Box contains a scrollable list of display choices. Clicking the mouse on a choice makes that choice the active display. The Select Time: Box contains a scrollable list of times, ranging from 1 to 30 minutes. Clicking on a value causes that time to be the time to activation for Explosiv. The Screen Saver On: Box indicates whether or not Explosiv will come on as a Screen Saver at the Activation Time. Clicking on this Box toggles the Screen Saver On and Off. The Demo Button lets you get a preview of any of the selected displays. This button should be clicked On SLOWLY. The Options... Button opens up a new Dialog Box, which contains more customized controls, if the user so wishes. The Display Options Dialog Box contains two Mouse Corner groups. Clicking on any one corner will make the corresponding corner on the screen either : 1. The corner in which the screen saver is INSTANTLY activated from (the group to the left indicates this action). 2. The corner in which, if the mouse is so placed, the screen saver will NEVER come on, even at the activation time. Next are two scrollable boxes that allow: 1. The rate of Delay to be set. If you find a particular display too fast to your liking, increase the Delay Rate from between 0 to 3. 2. The Number of Objects. This is not active in all displays, but the displays that do use this control will increase the number of displayed objects as the number value selected increases (ranging from 1 to 9). NOTE: For many of the displays, selecting a value GREATER THAN 6 will give you a randomly varying display. This is especially effective in the GYRO display. Finally, there is the Detect Mouse Movement Box. Toggling this On or Off (by clicking on it with the Mouse) either Enables or Disables the screen saver to turn off via a movement of the mouse. This is especially useful for unstable situations, such as laptop computing. Also, some Graphics Co-Processor boards work better when the Mouse Movement Detection is turned off. The Password Dialog Box, the last of the Dialog Boxes, is opened up by clicking on the Password... Button. To enter a BRAND NEW password, type in your new password in the Enter Password: Box, then repeat it in the Confirm Password: Box. Finally, Click on the Accept button to permanently set your new password. If you made a mistake in either your original or confirmation entries, a failure sign will show up on the Accept button. Just start all over again. If your password was successfully entered, the Accept button will display a Success message. NOTE: Passwords can be up to 9 characters in length, and can be any combination of ASCII characters, including numbers and symbols. Also, upper and lower case of the same letter are seen as two different values to the password program. To change a password, first enter your old password in the Old Password: Box, and then proceed as outlined above for entering a FIRST TIME new password. If any error is made (i.e., the Accept button indicates a Failure), just start the entire process over again. After you have successfully entered (or changed) a password, the Password On: Button is enabled. If this button is selected, then a Password Box will pop up and ask you for your password every time an activated screen saver display is halted (eg., by a mouse movement, button click, or keyboard key press). At that time, you enter your password and then click on the Accept button, or click on the Cancel button to immediately start the screen saver display again. If nothing happen, the Password Prompting box disappears after 8 seconds, and the screen saver display resumes activity. SPECIAL THINGS TO WATCH FOR Some special things to be aware of include: a. When a DOS program is running in graphics mode, Explosiv 2.0 for DOS WILL NOT display the currently selected module, but rather will simply blank the screen. This insures the best possible restoration of any given graphics state (this may occur even in text mode if Explosiv cannot reliably determine the systems' graphic state). b. Explosiv 2.0 for Windows DOES NOT WORK in Real Mode (with or without expanded memory) in Windows 3.0. It is to be used in Standard or Enhanced Modes only. If you try to start Explosiv 2.0 for Windows in Real Mode, Explosiv will simply terminate itself with a explanitory message. c. Explosiv 2.0 for Windows may cause a problem when returning from a DOS Prompt session on some machines running Windows 3.0 in STANDARD MODE (this restriction does NOT apply to 386 or Enhanced mode Windows). To avoid this situation, close Explosiv 2.0 before you click on the DOS Prompt icon. After returning from the DOS Prompt session under Windows Standard mode, simply click on the Program Manager's Icon of Explosiv 2.0 and Explosiv will pick up immediately where you last left off. d. Explosiv 2.0 for DOS will NOT ACTIVATE when Windows 3.0 is running unless Windows is running in Real Mode. To disable this (as it could produce undesirable side effects), enter the line: EXPLOSIV OFF before you start up windows in Real Mode (i.e., win /r), and then enter: EXPLOSIV ON after exiting the Windows Real Mode session. This could easily be made into a batch file if need be. e. If you are doing large file transfers over a serial communication line in Windows, it is advised that you use the CLOCK display. This display will not impede your file transfers to any noticeable degree. The discus display may slow the transfers down to some degree. f. If you are using a Hercules monochrome display and are unsure as to whether or not your program is in graphics mode, set Explosiv off before starting the program to give maximum compatibility with the underlying program (alternatively, you can try the +on and -on option as well). g. Explosiv 2.0 for DOS has certain Hot Key assignments that are very important. They are: 1. Ctrl-Alt-Shift. This key combination starts Explosiv 2.0 immediately. 2. Ctrl-Alt-E. This key combination temporarily disables Explosiv 2.0 for DOS. 3. Ctrl-Alt_B. This key combination Enables Explosiv 2.0 for DOS after it had been previously disabled.