Announcements

["N. Sivin" nsivin@xxxxxxxx]

A few announcements: (1) the CCAT server will be down all day tomorrow
(Tuesday); (2) A.D.P. Fisher has moved her XY3 programs to her own web
site; (3) She has prompted me to establish a list of external sources
for XY and XW programs; and (4) Tim Baehr has contributed a library of
XY3 programs.

1. The server will be out of commission Tuesday so that new hardware
and software can be installed. This will include a change of the list
server from MAJORDOMO to LSTSRV. Among other things, this should get
rid of the dread HELP taboo. I will let you know about other
significant changes once I know about them. I am told that this will not
change addresses, etc.

2. In order to better maintain her programs, A.D.P. Fisher will be
keeping them at her own Web site,
http://www.escape.com/~adpf/_xypro.html
(note the underline).
Note the following files described in earlier versions of CATALOG.DOC
are now withdrawn (ADPF's original names all begin with "!"):
!B.ZIP
!EZ.XXE
!FILEPRO
PF
RM.XXE
SESAME.XXE
V^.XXE
!W_W.XXE

3. CATALOG.DOC explains how to order ASCII files by email. You can
download binary files from
ftp://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/pub/eaan
Either by anonymous FTP or using a WWW browser. If you use a Web
browser, you will find a file called
ftp://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/pub/eaan/index.htm
that contains HTML links to other sources for XyWrite files.

4. Here is Tim Baehr's description of the files bundled in a zip file
named XY3PROG.ZIP. For those who want the advantages of XY4 but do not
want to change over, these take you much of the way:

Here are some programs I used to sell -- the entire collection went for
$35 to $120, depending on where I was in developing them. They're all
for XyIII+ version 3.55 and up. It's an extensive set, and I offer them
for free to members of this list. Please don't redistribute them
without my name and copyright notice. The prices mentioned in any of
the files can be ignored. This is freeware, no longer shareware, but I
don't have time to rework the files.

Although I've made serious efforts to make these programs bug-free and
user-friendly, the programs on this diskette are offered without
warranty. I also am no longer in a position to provide any tech
support; my day job is way too demanding. But most of the stuff is
quite self-explanatory (or at least I thought so when I wrote it!).

SHELL PROGRAMS These programs offer point-and-shoot convenience for
managing disk files or printing a series of files. You just mark one or
more files in a subdirectory and then act on all the files with a single
keystroke.

XYSHELL 2.2 allows you to copy, erase, move, or call one or more files
at once. You can also rename or write-protect files, with or without
wildcards. The program also allows you to launch .BAT, .COM, or .EXE
files with a single keystroke. With XYSHELL, you get many of the
file-management features of programs like PCTOOLS, with virtually no
memory overhead, and all within the familiar environment of XyWrite.

PRINT! lets you print out a series of files by marking them in a
directory. You can arrange the files in any order you want and print
out any number of copies. Imagine being able to print out a cover
letter, catalog list, and price list automatically. You can also set up
XyWrite's standard chain printing from this program.

SNAPSHOT/ALBUM Imagine this: you're working on a long document, or you
have several windows open, when you must interrupt your work. You might
need to exit XyWrite to run a memory-hungry program, work on another set
of documents in XyWrite, or just go home for the day. Wouldn't it be
nice to be able to take a "snapshot" of your entire setup and be able to
get back to it automatically? SNAPSHOT does just that: It captures the
information about every window you're using, including file names,
window numbers, and cursor positions. It even saves your save/gets to a
special file. Each file is saved to disk and its window closed. Then
SNAPSHOT creates a stand-alone macro in XyWrite programming language.
When you run the macro later, your previous setup is recreated
automatically. You can take any number of snapshots, giving them any
names you want. The companion program, ALBUM, calls up a directory of
your snapshots and lets you choose one.

QUERY 2.0 QUERY lets you search and capture text across multiple files.
In effect, it can turn almost any file or group of files into a data
base. Imagine being able to find -- and record in context -- every
instance of a customer name or phone number in a subdirectory or in a
series of files selected from the subdirectory. Imagine searching for a
concept or idea in all of your note files, creating a new file that
gathers all the information, including the names of the source files it
searched. The powerful shell component of QUERY lets you mark files in
a subdirectory, inspect them, put them in the order to be searched, and
so on. The main program then prompts you through a search setup, asking
you for the search string (wildcards allowed) and then prompting you to
specify case-sensitive vs. non-case-sensitive; capture of sentences,
lines, paragraphs, or mail-merge records; and positive vs. negative
search. The program also allows you to do a search-and-replace
operation across files marked in a subdirectory. It's a little
dangerous, but it can be a real time-saver when you need it! New
features for Ver. 2.0 include word counts across marked files and the
ability to do a preliminary search, indicating in a directory just those
files containing the target string.

XYBASE XYBASE is a series of programs and information files that help
you set up a data entry and management system using XyWrite's Forms and
mail merge capabilities. You are guided step by step into creating an
input screen and report format. XYBASE includes a powerful sort
function, search function, and so on for managing the database it has
helped you create. It is the kind of database system you would have if
you wanted just a modest way of tracking a record collection, phone
list, client list, accounts receivable, and so on, without investing in
a fancier filing system. It is no speed demon, but it does the job
admirably.

SMALL UTILITIES GOAWAY! is a single-file version of SNAPSHOT. It
records the filename, subdirectory, and cursor position for the file
you're working in and builds a stand-alone macro to take you back to
where you left off.

FIND is a single-file version of QUERY. It searches the file for a
target string and records the "finds" in a separate, stand-alone file.
You can look for the target string in sentences, lines, paragraphs, or
mail-merge records. Wildcards and negative searches are supported.

BLOCK allows you to isolate a block of type in a file, modify it, and
return the block to your original file. This is handy if you want to do
a global replace ("Change Invisible") on just a portion of text.
Temporary files are created to hold the original block and the changed
block, so you can afford to change your mind later.

BLOCMARK offers a menu-driven way to mark and operate on blocks of type:
delete, make underlined or bold, save, center, mark for print type, and
so on. Most operations are achieved with single keystrokes. This is
faster than a pull-down menu system would be.

CHAIN! assists you in using XyWrite's file-chaining ability. You merely
call up a directory, indicate which files are to be in the chain, and
press Esc when you're done. CHAIN! then builds your master file for you
-- all in the right format, and with no typos. You can edit this file,
use it again in the future, or replace it the next time you run CHAIN!.

SUPER POWER SEARCH automates search set-up and provides for (1) instant
recall of last target string, (2) one-key recall of last 6 target
strings, (3) capture of marked block as a search string, and (4)
automatic search of an entire subdirectory. There is a stand-alone
version, SE, and a hot-key version, SRC. With SRC, macros are loaded
onto hot keys for sudden results!

SMALLER UTILITIES LOGG lets you log on and off, keeping track of the
time in between. When you run LOGG ON, the current time is placed at
the bottom of your active file. When you run LOGG OFF, the current time
is placed at the bottom of your file and the elapsed time is calculated
in 24-hour format, in hundredths of an hour. This means that you can
easily do math for time-billing, etc.

COLUMNS1 and COLUMNS2 come as a set. They set up column tables without
your having to do math. All you do is establish an overall right margin
and then run the program. COLUMNS1 lets you specify the number of
columns and the space between them. The column widths are then
calculated automatically. COLUMNS2 lets you specify the number of
columns and the width of the columns. The space between the columns is
then calculated automatically.

ANNO automatically sets up a column to the right of whatever paragraph
you're in. You can specify the width of the column and the space
between the two columns. You can use this new column for annotations,
etc.

SNAKE1 and SNAKE2 also come as a set. They set up snaking columns for
you, without your having to do any math. Again, the advantage is that
you can set up an overall right margin for the page. SNAKE1 allows you
to specify the number of columns and the space between them. Column
widths are calculated for you. SNAKE2 allows you to specify the number
of columns and their widths. The space between the columns is then
calculated for you.

STYLES captures information about your margins, tabs, print type, line
spacing, and offset and creates a named style for you. It automates
XyWrite's Styles function and makes it truly easy to use.

STACK keeps track of the last six commands you have entered on the
command line and allows you to play them back one at a time. A special
feature prevents the stack from filling up with identical commands when
you repeat them (for instance, when you're doing a search).

SPECIAL KEYBOARD ENHANCEMENT The keyboard enhancement files expand your
keyboard file to give you an extra shifting key. The extra shifting key
works like Control or Alt with your keyboard to give you an almost
totally intuitive way to define text and delete it, save it, and so on.
It also allows you to set up searches and search-and-replace operations
semiautomatically. Just press DEFINE (your new key, mapped to F4) and L
to mark a line. Press DEFINE-Del to delete the marked line. Or just
press SHIFT-DEFINE-L to delete a line in one key combination. You can
do the same thing with S for sentence, G for paraGraph, End for End of
line, and so on. Press DEFINE plus a cursor key, and you'll see a
search frame on the command line with the cursor properly placed for
entering a search string. Because most key combinations are so
intuitive and easy to remember, your work in XyWrite is greatly speeded
up. It's much faster than Alacarte!! All of your normal key
combinations (except F4) are completely unmodified. Whatever you
already know, you can keep on using.

Here is a series of tiny but sometimes useful utilities:

COUNT gives the number of times a target string appears in a file. You
can specify case/non-case sensitive and whole words vs. part words.

TOTAL adds up any series of figures in a document. The figures have to
be marked with a leading symbol, such as a dollar sign. Handy if you
use XyWrite files as a data base (see FIND and QUERY).

LOCKUP simply locks your keyboard until you press Esc. A good way to
keep you from accidentally typing a row of b's as you reach over the
keyboard for something on your desk or to write a note.

MODES lets you mark words with a following brace symbol (}) and then
convert them all at once to underlined, bold, italic, or bold
underlined. It can be a real time-saver.

CENTER! lets you center a block of type on its longest line, while
retaining an even left margin. It's ideal for poetry, signature blocks,
etc.

RIGHT! lets you move a block of type flush right, again while
maintaining an even left margin.

FLUSH automates the flush-center, flush-right, and flush-left commands.
It allows you to center (for instance) a marked block and leave the rest
of the text alone.

CAPSFAKE lets you type in all caps even if you have converted your Caps
Lock key to another use (as in XyWrite's SUPER.KBD keyboard file). The
program loads onto a program key and doesn't require a special shift key
of its own.

PT inserts printer codes into your text. If you have defined any text,
the code for the surrounding type is inserted at the end of the block.



------------
Nathan Sivin
History and Sociology of Science
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia PA 19104-3325, USA
nsivin@xxxxxxxx