Re: Screen length--->Install Xywrite

["Robert Holmgren" holmgren@xxxxxxxx]

** Reply to message from Michael Norman  on Sun, 07 Dec
2003 11:00:38 -0500


> Is there are good reason to try to create from the XY 4.017 floppies a XY
> installation CD (with 4.018 editor.exe substituted)? And if there is a good
> reason, how would one do this?

People don't seem to have that much trouble creating a rudimentary XyWrite
installation. After all, EDITOR, SETTINGS.DFL, DLG, MNU, a KBD file,
optionally a PRiNter file and U2, plus STARTUP.INT to load everything -- and
you're "up". If you put *everything* (filters, dictionaries, PRNs, KBDs, etc)
in the same directory as Editor, as I do, then all you have to do is go through
the abovementioned five or six files and change all the d:\paths\ to the
location of Editor's new directory. It's absurdly simple.

The real problems arise with issues that INSTALL.EXE didn't address, or even
know about, e.g. DOS boxes and Win32 itself. That's what XySearch is for. Our
biggest problem by far, now and going forward, is PRiNter files. We need a
database of printers that work, and *how* to make them work (what PRN to use,
etc). Maybe then users will stop buying printers before they determine whether
they are XyPrintable! The key requirements are that the printer understand PCL
or Postscript, and that it not be a deaf and dumb "WinPrinter": if the printer
has a brain, and you can download PCL or PS code to it, then it will print from
XyWrite -- period. Somebody wrote here recently that H-P no longer
manufactures printers that meet these basic Xy requirements. That is untrue --
they continue to make many (including cheap ones), in the 1100, 1300, 6100, and
9300 series. If you can't get PCL, then use Postscript (which is better than
PCL anyway). There are many many modern choices available.

The only pointful thing I can think to do with a CD is collect every possible
XyWrite file, and burn them for potential future use. Because here today, gone
tomorrow. That's what I did at TTG's website -- just scoured it; I'd be
surprised if many other people have a complete set of TTG's public files.

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