Black Box 4

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ Black Box 4 / BlackBox.cdr / bbs_opus / dmagic10.arj / DMAGIC10.DOC < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1991-07-03 | 62.6 KB | 1,648 lines

PRELIMINARY DOCUMENTATION DORMAGIC Version 1.00 The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility 1'st July 1991 Copyright 1990,1991, Darryl Merritt and Martin Crockett All Rights Reserved The Phone Box BBS (FidoNet 3:681/854 - V32) AUSTRALIA (08) 380-5505 - Int'l +61-83-80-5505 SA Country Club BBS [Line 1] (FidoNet 3:681/852 - V22 Biz) AUSTRALIA (08) 284-7991 - Int'l +61-82-84-7991 SA Country Club BBS [Line 2] (FidoNet 3:681/852 - V22 Biz) AUSTRALIA (08) 284-7992 - Int'l +61-82-84-7992 SA Country Club BBS [Line 3] (FidoNet 3:681/853 - V32) AUSTRALIA (08) 284-7993 - Int'l +61-82-84-7993 Documentation: Martin Crockett Features. o Exits back to BBS after SYSOP specified time period. o Full Fossil support. Tested with BNU, OPUS!COM and X00. o Supports Locked baud rates, High speed modems. o Supports CTS/RTS hand shaking for LOCKED modems. o Supports Multiple Lines and Multiple tasks. o Supports OPUS 1.1X/1.2x, Maximus 1.02 and Remote Access 1.01. o Supports Multiple Configuration and MENU files. o Supports Flag File locking for multiple Nodes. o Runs in LOCAL mode for debugging purposes or LOCAL games. o Runs without MENUs for DOOR conversion only, via Command Line. o Locked baud rates can be over ridden for Fossil aware games. o Is completely DesqView aware and releases time to other windows. o Supports TTY, ANSI and Avatar graphics modes. o Supports PCBoard 11.8a, 12.1, 14.0, Wildcat 1.1x, Wildcat 2.0x, QBBS/RA, GAP, WWIV, Generic DOOR.SYS, SpitFire, GT Power, Forbes, Genesis Deluxe and Milton gameworks DOORS. More will be added. o Menu options can be configured but hidden from view. o Menu selections can be up to three letters, thus allowing over 850,000 options. o All options can be optionally password protected. o Privelege levels are supported on all options. o Extremely fast Door Conversion. o Single Line advertisment not a Full page. o Idle Timer with SYSOP configurable reminder and forced return to BBS. o Full LOG support, Shows WHO played What and When & files written. o Full Optional Debugging Facilities for those tricky Games. o Full Simultaneous On-Screen display with Sysop Status Line. o Supports Mono/CGA/EGA/VGA 25,43,50 line screen modes. o Simultaneous User and Sysop input and Output. o Supports Carrier Detect, exits gracefully back to BBS when CARRIER Lost. o Full Time calculations ensure USERs don't stay Outside too long. o Can EXIT or SHELL from BBS to DORMAGIC. o All Doors can be configured for a maximum time limit. o Fully Configurable Menu's. o Supports OPUS' .BBS/.GBS Menu files and embedded OECC codes. o Supports Maximus' .BBS/GBS and embedded MECCA codes. o Supports Remote Access .ANS/.ASC with embedded control codes. o Menu Options can be taken OFF-Line by simply editing PRM file. o Sysop Configurable 'OFF-Line String' for each door option. o Sysop Configurable 'Loading Prompt' and Snoop On/Off. o Supports Expert and Novice Help levels, can be forced to Novice. o User configurable LOG and DEBUG Filenames. o User definable Sysop Comment for each Door. o NEW Easy to use SYSOP Configuration Program, with Full screen editor and limited mouse support. o Costs Nothing but a Postcard. o Best of all its 100% Australian made. Table of Contents. ================= Introduction - What is DORMAGIC? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 REQUIREMENTS - What do I need to run DORMAGIC? . . . . . . . . . 1 How DORMAGIC works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Contents of the DMAGICxx.ZIP archive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 DMAGICFG DORMAGIC's Configuration Utility. . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Parameter File Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Game Screen Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 DOOR Conversions Supported by DORMAGIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 EXIT files created by DORMAGIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 DORMAGIC and BATCH Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 DORMAGIC and DesqView. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Setting up DesqView for DOORS and DORMAGIC . . . . . . . . . . .14 Calling DORMAGIC from OPUS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Calling DORMAGIC from MAXIMUS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Calling DORMAGIC from REMOTE ACCESS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 RA's type 15 EXIT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 RA's type 7 EXIT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Setting up DORMAGIC from scratch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 What to do when DORMAGIC doesn't work. . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 DORMAGIC COMMAND line options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Other DORMAGIC Error Codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 DORMAGIC LOG File structure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 Registering your copy of DORMAGIC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 DORMAGIC License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Disclaimer of Liability. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Latest Version of DORMAGIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Special Thanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 1 INTRODUCTION - What is DORMAGIC? =============================== DORMAGIC is a O)utside menu system and DOOR conversion Utility. Not another one I hear you say. Well we believe DORMAGIC is superior to all other such programs for many of the above reasons. It reads your BBS SYSTEM file(s) and then presents the caller with a Menu of options. The USER then makes his/her choice and the appropriate DOOR file is written to the specified directory. DORMAGIC then exits to your batch file which traps the selection and goes off to play the selected game. Dormagic is not Limited to games. It can be used to select any DOOR type program. DORMAGIC supports multiple lines and tasks numbers. It has been tested on SA Country CLUB BBS with 3 lines and The Phone Box BBS with 1 Line locked to 19.2k for over 6 months with no known bugs. REQUIREMENTS - What do I need to run DORMAGIC? ============================================= DORMAGIC requires an MS/PC-Dos based computer running DOS 3.30 or later, OPUS 1.1X/1.2x RA 1.01, or Maximus 1.02 with a compatible FOSSIL driver (Rev 5), 150K of Free Memory is needed to run, but this is returned once DORMAGIC exits. Most BBS Games need 200K or more to run these days so DORMAGIC should not have any memory requirement problems. If you are running DesqView then DORMAGIC will release time to other windows whilst running. Depending on how much memory you have available you may SHELL to DORMAGIC or EXIT your BBS Software to DORMAGIC. How DORMAGIC works. ================== DORMAGIC needs a configuration file, by default it uses DORMAGIC.PRM. If you run multiple lines or need to have different configuration files for what-ever reasons then DORMAGIC can be told to use a configuration file of your choice by specifying the configuration filename on the command line: ie DORMAGIC /p LINE1.PRM DORMAGIC /p LINE2.PRM DORMAGIC /p DORMAGIC.PRM (acceptable but not necessary) How about this one? DORMAGIC /p LINE%1.PRM where %1 is a Batchfile parameter setup to identify Line1 or Line2. DORMAGIC gets most of its information from the configuration file, from which it extracts the Task/Node Number and path of the BBS DOOR Exit file(s). This is used to extract the User specific details. e.g. Name, Baud Rate, Graphics Mode, Time Left, etc. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 2 Contents of the DMAGICxx.ZIP archive. ==================================== DORMAGIC was originally shipped as a ZIP file. Conversion to other formats is fine as long as all the files within the archive are included. In your DMAGICxx.ZIP archive should be the following files: DORMAGIC.EXE <-- DORMAGIC itself DMAGICFG.EXE <-- DORMAGIC Configuration program DM_PARMS.EXE <-- Utility to Display DMEXIT file contents. DORMAGIC.DOC <-- This Documentation File GAMES.BAT <-- Sample GAMES.BAT file README.1ST <-- Any last minute BUGS/FIXES DORMAGIC will always be shipped under the filename DMAGICxx.ZIP. If you choose to change the archive method, thats fine, but please keep the same filename convention as it allows for easy identification of the DORMAGIC version number. Also included in the ARCHIVE is GAMES.ZIP, this contains a few sample batch files used with certain games. They should only be used as an idea to get your BBS Games running, as our setup would almost certainly differ from yours. If you have a DOOR which does not work with DORMAGIC please let us know. We have tested DORMAGIC with dozens of game but there will always be a few games which may not work. This may be due to a bug in our DOOR conversion utilities or a BBS DOOR type DORMAGIC does not support. We will be glad to add more formats to DORMAGIC, the only thing we ask for is structures for the files required by the BBS type. If you have any bugs reports or suggestions about DORMAGIC please don't hesitate to contact us for support. DMAGICFG CONFIGURATION Program. ============================== The first time you run DMAGICFG you will be greeted with a banner. After about 2 seconds the banner will be replaced with a message indicating that no parameter files were found. DMAGICFG will then create a default parameter file for you. When you run DMAGICFG in future you will be shown a list of Parameter file from which to pick. If you run a single line then there might only be 2 options one for remote operation and one for local operation. Select the parameter file which you wish to edit. Use the arrow keys to move through the options and press enter when the correct parameter file is highlighted. You should now be in the DORMAGIC parameter screen. The top line of the display is general HELP about which keys to press. The HELP box at the bottom of the screen contains brief HELP specific to the field being edited. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 3 Control Keys ============ <ENTER> - Accepts the current field. <Control-Enter> - Accept the complete screen. <F1> - Jump direct to game edit section. Arrow Keys - Used to move around the screen. <Home/END> - move to the Start/End of a field. <ALT-C> - Clear a field to all spaces. <ALT-R> - Restore a field to its previous value. <ESC> - Used to EXIT from a field or a Window, without saving. Whilst in a Scroll Bar type selection field, if you press the first letter of an option it will jump directly to that option. Pressing the same letter once more will result in the Selection bar jumping to the next option starting with the same letter. If a Path does not exist, DORMAGIC will prompt you to create it. Parameter File options. ====================== BBS Name The name of you BBS, If you run multiple lines then you might have Line number information as part of your BBS name. This field is limited to 60 characters. Press <ENTER> to Accept. SYSOP Name Your Name, might be an Alias or your real name. This field is limited to 60 characters. COM Port The Physical Com Port to which this Parameter file will use. Range of values 1-8. TASK Number Used to define which Task/NODE number this parameter file will use. Used for Muliple line Doors. You should have a different task number in each parameter file. BBS Type The type of BBS you are running DORMAGIC with, ie YOUR BBS Software, ie OPUS 1.1x, OPUS 1.2x, RA 1.01 or Maximus 1.02. Baud Rate Select FLOAT unless you have your COM port locked to a specific speed, ie the modem computer interface runs at a fixed high speed. Select the Baud rate it is LOCKED to. Examples of High speed modems are HST, V32 and PEP. Locked speeds are usually either 19200 or 38400 Baud. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 4 Snoop Mode With Snoop ON the SYSOP can view everything the User sees and types. With Snoop OFF you only see the Banner and the first line of the status line is shown. SNOOP is forced ON in local mode. If you have a slower Machine you may wish to leave SNOOP Off. Min Time This allows you to select the minimum time remining when a user is forced back to the BBS. 1 - 999 Minutes. DORMAGIC subtracts this value from the Time remaining for this call. Reminder User will be sent a reminder message after this amount of seconds of inactivity have elapsed. There is a Count Up timer in the Bottom right hand corner of the Status Line. The count up timer starts from the last key stroke from either user or Sysop. *** On a large Menu screen a 300 baud caller could take up to 30 seconds to display the screen, so this value should not be made too low. *** Time Out The User will be sent another reminder message after this amount of seconds of inactivity. The User will be forced back to the BBS and this will be noted in the LOG. DORMAGIC will create a FLAG file, so this event can be trapped. HELP Level This can be set to either follow the BBS help level or set to the Lowest Help level for all Users. This is so Users who are an expert on the BBS do not suddenly find themselves at the Games menu with NO prompt. The lowest Help level will show the .ANS/ASC .GBS/.BBS file, Expert Help level does not. System Files This is the path of where DORMAGIC looks for: OPUS' LastUsXX.Dat file. Maximus' LastUseX.Bbs file. Remote Access' ExitInfo.BBS & DorinfoX.Def files. Log File The path and Filename of your DORMAGIC log file. You may have a common LOG directory or choose to use the DORMAGIC directory. The LOG file format is not compatible with OPUS, RA or MAXIMUS so you should not use the LOG files created by the BBS software. If you leave this line BLANK, NO log file will be created. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 5 ANSI File This is the full path and filename of the screen USERS will be shown if they support ANSI graphics in the BBS. It is up to you to ensure this file matches the selections you have. DMAGICFG will optionally create a simple ANSI file for you if you wish. It must be pointed out this is only meant as a starting point. ASCII File This is identical to the ANSI file but should contain nothing other than pure ASCII characters. Once again it can be optionally generated by DMAGICFG but is only designed to get you up and running quickly. PROMPT This is the Prompt shown to the USER when it is time to make a selection from the MENU file shown. Whilst it can contain embedded BBS codes, like MECCA & AVATAR, DMAGICFG has no way of inserting those codes in this version. If you wish to be adventurous you can use some sort of binary editor to edit this prompt from a disk file. Game File This is the path and filename of DORMAGIC's game file. It contains all of the game information required by DORMAGIC to create the necessary DOOR files. By convention, the extension we use is .GAM but any extension can be used. See next section for game file specifics. If you pick an existing Filename, DORMAGIC will check to see if the file is a valid DORMAGIC game file, and prompt you to overwrite it. If the file does not exist you will still be prompted to overwrite/create it. Debug File This is the full path and filename of your DEBUG file. By by Convention we use an extension of .DBG but you can call it what-ever you wish. If there is no path and filename here DORMAGIC will not create a DEBUG file. The Debug file is used to help you setup tricky games. If you have setup a DOOR/Game and it does not work, turn the DEBUG option ON and study the output created by DORMAGIC. It will provide useful information to help track down the problem. Once you have the DOOR/Game running, we suggest turning OFF the debug option as the .DBG file grows at an alarming rate. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 6 Game File Screen ================ This screen is where you tell DORMAGIC all about a particular door. Initially there will be no options other than 'Return to BBS'. To add another option press the <INS> key and an entry 'New Door' will be inserted under the current cursor position. Use your arrow keys to move down to this option and press enter to edit. Game This is the name of the game. Keep it short and descriptive as there is a comment line further down for more specific details. This entry is used to identify each of the different DOORS/GAMES. N.B. if this field is empty, the game will be deleted from the Game file, this is how you delete old games. Active This normally defaults to Y. If you need to take a game OFFLINE for what-ever reason, set this option to N and it will display the OFFLINE prompt to the user and return to the DORMAGIC menu. Option This is the 1, 2 or 3 letter option used to select the DOOR. Initially the field contains !!! when you overwrite these !!!'s, and the option is say only 2 characters long, you must add a space character to the end of the option, else the option will be XX! not XX. You are limited to all alpha-numeric characters. More specifically between ASCII 32 and ASCII 126 inlcusive. Doortype This is the target BBS type you are converting to. A scroll bar will appear with all the options currently supported by DORMAGIC. Use the arrow keys to scroll through the list and press enter on the DOOR type you wish to convert to. Many of the options have the same named files, ie PCBOARD has at least three versions, the files created ARE NOT compatible. You will need to ensure you select the right Door conversion. Fossil This option defaults to N, it is used to tell DORMAGIC that the game is FOSSIL aware. In the early days of BBS' this was very uncommon. But as time goes on, more and more games are becoming Fossil aware. Fossil aware games send all characters through the Fossil rather than directly to the COM port, consequently we can pass the Line speed rather than the Locked speed. This has the benefit of making the game more realistic. This is only valid for BBS' using Locked fossils. If you are not sure about your particular game, assume it is NOT fossil aware and set this option to N. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 7 Max Time This allows you to set the maximum time (in minutes) a user is allowed in a DOOR/Game. Each game can be seperately configured. The USER is given the lower value of the time remaining for this call, or the maximum time defined for the door. Privelege This is the privelege level required by the USER to run this DOOR/Game. For OPUS and Maximus users this will be one of the standard levels from TWIT through SYSOP. For RA Sysops this will be an numeric level from 0 - 32000. Use this option to disable certain options for general users. Password DORMAGIC allows passwording of Menu options. If this field is blank no PASSWORD is asked for. If this Field contains data then the USER is prompted for the password. If the USER does not know the password and gets it wrong 3 times consecutively, DORMAGIC will consider this a potential HACK attempt and log the USERS details to the DORMAGIC log file. Passwords ARE case sensitive! Path to Write Door Files This is where DORMAGIC will write the DOORFILES required by the BBS type selected in Door type. You may wish to write these files to the directory in which the game resides, or you may wish to simulate the original BBS environment and write the DOOR conversion file to the directory whey would have been written to if you were actually running that BBS. ie C:\GAP rather than d:\Games\Twars This option is left totally to your discresion. Unless you know specific details about the BBS type you are converting to, we suggest writing the files to the DOOR directory. Sysop Comment This is merely for your convenience. It is not used by DORMAGIC in any way at all. We use this field to add DOOR version, and maybe date the door was installed. Maybe your registration Number for that door. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 8 Loading Prompt This is the prompt shown to users whilst a Door is loading. You may wish to keep it generic as in "Loading selection..." or customise it for each DOOR you run. If a DOOR takes a long time to load you may wish to change the prompt to: Loading DOOR Please be patient.... Shown When door is offline This prompt is shown to the USER when you set a game to Off-Line with the Active flag. You may wish to give a reason or keep it simple and stick to the default "This selection is OFF Line". Press the ESC key to complete the game definition screen, and either select another game to edit, or press ESC again to return to the parameter file screen. Either enter the DEBUG path/filename or press enter to skip this option. You will then be prompted to confirm the name of the Parameter (.PRM) file. You may, if need be, edit the filename to create another Parameter file. Once you have completed this you will be asked if you desire to create a set of default Menu screens. These are only to be used as a starting point. An error message will be generated if the ASCII and/or ANSI files are not defined or both are defined as being the same file. DOOR Conversions Supported by DORMAGIC. ====================================== As of version 1.00 of DORMAGIC the following DOOR types are supported. If you have a GAME needing another DOOR type or have the structures for any other DOOR type please contact us, We would be eternally gratefull. Any DOOR structures should be sent to any of the Nodes mentioned on page one of this document. BBS Type Files Created ---------------------------------- FORBES BBS USERFILE GAP BBS DOOR.SYS GENERIC DOOR.SYS <-- Proposed DOOR Standard GENESIS Deluxe CALLINFO.BBS GT Power GTUSER.BBS Milton Game Works USERINFO.TXT ** Fixed in 1.00 PCB 11.8a USERS, PCBOARD.DAT, PCBOARD.SYS PCB 12.1 USERS, PCBOARD.DAT, PCBOARD.SYS ** Fixed in 1.00 PCB 14.0 USERS, PCBOARD.DAT, PCBOARD.SYS ** Fixed in 1.00 QBBS/RA DORINFOx.DEF Spitfire SFDOORS.DAT Wildcat 1.12/1.13 CALLINFO.BBS Wildcat 2.00+ CALLINFO.BBS WWIV BBS CHAIN.TXT DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 9 EXIT files created by DORMAGIC. ============================== Now you have set up DORMAGIC correctly and have set up the MENU file and Configuration files, and linked it into your BBS, what actually happens? The keypresses (either from the USER or the SYSOP's local keyboard) are checked. If its a valid option then DORMAGIC checks the DORMAGIC.MNU file to see the DOOR type to be written and the path it is to be written to. It then writes the DOOR file(s) and exits to the batch file. On exit DORMAGIC creates an EXIT file, rather than the more usual technique of setting the Dos ERRORLEVEL. We chose to do it this way as its significantly more flexible. The EXIT file is of the following format: DMEXITx.yyy Where x is the task number and yyy is a DOOR Option the USER selected. For example if DMEXIT1.TWA was created by DORMAGIC this means that TASK 1 was responsible for the creation of the DMEXIT file and the USER selected 'TWA' from the MENU. In this case TWA might mean Trade Wars. From this it can be seen that DORMAGIC will create DMEXIT files ranging in extensions from AAA to ZZZ and 111 to 000. This means as of Version 1.00 of DORMAGIC the Sysop can now configure over 850,000 Doors. In addition DORMAGIC reserves a few DMEXIT codes for FATAL error conditions. These are: DMEXITx.$$1 Cant find Your BBS Door Exit files. DMEXITx.$$2 Carrier lost DMEXITx.$$3 No fossil loaded DMEXITx.$$4 Inactivity timeout & Time expired DMEXITx.$$5 Parameter File Mismatch DMEXITx.$$6 >3 Password attempts DMEXITx.$$7 Cant find .GAM file DMEXITx.$$8 Cant find .PRM file DMEXITx.$$9 Sysop hit F8 Key DMEXITx.$10 Invalid Selection (one shot mode) DMEXITx.$11 Insufficient Privs (one shot mode) These Fatal conditions should be trapped by your batch file, it is then up to you to handle these conditions. See example Batch file enclosed in the DMAGICxx Archive. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 10 DORMAGIC and BATCH Files. ======================== The power from most BBS' is in its batch files. The same can be said of DORMAGIC. Where-as the BBS uses the Dos ERRORLEVEL function to set the EXIT code, DORMAGIC uses a slightly more complex method, which allows for multiple LINE/TASK support. DORMAGIC uses the Dos 'IF EXIST' batch file command to test EXIT levels within the batch file. As you probably have an BBS system running, you should be familiar with batch files. Below is a fragment of batch file code which shows how DORMAGIC basically works. Despite what many people would have you believe, the DOS BATCH language is quite flexible and powerful. Consequently there is no ONE way of setting up your BATCH files with DORMAGIC. I will go through two techniques in detail. I'm sure there are many more. I have added comments, identified with @. :==================================================== : : OUTSIDE - We get here from P)lay BBS Games : :==================================================== :OUTSIDE XU Capture:ON @ Just to be safe, recapture Fossil :LOOP @ Loop to here after a game D: cd \DORMAGIC @ Put DORMAGIC in its own DIR del dmexit1.* > nul @ Delete any OLD DMEXIT files dormagic /p dormagic.prm @ Invoke DORMAGIC with default PRM cls @ DORMAGIC exits with DMEXIT file if exist DMEXIT1.$$1 goto QUIT @ Cant find BBS Door Exit File(s) if exist DMEXIT1.$$2 goto QUIT @ Carrier lost if exist DMEXIT1.$$3 goto QUIT @ No fossil loaded if exist DMEXIT1.$$4 goto QUIT @ Inactivity timeout & Time expired if exist DMEXIT1.$$5 goto QUIT @ Parameter File Mismatch if exist DMEXIT1.$$6 goto QUIT @ >3 Password attempts if exist DMEXIT1.$$7 goto QUIT @ Cant find .GAM file if exist DMEXIT1.$$8 goto QUIT @ Cant find .PRM file if exist DMEXIT1.$$9 goto QUIT @ Sysop hit F8 Key if exist DMEXIT1.YT goto YANKEE @ USER Selected YT from Menu if exist DMEXIT1.WAR goto GWARZONE @ USER Selected WAR from Menu goto LOOP @ Shouldn't get here, LOOP in case DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 11 :GWARZONE @ Game WAR Galactic War Zone D: cd \GAMES\GWARZONE twars 1 goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC :YANKEE @ Game YT Yankee Trader Start code D: cd \GAMES\YANKEE YT DORINFO1.DEF goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC :==================================================== : : Routine to TIDY up after a game has been run : :==================================================== :TIDY C: cd \BBS XU Capture:ON @ Re-connect Fossil goto LOOP @ run DORMAGIC again :QUIT @ User wants OUT or FATAL Error :hungup @ Batch File exits back to BBS Rather than having the Game start up code in the BATCH file you could use DOS' CALL function to pass control to another smaller batch file. The code in :YANKEE could be replaced with: :YANKEE @ Game 1 Start up code CALL YANKEE @ Dos 3.30 or later needed for this goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC Where YANKEE.BAT contains the code necessary to start up the game. The batch file YANKEE.BAT would eventually exit and return control back to the main GAMES batch file. You can use the DMEXITxx.yyy files to run games on multiple lines. To do this you MAY test for the existance of the DMEXIT files from the other task(s). DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 12 :Yankee1.bat (line 1) :Yankee2.bat (Line 2) if exist dmexit2.YT goto INUSE if exist dmexit1.YT goto INUSE YT dorinfo1.def YT dorinfo2.def goto TIDY goto TIDY :INUSE :INUSE echo Game in Use - Try later > Com1: echo Game in Use - Try later > Com2: :TIDY :TIDY exit exit This example assumes GAME YT is in fact YANKEE Trader. If the DMEXIT file exists for the other line then it must be in use. So exit batch file with a message. This would require you to delete the DMEXIT file after the DOOR has been run, else the other line(s) would never get a turn. On SA Country BBS I run 3 lines, rather than use 3 GAMES batch files I have chosen to use only one. Any reference to Port/Line or Task number is has been replaced with the batch file %1 parameter. I use the BBS to call my GAMES.BAT file and pass either 1, 2 or 3 across as a parameter based on which line called the batch file. Another alernative would be to have GAME1.BAT, GAME2.BAT etc, but this merely duplicates code. Here is the above example batch file for MULTI-LINE operation. Warning, many older BBS games do not support Locked Com ports, hardware handshaking, speeds higher than 9600 baud or Com ports other than 1 or 2. This means some games may not run on all lines of a multi-line BBS. One general exception to this is Fossil aware games which will usually run on any line. Your Batch file could contain lines like this: if exist DMEXIT1.YT goto YANKEE1 if exist DMEXIT2.YT goto YANKEE2 if exist DMEXIT3.YT echo Game not supported on this line > Com3 :==================================================== : : OUTSIDE - We get here from P)lay BBS Games : :==================================================== :OUTSIDE capture @ Just to be safe :LOOP @ Loop to here after a game D: cd \DORMAGIC @ Put DORMAGIC in its own DIR del dmexit%1.* > nul @ Delete DMEXIT files for this TASK dormagic /p dormagc%1.prm @ Invoke DORMAGIC with TASK %1 CFG cls @ DORMAGIC exits with DMEXIT file if exist DMEDIT%1.$$1 goto QUIT @ Can't find BBS System File(s) if exist DMEDIT%1.$$2 goto QUIT @ Carrier lost if exist DMEDIT%1.$$3 goto QUIT @ No fossil loaded if exist DMEDIT%1.$$4 goto QUIT @ Inactivity timeout & Time expired if exist DMEDIT%1.$$5 goto QUIT @ Parameter File Mismatch if exist DMEDIT%1.$$6 goto QUIT @ >3 Password attempts if exist DMEDIT%1.$$7 goto QUIT @ Cant find .GAM file if exist DMEDIT%1.$$8 goto QUIT @ Cant find .PRM file if exist DMEDIT%1.$$9 goto QUIT @ Sysop hit F8 Key if exist dmexit%1.SNK goto SNAKE @ USER Selected SNK from Menu if exist dmexit%1.YT goto YANKEE @ USER Selected YT from Menu goto LOOP @ Shouldn't get here, LOOP in case DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 13 :SNAKE @ Game SNK start code for TASK %1 D: cd \GAMES\SNAKE snake /%1 @ execute Snake /1 or /2 or /3 etc goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC :YANKEE @ Game YT Start up code D: cd \GAMES\YANKEE YT DORINFO%1.DEF @ Execute YT DORINFO1.DEF/DORINFO2.DEF goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC :==================================================== : : Routine to TIDY up after a game has been run : :==================================================== :TIDY C: cd \BBS XU Capture:ON @ Re-connect Fossil goto LOOP @ run DORMAGIC again :QUIT @ User wants OUT or FATAL Error :hungup @ Batch File exits back to OPUS DORMAGIC and DesqView. ===================== DORMAGIC was specifically written with DesqView in mind. As DORMAGIC loads and executes it does a call to see if DesqView is loaded. If it cannot find DesqView it will continue as normal, if it does find DesqView it will print to the LOCAL screen the fact that DesqView is loaded and the Version number it detected. Running DesqView and Badly Behaved Games/Doors. ============================================== Running 3 lines, I noticed that some Games were really slowing down the other tasks. After some investigation, I discovered these Games were stuck in tight loops looking for input from either the User or the Sysop. To overcome this problem I used TAME. This excellent utility overcomes most of these problems. Now the system runs much smoother irrespective of how many lines are running games. I load TAME-RES just prior to running DORMAGIC in my GAMES.BAT file. TAME-RES del dmexit%1.* > nul dormagic /p dmagic%1.prm At the time of writing, the latest version of TAME I have been able to locate is TAME261.ZIP dated 22'nd March 1991. This excellent DV utility is available from SA Country Club BBS or a DVNET system near you. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 14 What does this really mean? DesqView is a multi-tasking operating system for DOS based systems. It will run many applications which were not specifically written for DesqView. But many of them do not run with optimal performance as they HOG the CPU due to the keyboard routines sitting in very tight loops waiting for a keypress. DesqView has trouble breaking into those loops to share CPU time amongst other tasks. Programs written specifically for DesqView take a slightly different approach. They make a call to DesqView to either get a character from the keyboard or make a call in the keyboard read loop which passes control back to DesqView so it can allocate idle time to other tasks. DORMAGIC takes the latter approach. Anytime DORMAGIC is sitting waiting for something to happen it will be happily releasing idle time to other tasks. One other feature of DORMAGIC is it will use DesqView routines for printing to the local screen, consequently it will not bleed between windows like so many other poorly written programs. Setting up DesqView for DOORS and DORMAGIC. ========================================== OPUS, MAXIMUS and RA all use the FOSSIL. If the Fossil is loaded prior to DesqView then all comms works fine, irrespective of how you have the Comms ports set up under DesqView. But if you run a DOOR which opens the COMMS port directly (this covers 90% of all DOORS) then you must set DesqView to support COMMS ports. Below is an extract from the DesqView Change a Program screen. Writes text directly to screen.......: [N] Displays graphics information........: [N] Virtualize text/graphics (Y,N,T).....: [T] Uses serial ports (Y,N,1,2)..........: [Y] <---- **** Requires floppy diskette.............: [N] If the "Uses serial ports" is off, many wierd things happen, and some games report "Error reading DORINFO1.DEF" instead. This is because DesqView is not making the COMMS port(s) available to the DOOR. If you use more than one Comm port from the same window then set DesqView's 'Uses Serial ports' to Y else set it to 1 or 2 depending on whether that task is using Com1: or Com2: On SA Country CLUB I run 3 lines. Task 1 has 'Uses Serial ports' set to 1 and task 2 has 'Uses Serial ports' set to 2. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 15 Calling DORMAGIC from OPUS. ========================== The are many ways to invoke DORMAGIC from OPUS, this is the way I do it. In my MENUS.CTL file, or your BBS.CTL file I have the following: MAIN MENU _MESSAGE Disgrace "Message Section" _FILE Disgrace "File Section" . . . _SHOW Normal "BBS_Games" = c:\opus\misc\games END Menu GAMES.BBS contains the following code. I have shown embedded Control character as ^O for Control-O to make it more readable. Don't forget to convert the codes back to REAL control codes. GAMES.BBS in the C:\OPUS\MISC\ directory for multiple line support ^OSc:\opus\misc\game# <-- OPUS will substitute the TASK Number here and SHOW GAME1.BBS for TASK 1 & GAME2.BBS for TASK 2 GAME1.BBS in the C:\OPUS\MISC\ directory ^OCc:\opus\games 1 <-- Execute GAMES.BAT with %1 = 1 for TASK 1/Line 1 GAME2.BBS in the C:\OPUS\MISC\ directory ^OCc:\opus\games 2 <-- Execute GAMES.BAT with %1 = 2 for TASK 2/Line 2 If you only have 1 line to worry about then GAMES.BBS can just contain GAMES.BBS in the C:\OPUS\MISC\ directory for Single line support ^OCc:\OPUS\GAMES\ <-- Execute GAMES.BAT in the OPUS directory The examples above assume you have enough memory to SHELL out of OPUS to run your BBS games or DOORS. If you don't have enough memory then you will have to set an ERRORLEVEL when you exit OPUS and trap it accordingly, I have not tried the example below but it should give you an idea. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 16 :================================================== : :RUNOPUS.BAT - Minimal Form with EXIT to GAMES : :================================================== :LOOP OPUS BBS1 -b%1 -p%2 -t%3 <-- assume you run BINKLEY as Front End if ERRORLEVEL 110 goto MAIL if ERRORLEVEL 50 goto GAMES . . <-- Code to re-cycle and re-run BINKLEY / FD etc etc . :MAIL . . <-- Code to process mail . :==================================================== : : OUTSIDE - We get here from P)lay BBS Games : :==================================================== :GAMES capture @ Just to be safe :GAMELOOP @ Loop to here after a game D: cd \DORMAGIC @ Put DORMAGIC in its own DIR del dmexit1.* > nul @ Delete any OLD DMEXIT files dormagic /p dormagic.prm @ Invoke DORMAGIC with default CFG cls @ DORMAGIC exits with DMEXIT file if exist DMEXIT1.$$1 goto QUIT @ Cant find BBS System File(s) if exist DMEXIT1.$$2 goto QUIT @ Carrier lost if exist DMEXIT1.$$3 goto QUIT @ No fossil loaded if exist DMEXIT1.$$4 goto QUIT @ Inactivity timeout & Time expired if exist DMEXIT1.$$5 goto QUIT @ Parameter File Mismatch if exist DMEXIT1.$$6 goto QUIT @ >3 Password attempts if exist DMEXIT1.$$7 goto QUIT @ Cant find .GAM file if exist DMEXIT1.$$8 goto QUIT @ Cant find .PRM file if exist DMEXIT1.$$9 goto QUIT @ Sysop hit F8 Key if exist DMEXIT1.SNK goto SNAKE @ USER Selected B from Menu if exist DMEXIT1.YT goto YANKEE @ USER Selected A from Menu goto GAMELOOP @ Shouldn't get here, LOOP in case :SNAKE @ Game 2 start up code D: cd \GAMES\SNAKE snake /1 goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC :YANKEE @ Game 1 Start up code D: cd \GAMES\YANKEE YT DORINFO1.DEF goto TIDY @ Tidy up and go back to DORMAGIC DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 17 :==================================================== : : Routine to TIDY up after a game has been run : :==================================================== :TIDY C: cd \OPUS capture @ Re-connect Fossil goto GAMELOOP @ run DORMAGIC again :hungup @ Re-run Binkley USER has Gone CD \BINKLEY GOBINK :QUIT @ User wants OUT or FATAL Error OPUS BBS1 -b%1 -p%2 -t%3 -o @ -O for abbreviated LOGON DORMAGIC has been tested extensively with OPUS version 1.1x. It has also been tested and debugged under several BETA and GAMMA versions of OPUS 1.20. DORMAGIC currently supports both versions of OPUS. Use the DMAGICFG program to select the version of OPUS you are running. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 18 Calling DORMAGIC from MAXIMUS 1.02 ================================== DORMAGIC can be installed either direct into the menu system, or called via a BBS file. As there are a lot of sysops who have not patched Max 1.02 to fix the "Xtern DOS" error, the "Xtern RUN" option is the best way to install it. It is assumed that DMAGIC.BAT resides in the directory with the DMAGIC program files. The MAXMUS Task number must match the DORMAGIC task number. With a Task of 0, DORMAGIC will create a DORINFO1.DEF. MENUS.CTL for menu selection: Xtern_Run c:\command.com_/c_<dmagic_drive:_dir>\games.bat <priv> "<key>" MECCA command line for .BBS file: [Xtern Run] c:\command.com /c <dmagic_drive:_dir>\games.bat The GAMES.BAT file ================== Please Note that MAXIMUS requires that anything run from a batch file changes to the drive and directory that the program will be run from. If the initial <d: cd/> is left out, Max will return a "file not found" error. GAMES.BAT for Maximus 1.02 single line. REM Change to Dormagic drive/directory D: <-- change to suite your system cd \DORMAGIC <-/ :loop REM Change to DORMAGIC drive/directory d: cd \dormagic if exist dmexit*.* del dmexit*.* DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 19 dormagic /P dormagic.prm if exist dmexit0.$$1 goto end . <-- include DMEXIT0.$$1 - DMEXIT0.$$9 . if exist dmexit0.$$8 goto end if exist dmexit0.$$9 goto end if exist dmexit0.yt goto yankee if exist dmexit0.ffs goto fishing goto end :yankee REM Change to door drive/directory d: cd \yankee REM run door yt dorinfo1.def REM Change back to DORMAGIC d: cd \dormagic goto loop :fishing REM Change to door drive/directory d: cd \fishing REM run door fishing 1 d:\fishing 1 REM Change back to DORMAGIC d: cd \dormagic goto loop :end xu capture:off del dmexit*.* REM Change to Max drive/directory c: cd \max Using MECCA for the DORMAGIC Menu files ======================================= DORMAGIC utilises a MECCA generated .BBS file properly for callers the ANSI .GBS screen is not necessary. A blank line may be needed as the last line of the .MEC file, to ensure DORMAGIC places the Selection prompt in the proper place. If a MECCA [colour] token is used immediately after the description of the last door, it will display the Selection prompt in that colour. The [cls] and [fg_colour on blue] tokens do not display correctly. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 20 Calling DORMAGIC from RA ======================== Why? you might ask, do you need a door interface for RA when its so easy to create menus/exit to anywhere etc ? DORMAGIC can be extremely useful in most RA enviroments. If you only run a couple of games or doors then maybe its not for you. However if you run a larger number of outside activities which require different door info files to be written or need existing ones modified in some way, locked baud etc, then DORMAGIC is for you. You can completely eliminate the ever growing number of batch files and convert utilities, not to mention the speed and ease of adding new games or modifying existing ones that DORMAGIC offers. Initial Setting up ================== Anyone with some experience in setting up doors on Remote Access should have very few problems with the installation of DORMAGIC. For the benefit of the lesser experienced and first timers the following notes may be useful. If they seem a little over simplified then keep these people in mind, remember we all have to start somewhere. DORMAGIC can be used via either a type 7 or type 15 exit from RA. Each method has its good and bad points so you'll have to decide which suits your situation best, I'll try and briefly outline these with each method. I currently use Dormagic to run a total of 35 games via both options. Of course the memory hungry games go on the type 15 exit :-).. TYPE 15 Exit ============ This type exits to a the batch file that originally booted RA in the first place. It exits to this batch file with an error level defined by you, therefore its up to you to trap the correct error level. Firstly pick a menu where you wish to invoke DORMAGIC from, we'll choose the MAIN or TOP menu for the example and thats a good choice actually. Bootup RAMENU, make a space on the menu you have chosen and goto the "Edit Menu Item" DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 21 How it looks ============ **************************************************************** USER DISPLAY ------------------------ ^[G]^ames Menu 1 --> how you want it to appear to users ------------------------ OPTIONAL DATA ------------------------ 20 --> this is the errorlevel we've defined ------------------------ User display Action Exit with errorlevel (Type 15) Optional data Hot-Key G Automatic No Colour Colour example Security 50 **************************************************************** Ok save that and goto your batch file that starts RA. Heres an example of EXEBBS.BAT, which is what FrontDoor calls and passes the connect parameters to when the option "Create Batch File" is enabled in FroDo. Anyway it'll show how to do it no matter how you start your system. ---------------------------------------------------------------- echo off Node number MUST match DORMAGIC's Task number c: | cd \ra v ra -b%1%4 -c%2 -t%3 -n1 -e0 goto after_RA :after_RA if errorlevel 20 goto dormagic if errorlevel 5 goto both if errorlevel 4 goto echo if errorlevel 3 goto net if errorlevel 0 goto exit DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 22 :dormagic cd \magic call dmdoors.bat cd \ra goto relog_ra :both rem whatever you use to process mail goto exit :echo rem whatever you use to export echomail goto exit :net rem whatever you use to export netmail goto exit :relog_ra c: cd \ra ra -r -c2 -n1 -e0 goto after_RA :exit bbs ---------------------------------------------------------------- Well thats it for type 15's...couple of things to keep in mind. * When restarting RA with the -r switch after a type 15 be sure to specify the com port if your not using com 1...eg -c2. as above. Yep, thats pretty straight forward but I know someone who lost a handfull of hair recently when it kept failing :-(..its easy to forget. * When RA returns from a type 15 it will always return to the MAIN or TOP menu. This is valid up to version 1.01 but don't be surprised if its definable with the next release. Anyway its something to keep in mind when you're deciding which menu to put the DORMAGIC option on. * A type 15 would be preferred if you are tight for memory, eg. a multinode system, however its also slower than type 7. Your decision, but type 15 doesn't have problems if a game fragments memory such as the type 7 with the *M command line option does. See type 7 notes. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 23 TYPE 7 Exit =========== Type 7 would probably be the preferred exit for most things, after all thats what its for. Anyway there's a whole host of options & parameter that can be passed via a type 7 and its probably best to check RA's documentation for that. I'll just give an example of using it to execute DORMAGIC. Pick your menu spot again and bring up the "Edit Menu Item" with RAMENU. How it looks ============ **************************************************************** USER DISPLAY ----------------------- ^[G]^ames Menu 1 --> How it appears to users ----------------------- OPTIONAL DATA ----------------------- *C /C C:\RA\DM.BAT *B --> executes DM.BAT and passes baud rate ----------------------- User display Action Execute sub-program (type 7) Optional data Hot-Key G Automatic No Colour Colour example Security 50 **************************************************************** Ok save that and make the batch file DM.BAT, heres an example ---------------------------------------------------------------- echo off if %1==0 goto local :notlocal d: cd \magic call dmdoors.bat goto exit DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 24 :local rem in case you wish to do something rem different with a local exit otherwise rem remove the *B option and the check for rem 0 baud rate above. goto exit :exit c: cd \ra ---------------------------------------------------------------- Ok so thats a type 7. In the example we also passed the baud rate and trapped it, if you wanted to make use of something different for local operation. A couple of things to keep in mind: * Type 7 is definitly the fastest way to exit and theres no reason why you cant use it execute DORMAGIC. * Type 7 is RAM hungry, whether using DORMAGIC or not, it still gobbles up memory. If memory is not a problem then this kind of exit wont be either. However it pays to keep memory requirements in mind as some door programs may start ok but decide they haven't got enough brain to work with later. * You can use the *M parameter to exit which attempts to swap RA to EMS (if available) and to disk. This will slow things down to around type 15 speed anyway, but use this cautiously as some games can fragment memory and they won't work with this memory Swap option. Programs compiled in QuickBASIC can cause problems with the *M parameter. I haven't encounted this problem too often, I run a couple that will do it but I simply dont use the *M option where they are, but it pays to be aware of what can happen. I have used the *M option a with a lot different games, and I currently use it when I call DORMAGIC via the type 7 exit, its a good feature and works well. ----------------------------------------------------------------- DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 25 Setting up DORMAGIC from scratch. ================================ i Create a DORMAGIC directory. ii De-Zip the ARCHIVE DMAGICxx.ZIP. iii Print this DOC file and READ it. iv RUN DMAGICFG to create the Parameter file. v Create a DORMAGIC.BBS file, or use the one created by DMAGICFG We suggest keeping it as plain TEXT for now. vi Edit your BBS Control File(s)/RA's Menu to add "BBS games" option. vii Create a batch file for running GAMES. Suggest GAMES.BAT. viii If you're EXITing the BBS, edit RUN.BAT file to support DORMAGIC. ix Log on to your BBS in KEYBOARD mode, DORMAGIC should run Locally. x If DORMAGIC does not run in LOCAL mode then goto iii. xi Cross fingers and wait for USER to log-on. xii If all this fails go back to iii above. *** A small tip is to leave the ECHO OFF out of your BATCH files so that you can see what is going on. *** What to do when DORMAGIC doesn't work. ===================================== Check your DORMAGIC.BBS file looks at least something like this: ________________________________________________________________ SA Country CLUB On-Line Games Menu. TWA) Tradwars 9.042 YT) Yankee Trader SNK) Snake PHA) Phantasia Adventure BYE) Exit back to BBS ________________________________________________________________________ I suggest start off with one game. Once you have all the LOGIC running properly then add all of your other DOORS and games. If you're still having problems, turn the DEBUG option ON with DMAGICFG. LIST the file and study its output. The DORMAGIC.LOG will also be useful in determining the cause of your problems. There is no way for DORMAGIC to know if you are writing the correct DOOR file type, so CHECK the DOOR documentation and configuration to make sure YOU ARE writing the correct DOOR file type. If you are still having problem then you can NETMAIL either of the AUTHORS at the addresses on page one of this document. We also frequent the MEADOW so can answer your questions there. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 26 DORMAGIC COMMAND line options. ============================= In addition to DORMAGICs MENU mode, it can also be used to perform DOOR conversion with no MENU's at all. This assumes you are using your own MENU system. DORMAGIC offers many facilities in MENU mode so you should at least look at using DORMAGIC to its full potential. DORMAGIC can have as one of its command line parameters the configuration filename. This should also include the extension such as DMLINE1.CFG. There is a '/P' required for the configuration file. DORMAGIC /P DMLINE1.CFG \ DORMAGIC /P DORMAGIC.CFG > These are all VALID DORMAGIC /P CONFIG.CFG / DORMAGIC can be used to perform the DOOR conversion with-out the use of a MENU screen. This mode doesn't make full use of DORMAGIC's facilities but has been included for the sake of convenience. To use the MENULESS mode you still need to set up your DORMAGIC.CFG file(s) as in MENU mode. But rather than having a DORMAGIC.BBS file, you can leave this out totally as in this mode DORMAGIC does not use it. The DOOR type and PATH part of the DORMAGIC.CFG file is still needed to tell DORMAGIC where to write the DOOR files. To use this mode you need only add to the END of your command line the following: DORMAGIC /S XYZ Where XYZ is the equivalent MENU selection. DORMAGIC /S TWA Would write the DOOR files from MENU option TWA. DORMAGIC /S GAL Would write the DOOR files from MENU option GWA. DORMAGIC also supports a LOCAL mode. To use the LOCAL mode you need to include a /L on the command line. ie DORMAGIC /P MYCONFIG.PRM /L /S TWA This tells DORMAGIC to use the configuration file MYCONFIG.PRM in LOCAL mode and select option TWA from the MENU section. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 27 Other DORMAGIC Error Codes. ========================== During the setup procedure of DORMAGIC, if you make a mistake whilst editing the appropriate files, you may see any of the following error messages, in the following format: Unknown Error # XX Errorline YYYY ZZZZZZZZZZZZ File. Here the XX refers to the Qbasic 4.5 Error Code. This can be referenced in the Qbasic 4.5 manual. Some of the more common Error codes you might see are: 52 Bad file name or number 53 File not found 58 File already exists 61 Disk Full 64 Bad filename 76 Path not found Usually caused by a missing '\' 'Errorline YYYY' refers to internal numbering within DORMAGIC.EXE. This is of little use to you but is handy when detailing the error code to the AUTHORS. In fact if you do have a problem, then the full message text should be quoted. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 28 DORMAGIC LOG File structure. =========================== Task No. | Time remaining | | User v v v 09 Jun 91 18:55:45 DorMagic V 1.00 [1] [18] Jan Weber Selection Priv Lev | Door Type | Line Speed | | Time Passed | | | | | Graphics | | ComPort v v v v v v v 09 Jun 91 18:56:05 Sel: yt [QBBS ] [18] [ANSI] [Normal] [L=1200 C=19200] 09 Jun 91 18:56:10 Written G:\YT\DORINFO1.DEF File Included with Version 1.00 of DORMAGIC is a new utility called DM_PARMS this will allow you to display the contents of the DMEXITxx.yyy files created by DORMAGIC. A sample output looks like this: User's first name => Christopher Last name => Dahms User's location => Nuriootpa, SA User's Password => $Fixit Priv => Normal User Help => 0 User Scr => 78 X 22 User Priv Level => 80 User Form Feeds => Send Ctrl-L User Tabs => Send TAB User Graphics => ANSI User Calls => 2 User's last call => 26 Jun 91 10:55 User's Uploaded => 0 User Downloaded => 0 User time left => 10 User Graphics => ANSI User netmail Cr => 0 User msgs posted => 0 User lastread => 0 User Data phone => User Voice Phone => Sysop is => Martin Crockett Local Screen => 25 X 80 DesqView is => Detected. V2.31 Snoop off overwrite => Off User Selection => bye Fatal Error Code => 0 Baud rate pass to door => 2400 8 ,N, 1 Status Line on row => 24 Debug is => Off Calls to System => 12 Local Caller => No Last caller to system => This Utility can be useful for debuging a GAME after a USER has logged off the system. You could print the contents by using the DOS redirection symbol ie DM_PARMS DMEXIT3.TWA > PRN. DM_PARMS is merely another tool to help you in debugging those tricky Doors. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 29 Registering your copy of DORMAGIC. ================================= There is no registration fee as such for DORMAGIC. But if you find DORMAGIC useful and you elect to use it on a regular basis, then we would like you to send us a postcard. We have spent well over 18 months developing DORMAGIC and we believe it is second to none. By sending us a postcard you will encourage us to improve DORMAGIC and write more Bulletin Board software. My wife has spent many long evenings by herself, and receiving postcards from all over the world would act as some form of compensation. I use several GREAT programs which use the POSTCARD registration idea. I have more than willingly sent off my postcards to show my support and appreciation of these programs. Just for interest we have received around 10 Postcards. Send your unmitigated Praise and POSTCARDS to: MARDAR Software. P.O. Box 461, St AGNES 5097, South AUSTRALIA. DORMAGIC License. ================ All OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA sysops are hereby authorised to use and/or distribute the DORMAGIC archive provided that: a) No money is charged for the use or distribution of DORMAGIC. b) The contents of the DORMAGIC archive are not altered in anyway. Disclaimer of Liability. ======================= The authors expressly disclaim any and all liability to any person or persons in respect to anything, and of the consequences of anything, done or omitted to be done by DORMAGIC and associated programs. Whatever that means :) Latest Version of DORMAGIC. ========================== The latest version of DORMAGIC can always be File requested from The Phone Box BBS (3:681/854) or SA Country Club BBS either line (3:681/852) or (3:681/853) by using the magic file name DORMAGIC. File requests will be honoured at all times except National Mail Hour. A File Request for the MAGIC filename DORMAGIC will always result in the latest non BETA release. DORMAGIC 1.00 - The Ultimate OPUS/MAXIMUS/RA Door Conversion Utility Page 30 Technical Specifications: ======================== Language: Quick basic Version 4.5 plus Custom LIBS. Source Code: over 5,000 lines and 200k in length. EXE file: 170k including runtime qb45 runtime library. Development time: 24 months on a casual basis. Including Update time. Special Thanks. ============== The AUTHORS of DORMAGIC would like to thank the following people for their support, help, ideas and efforts in helping DORMAGIC become a reality. The Authors of OPUS/Maximus and RA, without who's efforts, there would be no need for DORMAGIC. Per Holm for the POSTCARD registration concept. Trevor Roydhouse for his wording in parts of DORMAGIC.DOC. The SYSOPS who use and SUPPORT DORMAGIC with their POSTCARDS. Bob Gregory (FidoNet 3:670/206) for debugging and documenting the RA setup of DORMAGIC. Dave Wallace (FidoNet 3:681/869 for debugging and documenting the MAXIMUS setup of DORMAGIC. Greg Martz (FidoNet 1:344/59) For enough details in a bug report to track down a couple of little bugs.. George Fliger (FidoNet 1:137/210) For help in Distribution of DORMAGIC in USA (Hi Karen :-) Cheryl Buzzel (FidoNet 1:101/200) For Supplying Sample PCBOARD.DAT 14.0 Tony Mace (FidoNet 1:14/618) for PCBOARD 14.0 Structures. Beta Testers: ============ Trevor Merritt, Don Packwood, Greg Martz, Mark Keogh, Grant Wilson, Don Blair, Terry Mulvaney, Allan Lawes, Jackson Harding, Dave Wallace, Mark Doreshenko, Bob Gregory, Roy Austen, Dave Wilson and any others we may have missed.