Re: Query

[Norman Bauman nbauman@xxxxxxxx]

At 11:08 AM 7/27/03 +0100, Adel Darwish wrote:
>
>Since 1986, I upgraded from old 88 processor, 286, 386, Pentium, and now
>even on my laptop Pentium4 Sony with windows XP as operating system, I
>always copied xywrite into a directory I call editor on the C drive.
>Since it works from DOS, I had no problems with it.

That's been my experience.

>So my guess is get any machine, it will work. I bought my daughter a second
>hand small laptop ( Dell Pentium 3 processor, and windows ME operating
>system for only 300 quid), created a directory for her and copied Xywrite;

1 quid = 1.4 Euro

>Since I mainly file to newspapers and so I just copy the file into an email
>and I send it ( either Eudora, or if I am working at some news room using
>their machines ( as I am doing now at the BBC) I use Microsoft outlook
>express.

That's what I do, although there is an unfortunate trend for certain
publications to demand their files in Microsoft Word. My version 6.0 works
fine, except when they want to exchange revisions.

>I also have the basic working files ( which are about 16 or so ) of Xywrite
>( copied from the atex version in 1988) on a 3.5 inches floppy disc and also
>on the new memory key disc ( USB attachment disc) and carry it in my
>briefcase.

I would strongly suggest that if you upgrade from a 286 to a later machine
that you copy the files through the serial ports. I used Laplink since a
friend gave me a copy she never used; there is also a DOS function (I think
it's called interlink) that will do the same thing although it takes a
small amount of work to figure it out.

My main problem with upgrading is getting access to the material I have on
5 1/2-inch floppy disks. I would recommend converting all your 5 1/2-inch
floppy disks to 3 1/2-inch while you still have the cables connected
between your old and new machines. Or even better, just copy them over to
subdirectories in your new machine, and then onto a CD writer, which I also
recommend. When I retired my old 286 in 1993, I had about 30 mb of files of
all the work that I had created in my entire life in computer text. Now I
routinely back up all my files onto a 700mb CD.

The only disappointment is that XyWrite wasn't much faster on a 486, or all
my Pentiums, than it was on a 286. you can't beat perfection. The only
difference was that I could save files faster.

Norman

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Norman Bauman
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