Re: Looking for XyWrite

[Leslie Bialler lb136@xxxxxxxx]

Russell Lewis wrote:
>
>
> I'd like to thank the list members for all their help in getting me started
> in XyWrite. I downloaded a copy of Xy4 from the TTG BBS.

Dos or Windows? The former I hope.

> Then one of the
> list members sent me a copy of Xy3.

Ah yes, many hereabouts are inordinately fond of that version,
considered by more than one of us to the the word processing equivalent
of a '57 Chevy.

> I love the command line interface as
> well as the speed of the program.

But of course!

> Some of the keystroke combinations will
> take a bit of getting used to. In particular I am used to Wordstar
> commands, so when I type Control plus left or right arrow, I am used to
> moving one word to the left or right. You get the idea.
>

You can modify your keyboard file to make that happen. Did the user send
you the manual as well?

> I have several questions in particular about Xy3.
>
> 1.  How do you enter document information into a file. Version 4 allows
> you to do this from Menu interface, but I would like to know the command-
> line syntax for this.
>

You can't. That wasn't a feature of Xy3. Why on earth would you want to
do that anyway? It was just a dumb idea they tossed into version 4 to
make IBM happy. (That's a long story and I don't have the time to get
into it now.)

> 2.  How do you do a search-and-replace using wild-cards?

You can't. That wasn't a feature of Xy3 either. I believe somebody's
done a macro for version 3 to accomplish this. If so, perhaps they'll
answer.

> Or perhaps, I
> should ask, will Xy3 handle regular expressions? If not, how do enter hex
> codes. I am particularly interested how I can enter the angle-bracket
> delimiters that control the formatting.
>

Again, I expect you'll here from the experts who here in-dwell on this
matter.

> 3.  I would also like to know how to write macros and how to expand
> abbreviations in Xy3.
>

Long long ago, in a galaxy far far away, the previous management of
XyWrite put out an XPL programming guide. Perhaps you can find one in a
used-computer book outlet or, more likely, one of the list members here
has an extra copy they might sell you. I don't.

> 4.  Finally, how do I do command-line recall in Xy3?
>
Again, it wasn't part of the package, but there are macros that the more
enterprising list-members have done up.

Me? I use version 4, and from your queries it sounds to me as if you'd
be better off doing that as well.

Good luck,

--
Leslie Bialler
Columbia University Press
lb136@xxxxxxxx