Re: XYshell and w2k

["Robert Holmgren" holmgren@xxxxxxxx]

** Reply to message from Paul Breeze  on Tue, 28
Jan 2003 15:28:26 GMT

> 1. I have noticed that using CLIP to move material from
> the clipboard into XY4 is relatively slow -- it probably
> takes five-ten seconds carry out, during which time an
> ObjREXX command window is visible. Is that normal, and
> if so, is there any way of speeding the process?

It's normal. I've rewritten the routine to make it a bit more
"linguistic", that is, eliminate older "Classic Rexx"
techniques and replace with consistent "Object Rexx" calls; but
I don't know how much speed difference it will make, if any.
The real problem is that Windows provides no built-in
communication between the system clipboard and VDMs.
Communication has to be kludged, and that takes some time.
It's really a factor mainly in full-screen; in a window, which
is emulated video and anyway has its own controls, you can use
Alt-Spacebar,E,P to Paste -- that's relatively fast.

So the rules of thumb are: Use XyShell to Copy no matter what
sort of screen you use -- in a window, it's much more surgical
than "marking" with a mouse (which is not XyWrite-aware -- Windows
marking is truly terrible). Use XyShell to Paste fullscreen (you
have no other choice), and use Windows services to Paste in a
Desktop window.

> 2. I have also found that if I use SW but the shell cannot
> find what I want and provides me with a list of options,
> if I choose any number from the list then the window appears
> to hang, though I can use Alt-Tab to escape it back to XY4.
> (I can choose abort and that will bring me back to XY4
> successfully.)

I can't replicate that. If for example I command "sw
foo", and foo doesn't exist. I get a list of programs
that _are_ running, I pick one by number, and focus SWitches to
it. Does the same error occur if you run, e.g., "sw foo"
from a DOS command line? Both DOS and XyWrite versions of
SWitch work as designed here.

> 3. Is there any way of using XyShell to send a text file
> to a windows printer. I would like to be able to send a
> file directly to the X2K fax printer.

What is the X2K fax "printer"? You mean, send a fax? I'm not
familiar with X2K. Anything that can be done from a DOS
command line, can be done from XyShell. The only computer fax
I've ever used is FaxWorks, and it is a trivial matter to send
any fax from XyWrite simply by installing a fax driver on LPTx:
and then "printing" the output of my document to that port. I
don't need XyShell to do that.

-----------------------------
Robert Holmgren
holmgren@xxxxxxxx
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