Re: scroll lock; programming

[Carl Distefano cld@xxxxxxxx]

Reply to note from "Patricia M. Godfrey"  Thu,
09 Aug 2007 17:46:44 -0400

>> Sacks, Avram wrote:
>> In order to edit a programming file, one
>> must press the scroll lock key. However, that key does not
>> work on several keyboards that we have.
>
> Actually, I don't think you HAVE to use the ScrollLock key at
> all.

No, you certainly don't have to use ScrollLock! A XyWrite program
file is as freely editable as any other XyWrite file; no special
techniques are needed. ScrollLock is just a primitive keystroke
recorder, a quick-and-dirty way to translate keyboard-file code into
XPL. Capturing code from the keyboard puts a lot of unnecessary
baggage into your programs; it produces idiosyncratic code that's
likely to be unportable and liable to produce fluky results unless
carefully edited after capture. If you have even a basic
familiarity with XPL, you're better off writing your own from
scratch. (To gain a basic familiarity and more, a good starting
point is XyQuest's 1992 XyWrite Programming Language User's Guide,
which Robert updated and repackaged in electronic form last year,
http://users.datarealm.com/xywwweb/XPL.ZIP, available in PDF format at
http://users.datarealm.com/xywwweb/XPL.PDF).

--
Carl Distefano
cld@xxxxxxxx