On 12 Jan. Harry Binswanger wrote (in part)
"... I agree that Xy4 is worth the change. I'm as loath to relearn software as
the next guy, but the required work is really not much. And you can hit the
ground running, in the sense that you will be able to use Xy4 right away, if you
use your old .kbd file not the Xy4.kbd that comes with. But even there,
gradually, you will see things in Xy4.kbd that you'll want to add to your old
.kbd file, though on keys that make sense with the .kbd file you already have."
[plus more good advice]
I just want to echo the sentiment. I resisted the change because I "didn't have
time to relearn" until I got downsized and had all too much time; then I
discovered how much easier Xy4 would have made my former job. The more XPL
programs you've written, the more you'll have to adapt; but the more XPL you've
done, presumably the greater facility you have. I suspect many sophisticated
Xy3 users will write macros to convert their macros (I didn't; and occasionally
I still -- after almost 3 years -- dig into my directory called "C:\XPL.XY3" and
search out an old program for the first time).
I have to admit, though, that I found it tedious to adapt old text files for
re-use.
(a) *If I remember correctly,* all dimensions in Xy3 defaulted to 10ths
of an inch but Xy4, because of the vastly greater freedom it gives you, demands
that you specify (e.g. "IP3,0" in Xy3 = "IP3IN,0IN" in Xy4). (NB the ** above
-- this may be a non-problem which I'm inventing in retrospect.)
(b) Again, if memory doesn't deceive me, the Xy4 drivers for HP laser
printers wouldn't recognize the "PT" strings inserted for the benefit of the
Xy3 drivers. I'm not sure any more how this worked -- one of the things I
*don't* do in Xy4 is delve into the printer driver -- but my recollection is
that any old text file that had been prepared for specific fonts/sizes (rather
than defaulting to 10pt Courier) had to be redone. But I'm sure that if it had
been important enough to me I could have shortcutted by writing a simple
search-and-replace macro.
To be sure, I now switch back & forth between Xy4 for DOS and Xy for Windows --
DOS for text editing (screen display much clearer; fewer crashes), Win3.1 for
printing out if I want anything but a crude Courier). But that's only the price
of progress, because my new printers (first a Texas MicroWriter, the Printer
From Hell, and now my new HP LaserJet 5L) are so much more versatile than the
old HP II and HP III. And I don't believe this tension between the DOS and Win
versions will last forever.
In fact, the *only* thing I miss about Xy3 (and I've mentioned it before) is the
absence of a really good book (like The Tyson) on Xy4 for DOS or XyW.
I know that when the time is ripe (and I'm sure that I won't regard the time as
ripe until all the Early Adopters on this mailing list have told me that the
coast is clear) I'll resist switching from Xy4 / XyW to The Next Thing.
Meanwhile, I want to encourage Rene and others: do it. You'll be glad you
did.
Eric Van Tassel