If uncertain about the free memory available on your computer, use the MS-DOS command CHKDSK. The value for bytes free listed at the end of the status report produced by this command should read at least 66000. Note: In this book the term MS-DOS refers to both MS-DOS and PC-DOS, a version of MS-DOS.
PREPARING TO USE LAPDOS
Before you can use LAPDOS you must —
- attach your desktop computer to your portable disk drive using a gender changer, (D25 to D25, or D25 to D9), available at any Radio Shack or electronics store.
- prepare your disk drive
CONNECTING THE COMPUTER AND DRIVE
Attach your disk drive cable to a female/female gender changer.
Attach the other end of the gender changer to the RS-232C serial port of your desktop computer. If you have two serial ports, remember which port — Com1 of Com2 — you plug the cable converter into. LAPDOS works with either Com1 or Com2, but if you are using Com2, you must tell LAPDOS that you are doing so when you start the program.
PREPARING THE DRIVE
Make sure that your portable disk drive is turned on. Insert a disk into the drive.
LAPDOS operates at two rates of transfer: 19200 and 9600 baud (bits per second). If you have the original Tandy drive or a Purple Computing drive, make sure that the DIP switches on the drive are set at either of these rates; see Appendix C for help. The transfer rate is fixed on the Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2 (at 19200) and on the Brother FB100 disk drive (at 9600).
STARTING LAPDOS
ON HARD DISK SYSTEMS
- Copy the LAPDOS operating program — LAP.EXE — from the LAPDOS disk to one of the directories on the hard disk. Then put the disk away for safe keeping.
Example: You want to place LAP.EXE on you hard disk in a directory on the C drive called UTIL. Place the LAPDOS disk in drive A. At the C] prompt type
- COPY A:LAP.EXE C:UTIL/V [ENTER]
- Make the directory in which you have placed the operating program your current directory.
Example: The stem prompt is C]. You have installed LAP.EXE in the UTIL directory. To change the current directory from C to C:\UTIL, type
- CD UTIL [ENTER]
Note: if you want the flexibility of starting LAPDOS from any directory, you can create — or alter — a file called AUTOEXEC.BAT. See Appendix B for more information.
- If you are using the Com1 serial port of your desktop computer type
- LAP [ENTER]
If you are using the Com2 serial port type
- LAP/2 [ENTER]
The LAPDOS screen should now appear; if you see a message flashing near the lower right corner of the screen — and no files are listed in the right portion of the screen — turn to the next page for suggestions.
ON FLOPPY DISK SYSTEMS
- Begin by making a backup copy of the LAPDOS disk. This will ensure that you will never damage the original LAPDOS
Caution: To avoid the permanent loss of the LAPDOS program, operate it only from a backup disk — never the master disk.
Place the master LAPDOS disk in drive A. In drive B place the disk you will use each time you start the program. At the B] prompt type
- COPY A:LAP.EXE/V [ENTER]
Set the master disk aside for safe keeping, and remain at the B] prompt.
- If you are using the Com1 serial type of your desktop computer] type
- LAP [ENTER]
if you are using the Com2 serial port type
- LAP/2 [ENTER]
The LAPDOS screen should now appear; if you see a message flashing near the lower right corner of the screen — and no files are listed in the right portion of the screen — see below for suggestions.
- Replace the LAPDOS disk with whatever disk you want to use with LAPDOS.
HAVING PROBLEMS?
Once you have successfully started LAPDOS, your monitor will display two windows. The window on the left will show files on your desktop computer, the window on the right files on the disk in the portable disk drive.
If something has gone awry, no files will be listed for the portable disk drive, and one of these messages likely will flash on the screen:
- Drive not Connected
or
No Response from Drive
Follow the suggestions below for whichever message you see. Then use the arrow key to move the bar cursor to the window on the right, and press 'L [ENTER]'.
DRIVE NOT CONNECTED
- If you see this message — Make sure that you have installed the cable converter properly and the cable converter properly and the connection between the portable drive and the desktop computer is secure.
- Turn the disk drive off for 2 or 3 seconds, turn it on, and try again.
- You may have designated the wrong serial port: Press [S] [P] to change to the alternative — either Com1 or Com2
NO RESPONSE FROM DRIVE
- If you see this message — Turn the disk drive off for 2 or 3 seconds, turn it on, and try again.
- You may have designated the wrong serial port: Press [S] [P] to change to the alternative — either Com1 or Com2
- Move the portable disk drive as far from the computer and monitor as possible. (Radio waves may be interfering with the drive.)
- The problem may lie in the baud rate on either your portable disk drive or the serial port of your desktop computer. See Appendix C for details.
LAPDOS IN BACKGROUND
LAPDOS can operate as a RAM-resident utility. In this "Background" mode, LAPDOS is available whenever you are using another program. That program will be halted momentarily while you use LAPDOS and will resume when you switch back.
INSTALLING LAPDOS IN BACKGROUND
Follow the procedure described below to install LAPDOS in background each time you start your computer. As an alternative, you can set up an AUTOEXEC.BAT file to perform the operation automatically. (See Appendix B for help.)
ON HARD DISK SYSTEMS.
Log to the drive and directory in which you have stored the LAPDOS operating program LAP.EXE. Type
- LAP/B [ENTER]
If you are also designating the Com2 serial port, type this instead:
- LAP/B/2 [ENTER] or LAP/2/B [ENTER]
Should you try to reinstall LAPDOS while it is in background, you will see a message telling you that it is already installed and ready to use.
ON FLOPPY DISK SYSTEMS
Place your backup coy of the LAPDOS disk in a drive of your desktop computer. At the prompt for that drive type:
- LAP/B [ENTER]
If you are also designating the Com2 serial port, type this instead:
- LAP/B/2 [ENTER] or LAP/2/B [ENTER]
Should you try to reinstall LAPDOS while it is in background, you will see a message telling you that it is already installed and ready to use.
USING LAPDOS IN BACKGROUND
Press [Alt]-[L] to enter LAPDOS while working in another program. If that program is communicating with the disk when you press [Alt]-[L], there may be a small delay before the LAPDOS screen appear.
Note: If pressing [Alt]-[L] does not get you into LAPDOS see Appendix A for suggestions.
Press [Alt]-[L] again — or [Q] [Y] — to exit LAPDOS and return to the other program.
Pressing [Alt]-[L] automatically relogs the MS-DOS disk but not the portable disk. If you have changed disks in the portable drive since leaving LAPDOS, relog the portable drive.
If you are using a program that also uses the [Alt]-[L] combination, you can avoid this conflict by redefining the combination for LAPDOS. See the Hotkey command.
REMOVING LAPDOS FROM BACKGROUND
Once installed in background, LAPDOS will remain there until you remove it — or until you turn the computer off or reboot the system by pressing [Ctrl]-[Alt]-[Del].
Section 2: Using Lapdos
THE LAPDOS SCREEN
It is in the LAPDOS screen that you will perform almost all of the operations available through LAPDOS — whether it's copying files to or from the portable disk drive, viewing the contents of files, formatting disks for your portable disk drive, or performing the other LAPDOS operations.
The very top line of this screen displays the copyright notice and the version number of your copy of the program. This diagram illustrates the rest of the screen:
MS-DOS Drive (C:) 55555 Free=|=Portable Drive (P:) 5555 Free
|
|
Your MS-DOS files | Your portable disk
are listed here | drive files are listed
| here
|
|
|
C:\UTIL==========================================COM 1:19200
. . . Messages appear here . . .
. . . Commands are listed here . . .
|
LAPDOS WINDOWS
The largest areas of the screen are occupied by the tow LAPDOS windows:
- the MS-DOS drive window (left), displaying the names of files in the current drive of your desktop computer
- the Portable drive window (right), displaying the names of files on the disk in the portable disk drive
To the right of each file name is the size of that file (in bytes).
At the top of each window is a number showing the bytes free on that drive. Also shown are the logged drives. (The logged drive for the portable disk drive is always P:.)
At the bottom of the MS-DOS drive window is the current directory path, reminding you of the drive and the sub-directory, if any, you have entered.
At the bottom of the portable drive window are tow reminders: Com1 or Com2, reminding you of the serial port you are using with LAPDOS; and 19200 or 9600, reminding you of the current baud rate. And if you have a Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2, you will see this additional information: Bank 0 or Bank 1, indicating that you are in back 0 or bank 1 of the disk.
MOVING THE BAR CURSOR
The bar cursor covers one file name on the screen at a time. Use the arrow keys to move the bar cursor from one file name to another and from one window to the other.
Press [END] to move the bar cursor to the last file name displayed in a window. Press [Home] to move the bar cursor to the first file name displayed
There is room in each window for 40 file names. There can be no more that 40 files on a portable disk, but an MS-DOS disk can contain as many as 110 files in a root directory and an unlimited number in a subdirectory.
MESSAGE LINE
Look at the line just below the windows for messages. This line is usually blank until you activate on of the commands.
Flush against the left side of the screen you will from time to time see messages instructing you on what to do next.
Also appearing here are messages warning you of certain situations. Warning messages appear with a beep and disappear on their own after three seconds (or sooner if you press any key).
Flush against the right side of the screen you will see error messages. These messages produce a beep, flash for three seconds, and disappear on their own unless you spend their removal by pressing any key.
See Appendix A for a complete list of warning and error messages and their remedies.
COMMAND LINE
Across the bottom line are the 13 primary LAPDOS commands, explained on the following pages.
LAPDOS COMMANDS
There are 13 commands listed across the bottom of the LAPDOS screen: Help, Log, View, Copy, Wildcopy, Format, Erase, Rename, Goto, Xchange, Upload, Setup, and Quit.
These are the 13 primary commands. There are two ways to activate them:
- Press the first letter of each command-[H] for Help, [L] for Log, and so on.
- Press [Esc] to move to the command line. Press the [left] or [right] arrow key — or the [Space] bar — to move the cursor over a command. Press [Enter] to activate the command.
In addition to the primary commands, there are secondary commands that appear as soon as you activate either the Xchange command or the Setup command. There is a slightly different procedure for activating secondary commands. See Section 3 for the Setup command, Section 4 for the Xchange command.
SELECTING FILES
Before activating many of the commands you must select a file by placing the bar cursor over its name. To erase TEST.DO, for example, use the arrow keys to move the bar cursor over TEST.DO; then activate the erase command.
With Log and WIldcopy commands you need select only the appropriate window — either MS-DOS drive or portable drive. The file you select in the window is not important.
With the other commands it does not matter which file or window is selected. The Help command, for example, calls up a help menu regardless of the position of the bar cursor.
| Help | Displays a help menu |
| Log | Logs a new disk, path, or drive |
| View | Displays the contents of a file on screen |
| Copy | Copies a file to or from the portable disk drive |
| Wildcopy | Copies files designated by MS-DOS wild cards |
| Format | Formats the disk in the portable disk drive |
| Erase | Deletes the file selected by the bar cursor |
| Rename | Renames the file selected by the bar cursor |
| Goto | Searches for the file (or files) you specify |
| Xchange | Allows the conversion of a file into a new format |
| • Help | Displays a help menu for the Xchange command |
| • ThinkTank | Converts a file to the ThinkTank format |
| • Idea! | Converts a file to the IDEA! format |
| • ASCII | Converts a file to the ASCII format |
| • Quit | Exits the Xchange command |
| Unload | Unloads LAPDOS from background |
| Setup | Sets parameters for the operation of LAPDOS |
| • Colors | Changes the colors of the LAPDOS screen |
| • Baud | Selects 9600 baud as the default transfer rate between the computer and disk drive |
| • Port | Tells LAPDOS which serial port you are using — whether Com1 or Com2 |
| • Hotkey | Redefines the keys that take you into and out of background mode |
| • Snowplow | Clears the screen of the small dots that sometimes appear on color monitors |
| • Originals | Restores all the Setup parameters to the original (factory) defaults |
| • Record | Records for future use the current Setup parameters (background use only) |
| • Quit | Exits the Setup command |
| Quit | Exits LAPDOS |
| All primary command are listed alphabetically on the following pages. For detailed information about the Setup command, see Section 3; for detailed information about the Xchange command, see Section 4. | |
| C |
|---|
OPY
Press [C] — or select Copy in the command line — to copy the file selected by the bar cursor from a portable disk to an MS-DOS disk, or vice versa.
Remember to select the appropriate file before using this command. To copy several files at once or entire directories use the Wildcopy command.
When you press [C], a prompt like this appears:
- Copy A:TEST.DO to P:TEST.DO —
If you approve the name to be assigned to the file when copied, press [Enter] to finish copying. Press [Ctrl]-[Q] to quit without copying.
To change the name on the screen, back space over it, type a new name, and press [Enter].
The Copy command also lets you copy one MS-DOS file as another MS-DOS file, but it does not permit the same kin of operation with portable files.
To copy an MS-DOS file as another MS-DOS file, backspace over the file name and drive specification. They type a path name according to standard MS-DOS format — drive:/path (optional)/filename.ext [ENTER]
Example: the MS-DOS file A:COMMAND.COM can be copied as B:COMMAND.COM but the portable file P.IDEA!.BA cannot be copied as P:IDEA!.BA.
LEGAL FILE NAMES
There will be times when LAPDOS must change file names to put them into a format acceptable to either MS-DOS or your portable computer.
When copying from MS-DOS to portable format, LAPDOS ill automatically shorten any file names longer than six characters. For any extensions other than .CO or .BA, it will substitute .DO.
Example: When copying to the portable format, LAPDOS would shorten the MS-DOS file AUTOEXEC.BAT to AUTOEX.DO.
When copying from the portable to MS-DOS format, LAPDOS will substitute hyphens for any asterisks, question marks, or any other characters that are illegal in MS-DOS file names.
Example: When copying to the MS-DOS format, LAPDOS would convert the portable file CUST*S.DO TO CUST-S.DO.
Reminder: No matter how LAPDOS alters a file name, you have the chance to revise it before pressing [Enter] to finish copying. If the name you enter is not legal, however, LAPDOS will overrule your entry and make it so.
COPYING OVER FILES
If you tell LAPDOS to copy over an existing file, you will see a prompt like this:
- A:TEST.DO' exists!! Overwrite it?_
Press [Y] to erase the current file and replace it with the file you are copying. Press any other key to cancel the operation without copying.
| E |
|---|
RASE
Press [E] — or select erase in command line — to erase (delete) the file selected by the bar cursor.
Before erasing a file, LAPDOS will ask for confirmation. Press [Y] to erase, any other key to leave the file intact.
Erasing an MS-DOS file takes just few seconds; erasing a portable file may take up to 30 seconds.
| F |
|---|
ORMAT
Press [F] — or select Format in the command line — to format a blank 3 1/2-inch disk for your portable disk drive.
Once you activate this command, LAPDOS will instruct you to place a blank diskette into the portable disk drive and press [Enter]. Press [Ctrl]-[Q] to abort this command without formatting the disk.
A disk will be formatted in about one minute and 45 seconds.
Caution: Formatting erases any data on a disk. Before formatting a disk, it is a good idea to place it into the portable disk drive and log the portable drive. If no file names appear on the screen, you will lose nothing by formatting that disk.
To format disks for your desktop computer, exit to may system and use the MS-DOS command FORMAT.
| G |
|---|
OTO
Press [G] — or select Goto in the command line — to search a directory of files for any file you specify. You can specify a particular file, or using MS-DOS wild cards, a range of files.
Before activating this command, remember to place the bar cursor in the left window to locate an MS-DOS file, in the right window to locate a file on the portable disk. Since LAPDOS searches forward in a directory of files, place the bar cursor at the beginning of the directory (press [Ctrl]-[Home] to move there quickly ) to search the entire directory.
When you activate Goto, this message then appears on your screen:
- Goto Filename:
Type a file name and press [Enter]. LAPDOS then locates the file you specified.
When using wild cards, you will often want to go to more than one file. To locate each file after the first, press [G] [Enter]. For more information about wild cards, see your MS-DOS manual.
REPEATING COMMANDS
When you use the Goto command more than once a session, the last — entered string of characters will appear on the screen again when you press [G]. You can then —
- press [Enter] to reuse the old string
- press [Ctrl]-[Bksp] to erase the old string; then enter a new string
- edit the old string, making use of the [left] and [right] arrow keys, [Bksp], and [Del]
| H |
|---|
ELP
Press [H] — or select Help in the command line — to replace the LAPDOS screen with a help menu.
This help menu summarizes the 13 primary commands and the other LAPDOS keys, explained in this manual. (Another help menu — for use with the Xchange command — is explained in Section 4.)
Press any key to leave the help menu and return to the LAPDOS screen.
There may be times that the LAPDOS screen becomes jumbled — usually by the appearance of an MS-DOS error message.
To restore a jumbled LAPDOS screen, press [H] twice, to enter and exit the help menu.
| L |
|---|
OG
Press [L] — or select Log in the command line — to log a new disk or relog the current disk.
Before activating this command, remember to place the bar cursor anywhere in the left window for an MS-DOS disk, in the right window for a disk in the portable disk drive.
LOGGING IN THE PORTABLE DRIVE WINDOW
Whenever you change disks in the portable disk drive, move the bar cursor to the portable drive window and press [L]. this message then appears:
- Insert Disk and Press Enter
Press [Enter] to complete the logging; press [Ctrl]-[Q] to quit without logging.
Soon after you press [Enter], the portable drive window will display a list of the file names on the disk now in the portable disk drive.
You are then ready to copy, rename, erase, or perform any other operations with those files.
LOGGING IN THE MS-DOS DRIVE WINDOW
Use the Log command in the MS-DOS drive window to —
- change floppy disks in the current drive
- change the current drive
- change directories on the current drive
CHANGING FLOPPY DISKS: Remove the disk from the current drive and insert another. Press [L] and [Enter]. The file names on the new disk soon appear on the screen.
CHANGING THE CURRENT DRIVE: Press [L], and this message appears:
- Enter New Drive or Directory
If your desktop computer has no directories, type A: for drive A, B: for drive B, and so on. Press [Enter].
If you have directories, type the full path name in the standard MS-DOS format, and press [Enter]
CHANGING DIRECTORIES WITH THE LOG COMMAND: When moving from one directory to another on the current drive, you have the choice of using the Log command or the [Enter] key.
When you use the Log command, this message appears once you press [L]:
- Enter New Drive or Directory:
Type the path name according to standard MS-DOS format. Press [Enter] to finish logging.
If you have any doubt about MS-DOS path names, consult your MS-DOS manual.
CHANGING DIRECTORIES WITH ENTER: TO change to a directory listed in the MS-DOS drive window, place the bar cursor over that directory and press [Enter].
Example: Listed among the files is this directory:
- UTIL . <DIR>
To move to the UTIL directory, place the cursor over
- UTIL . <DIR> and press [Enter]
Once you have selected a subdirectory (one included under a "parent" directory), this will appear at the top of the MS-DOS drive window:
- .. <DIR>
This represents the parent directory. To select the parent directory place the cursor over
- .. <DIR> and press [Enter].
Unlike the Log command, the [Enter] key allows you to change directories only one level at a time.
| Q |
|---|
UIT
Press [Q] — or select Quit in the command line — to quit LAPDOS and return to the MS-DOS operating system.
Whenever you press [Q], LAPDOS will ask for confirmation
- Are you sure you want to quit?_
Press [Y] to quit, any other key to remain in LAPDOS. LAPDOS will return you to the directory in which you started the program.
Reminder: If you are using LAPDOS in background, you can also press [Alt]-[L] to quit LAPDOS.
| R |
|---|
ENAME
Press [R] — or select Rename in the command line — to rename the file selected by the bar cursor.
LAPDOS will ask for the new name like this:
- Rename 'P:TEST.DO' to _
type the new name and press [Enter]. Before pressing [Enter], press [Ctrl]-[Q] to abort the Rename process without renaming the file.
Note: Omit the drive specification when typing the new name. The Rename command does not allow you to move a file to a different drive.
EXTENSIONS
Extensions are the characters added to the end of a file name to provide additional information about the file. They are always preceded by a period. MS-DOS extensions can be one, tow, or three characters long. With LAPDOS, file extensions on the portable disk drive can be only .DO, .BA, or .CO. extensions are optional with MS-DOS files, necessary with portable disk files.
When assigning a new name to an MS-DOS file, type whatever extensions you want — or omit the extension.
When assigning a new name to a portable disk file, include the .BA and .CO extensions for BASIC and machine-language files. When renaming .DO files, you can omit the .DO, because LAPDOS automatically assigns that extension if none is specified.
Caution: You should not change the extensions of the portable disk files. When loaded into your portable computer, files with wrong extensions could cold start your computer.
| S |
|---|
ETUP
Press [S] — or select Setup in the command line — to choose among seven secondary commands that set parameters for the operation of LAPDOS.
With these secondary commands you can —
- change the colors used in the LAPDOS screen (or the monochrome attributes, if you have a monochrome monitor)
- changes the default baud rate — initially 19200 — to match the rate at which you are operating LAPDOS
- tell LAPDOS which serial port on your desktop computer you have connected to the portable disk drive — whether Com1 or Com2
- redefine the key combination — initially [Alt]-[L] — that takes you out of a program you are running and into the background mode of LAPDOS
- clear the screen of "snow", the small transient spots that sometimes mar color screens
- restore all Setup parameters to their original (factory) defaults
- recordfor future use any changes you have made in the Setup parameters (for use in the background mode only)
For details about the Setup command see Section 3.
| U |
|---|
NLOAD
Press [U] — or select Unload in the command line — to unload LAPDOS from background.
This command is to be used only if you have installed LAPDOS in background by entering LAP/B at the system prompt. Once installed in background, LAPDOS ill remain there until you remove it — or until you turn the computer off or reboot the system by pressing [Ctrl]-[Alt]-[Del].
To remove LAPDOS from background, start at a system prompt (e.g., A] or B]) press [Alt]-[L]. Once you are in the LAPDOS screen press [U]. When asked whether you are sure, press [Y]. LAPDOS will then be removed from background, and you will be returned to the drive and directory at which you entered LAPDOS.
When removing LAPDOS from background, observe the following rules. Failure to do so may cause unpredictable results; at the worst, you system may crash or you will not have regained the memory occupied by LAPDOS:
|
When removing programs from background, follow this general rule: Reverse the order in which they were installed — first in, last out; last in, first out.
Unfortunately, some background programs are restricted in the order in which they can be installed. Others can never be removed. Check the manuals for your other background programs for such restrictions. Then install LAPDOS to accord with those restrictions.
| V |
|---|
IEW
Press [V] — or select View in the command line — to view the contents of the document file selected by the bar cursor.
Remember to select a file before activating this command.
The contents of the selected file will scroll upward on the screen.
To pause the scrolling — and to resume it — press the [Space] bar or any other key.
To quit at any point and return to the LAPDOS screen, press [Ctrl]-[Q].
When a file is viewed to its end, this message appears:
- Done. Press any key.
Following this advice will take you back to the LAPDOS screen.
Note: when viewing a non — document file, you will see only bits and pieces of the file on the screen: LAPDOS display only text characters.
| W |
|---|
ILDCOPY
Press [W] — or select Wildcopy in the command line — to copy files from MS-DOS to portable, or vice versa, using the MS-DOS wild cards? and *.
Before activating this command, remember to place the bar cursor anywhere in the left window to copy from the MS-DOS disk to the portable, in the right window to copy from the portable disk to the MS-DOS.
When you press [W], this prompt appears:
- Enter File Name Wild Card:
Enter a file name with the appropriate wild cards and press [Enter] to begin copying. Pressing [Ctrl]-[Q] instead of [Enter] will quit the Wildcopy command without copying.
To copy all the files on the portable disk or on the current directory of the MS-DOS disk type this:
- *.* [Enter]
Before copying over an existing file, LAPDOS will ask for permission. When asked whether to overwrite, press [Y] to erase the file and replace it with the file you are copying. Press any other key to leave the file intact and move on to the next file to be copied.
Like the Copy command, The Wildcopy command will change file and file names into a legal format whenever necessary. Unlike the Copy command, however, the Wildcopy command will not give you the chance to change a file name during copying.
To halt the copying process at any point press [Ctrl]-[Q].
WILD CARDS
Wild cards are a form of shorthand that speed the copying process. these are their functions:
- ? indicates that any character can occupy that position
- * indicates that any character can occupy that position or the remaining positions in the file name or in the extension
Examples: To copy all .DO files from a portable to an MS-DOS disk, move the bar cursor to the portable drive window, press [W], and enter this:
- *.DO
To copy all .DO and .CO files enter this:
- *.?O
To copy all files, regardless of extension, beginning with the letters TS, enter this:
- TS*.*
Because the wild card characters are permitted in file names on the portable disk, take care when using them to copy portable files.
Example: Among the files on a portable disk are CUST*D.DO, CUST*R.DO, AND CUST*S.DO. Entering CUST*D.DO with the Wildcopy command would copy all three of these files — as CUST-D.DO, CUST-R.DO, AND CUST-S.DO
| X |
|---|
CHANGE
Press [X] — or select Xchange in the command line — to convert the file selected by the cursor to a different format.
By converting the format of files you create on your desktop computer with programs like ThinkTank, SideKick, or WordStar, you can use those files on your portable computer. You can also convert files created with IDEA! and other laptop programs for use on your desktop computer.
For details about the Xchange option, see Section 4.
SWITCHING BANKS ON THE TANDY PORTABLE DISK DRIVE 2
Disks used with the Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2 are divided into two portions called "banks". Each bank can contain as many as 40 files and 200K bytes of data — with the combined storage capacity of the two banks limited to 200K bytes. The banks are specified by the number 0 or 1.
LAPDOS automatically determines that you are using a Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2 (no special installation is required) and tells you which bank of files is currently displayed in the portable drive window. At the bottom of this window you will see either Bank 0 or Bank 1.
To change banks move the bar cursor to the portable drive window and press either.
Paging through MS-DOS File Directories
![[Graphic]](ld01.gif)
When moving the bar cursor through file names in the MS-DOS drive window keep this in mind: LAPDOS separates long lists of file names into "pages," with up to 40 files listed on each page. As shown at right, the file names appear in two columns. Note: Directories of files on the portable disk drive are limited to a single page, since each disk can contain no more than 40 files.
Moving within a Page To move the bar cursor within a page, use the arrow keys to move one file name at a time. Or press [Home] to move to the first file name on a page, [End] to move to the last file name on a page.
Moving from Page to Page To move the bar cursor from one page to another, use [PgDn] to move to the corresponding point on the next page; [PgUp], to move to the corresponding point on the previous page:
![[Graphic]](ld02.gif)
Another way to move from page to page: At the bottom of a page, press the [down] arrow key to move to the top of the next page. Similarly, at the top of a page, press the [up] arrow key to move to the bottom of the previous page:
![[Graphic]](ld03.gif)
Note: Pages of MS-DOS files form a continuous loop, making it possible for you to use the arrow keys and [PgUp] and [PgDn] to move directly between the first page and the last page.
![[Graphic]](ld04.gif)
Going Home No matter what page you are in, press [Ctrl]-[Home] to return to the top of the first page. This is useful if you ever lose track of where you are or if you want to use the Goto command to locate a particular file name.
Summary of LAPDOS Keys
The following summarizes the keys to be used in combination with LAPDOS commands.
| right arrow |
|---|
The right arrow key performs these functions:
- moves the bar cursor to the file name on the right
- moves from the MS-DOS drive window to the portable drive window
- after you press [Esc], moves right, across commands in the command line; press [Enter] to activate the command thus selected
| left arrow |
|---|
- moves the bar cursor to the file name on the left
- moves from the portable drive window to the MS-DOS drive window
- in the command line, moves left, across commands; press [Enter] to activate the command thus selected
| up arrow |
|---|
- moves the bar cursor to the file name above
- at the top of a page of MS-DOS files, moves the bar cursor to the bottom of the previous page, if any
| down arrow |
|---|
- moves the bar cursor to the file name below
- at the bottom of a page of MS-DOS files, moves the bar cursor to the top of the next page, if any
| Esc |
|---|
Then press [left], [right] or the [Space] bar to move the bar cursor over a command; press Enter to activate it. If you move to the command line but do not wish to activate a command, press [Esc] again to leave the command line.
Use [Esc] also as an alternative to [Ctrl]-[Q] to exit a command without executing it or to stop the execution of a command before its completion.
| Enter |
|---|
| Ctrl |
|---|
| Q |
|---|
| Alt |
|---|
| L |
|---|
| Tab |
|---|
| End |
|---|
| Home |
|---|
| PgUp |
|---|
- in the MS-DOS drive window, moves the bar cursor to the next page of files, if any
- in the portable drive window, switches from one disk bank to the another (only with the Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2)
| PgDn |
|---|
- in the MS-DOS drive window, moves the bar cursor to the previous page of files, if any
- in the portable drive window, switches from one disk bank to the another (only with the Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2)
| Ctrl |
|---|
| Home |
|---|
Section 3: Setup Commands
INTRODUCTION
The secondary commands available through the Setup command affect the operation of LAPDOS in one way or another. These are the secondary commands and their functions:
| Colors | On color monitors, changes the colors displayed in the LAPDOS screen. (On monochrome monitors changes certain attributes, like bolding and inverse text.) |
| Baud | Sets the default transfer rate at 9600 baud if your computer or disk drive cannot operate at the more efficient 19200 baud rate. |
| Port | Registers the serial port to which you have attached the portable disk drive — either Com1 or Com2. |
| Hotkey | Redefines the keys — originally [Alt]-[L] — which take you into and out of background mode. |
| Snowplow | Removes the "snow" that sometimes appears on color monitors. |
| Originals | Restores to the original (factory) defaults the settings for these secondary commands. |
| Record | Records as the new defaults any changes you make in these commands. (Required in background mode only.) |
| Quit | Takes you Out of the Setup command |
It is possible that after your first session or two with LAPDOS you will not have to resort to these commands at all.
Activating the Setup Commands
As with the other LAPDOS commands, there are two methods of activating the secondary commands in Setup:
Press [S] — to select Setup — and then press the first letter of one of the Setup commands: [S] [C] for Colors, [P] B] for Baud, and so on.
Press [Esc] to move to the command line. Move the cursor over Setup and press [Enter]. Then move the cursor over the secondary command you want to activate, and press [Enter].
Alternative Method of Changing Setup Values
LAPDOS offers yet another way of changing the defaults of four of the secondary commands in Setup: Baud, Port, Hotkey, and Snowplow. You can reset the baud rate, the serial port, the hot key combination, or eliminate snow as you are starting the program or installing it in background, at the MS-DOS system prompt. This procedure is to be used instead of activating the Setup command.
Examples: Just as you type LAP/B at the system prompt to install LAPDOS in background, so you can type LAP/B/S or LAP/S/B to activate the Snowplow command while loading LAPDOS in background. Or you could type LAP/S to start LAPDOS and activate Snowplow. You can combine any or all of these commands in any order after typing LAP. By entering LAP/S/B/1, for example, you would load LAPDOS in background, activate the Snowplow command, and assign Com1 as the default serial port.
See the explanations of the Baud, Port, Hotkey, and Snowplow commands in the following pages for details.
Saving the Setup Values
Except when you are operating LAPDOS in background, LAPDOS will save any changes you have made in the baud rate or other Setup values during that session. It will save these changes when you quit the program regardless of whether you made them through the Setup command or at the MS-DOS system prompt as explained above. (The only exception occurs when you use the Originals command to restore the factory defaults; these defaults are recorded when you use the command, not when you quit the program.)
After each session in which you have changed any of the Setup values you will see this message when you quit LAPDOS:
- Writing the Defaults
By saving those values LAPDOS relieves you of the chore of resetting them each lime you start the program.
Floppy disk users must place their LAPDOS disk in the current drive of the desktop computer when they exit, or the new settings will not be recorded. This message will appear instead:
- Can't Find LAP.EXE
If you make any changes while using LAPDOS in background, you must use the Record command to save the new defaults.
| B |
|---|
aud
Press [S] [B] — or select Baud in the Setup command line — to set 9600 baud (bits per second) as the default transfer rate between your computer and portable disk drive. Use this command only if your portable disk drive or computer cannot operate at the faster transfer rate, 19200 baud.
The Baud command is included as a time-saving measure. LAPDOS is intelligent enough to recognize which baud rate — whether 19200 or 9600 — is set on your portable disk drive. At startup, LAPDOS checks first for the default — initially, 19200 baud. If it gets no response, it checks again, for the other rate — initially, 9600 baud. Because of the extra time required for the second check, you may want to tell LAPDOS at the outset that the drive is set at 9600. This procedure is optional; it will save you about 4 seconds each time you Start the program.
To change the default from 19200 to 9600, activate the Baud command. The reminder at the bottom of the portable drive window will now register 9600 and these messages will appear in the message line one after the other:
- Determining Drive Type.
- Logging Drive (P:).
Reactivating the Baud command will reset the baud rate to 19200.
Alternative Method To start LAPDOS and change the default transfer rate to 9600, type LAP/L at the system prompt and press [Enter].
To install LAPDOS in background and set the transfer rate to 9600, type LAP/B/L or LAP/L/B at the system prompt and press [Enter].
About Baud Rates
The preferable way to run LAPDOS is at 19200 baud. At this rate files are copied 20 to 30% faster than at 9600 baud. There are two situations in which you will have to forego this efficiency and operate at the slower rate (9600):
- if you are using a Brother portable disk drive (Model FB100)
- if the serial port of your desktop computer cannot operate at 19200 baud
Note: If you select 19200 baud and the serial port on your computer cannot operate at that rate you will see this message: No Response From Drive. Reactivate the Baud command to reset the rate to 9600 if your disk drive operates at this rate.
Consult the list below if uncertain about the transfer rate or rates available on your portable disk drive.
| Tandy Portable Disk Drive (original) |
Operates at either 19200 or 9600 baud. See Appendix C for instructions on changing the baud rates. |
| Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2 |
Operates only at 19200 baud |
| Purple Computing Disk Drive |
Operates at either 19200 or 9600 baud. See Appendix C for instructions on changing the baud rates. |
| Brother Disk Drive (Model FBlOO) |
Operates only at 9600 baud |
| C |
|---|
olors
Press [S][C] — or select Colors in the Setup command line — to change the colors displayed in the LAPDOS screen.
Once you activate Colors, this screen appears:
![[Graphic]](ld05.gif)
Then follow these steps:
- Press [Space] to move the pointer to one of the three lines:
Normal Text — affects the screen background and most characters on the screen, including files names
Bolded Text — affects the highlighted characters
Inverse Text — affects the cursors
- At any of the lines press the [left] or [right] arrow key to change the color of the characters; press the [up] or [down] arrow key to change the color of the background of those characters. Repeat until you see the colors you want.
- Once you have the colors as you want them press Enter to save them and return to the LAPDOS screen, where you will see the colors you selected.
Note: Press Esc at any point to leave the Colors command without changing the colors.
On Monochrome Monitors
If you have a monochrome monitors, LAPDOS can't add color but it can change the appearance of the LAPDOS screen. If you wish, you can change Normal Text to make the highlighted (bolded) characters appear without high-lighting. Or you could highlight the entire screen. By altering Inverse Text you could can change the appearance of the bar cursor.
| H |
|---|
otkey
Press [S] [H] — or select Hotkey in the Setup command line — to redefine the LAPDOS "hot key."
As explained in Section 1, LAPDOS can be used as a RAM-resident utility. In this "background" mode, it is available whenever you are using another program. The hot key, pops you from another program into LAPDOS and out again.
By default, the hot key is [Alt]-[L]: Press [Alt]-[L]: to call up LAPDOS from background; press [Alt]-[L] again to return to the other program.
While using some other programs, however, you may need to use [Alt]-[L] for other purposes. To avoid this conflict, you must redefine the hot key.
When you activate the Hotkey command, this prompt appears in the message line:
- The hot key is <Alt><L>. It may be any <Alt><Letter> (A-Z):
Simply press the letter key you want to use in combination with the Alt key.
LAPDOS will remind you should you ever forget how you have defined the hot key. At the system prompt type LAP/B, and a message will appear telling you that LAPDOS is already loaded in background and the keys to press to invoke it.
Alternative Method. To start LAPDOS and redefine the hot key at the same time start at the system prompt and enter LAP/H (for hot key) followed immediately by any letter A through Z.
Example: To start LAPDOS and define the hot key as [Alt]-[Z], enter LAP/HZ at the system prompt.
To install LAPDOS in background and redefine the hot key, start at the system prompt and enter LAP/B/H followed immediately by a letter A through Z.
Example: To install LAPDOS in background, with [Alt]-[Q] as the hot key, enter this at the system prompt: LAP/B/HQ or LAP/HQ/B.
| O |
|---|
riginals
Press [S] [O] — or select Originals in the Setup command line — to reset the defaults of the Colors, Baud, Port, Hotkey, and Snowplow commands to the values as they were when you received LAPDOS.
When you activate the Originals command, this message appears:
- Restore Original Defaults?
Press [Y] to original defaults, any other key to retain the current defaults.
As soon as you press [Y] LAPDOS records the settings. If you are running LAPDOS from a floppy disk be sure that your LAPDOS disk is in the current drive of your desktop computer before restoring the original defaults.
These are the original defaults:
| Colors | Cyan (light blue) letters and white highlighting on a black background |
| Baud | 19200 baud |
| Port | Com 1 |
| Hotkey | [Alt]-[L] |
| Snowplow | Disabled (off) |
| P |
|---|
ort
Press [S] [P] — or select the Port command in the Setup command line — to tell LAPDOS which serial port on your computer you have connected to the portable disk drive.
Initially LAPDOS is set up for the Com1 serial port. If you arc using the Com1 port, you do not have to use the Port command.
But if you are using the Com2 port — or you are uncertain about which port is which — activate the Port command. An incorrect port setting will produce this message: Drive Not Connected.
The first time you activate the Port command the baud setting displayed at the bottom of the portable drive window changes from 19200 to 9600. The next time you activate it, the setting reverts to 19200.
When you select the correct port — and the drive is attached to the port and ready for use — you will see these messages flash on the screen:
- Determining Drive Type.
- Logging Drive (P:).
You should then see files listed in the portable drive' window.
If you change the port setting and still encounter the Drive Not Connected message, look in Appendix A for possible causes and for remedies.
Alternative Method To start LAPDOS and select the Com2 serial port, start at the system prompt and enter LAP/2. (To select Com1 enter LAP/1.)
To install LAPDOS in background and select the Com2 serial port, start at the system prompt and enter LAP/B/2 or LAP/2/S. (To select the Com1 serial port enter LAP/B/1 or LAP/1/B.)
| Q |
|---|
uit
Press [S] [Q] — or select Quit in the Setup command line — to exit Setup without activating any of the other secondary commands.
The other secondary commands automatically exit Setup once they have completed their operation.
| R |
|---|
ecord
Press [S] [R] — or select Record in the Setup command line — to record any changes you have made in the Setup values while using LAPDOS in the background mode.
Once you activate the Record command, this message appears:
- Writing the Defaults
If you have a floppy disk system, be sure that your LAPDOS disk is in the current drive of your desktop computer. The new Setup values will not be recorded otherwise, and this message will flash on your screen:
- Can't Find LAP.EXE
Reminder: There is no need to use the Record command unless you are Operating LAPDOS in background. When you exit LAPDOS from the foreground mode, LAPDOS will attempt to record any changes in the Setup values you have made in that session.
| S |
|---|
nowplow
Press [S] [S] — or select Snowplow in the Setup command line — to clear the screen of any snow-the small transient dots that sometimes appear on the screens of computers with color display adapter cards. (On computers without such cards, this correction is not necessary.)
If you experience this problem, press Ps. This message then appears briefly:
- Snowplow -- Enabled.
Pressing [S] again will turn off the correction and produce this message:
- Snowplow -- Disabled.
Note: The snow correction slows somewhat the operation of LAPDOS.
Alternative Method To start LAPDOS and activate the Snowplow command, start at the system prompt and enter LAP/S. If Snowplow was disabled to Start with, it will now be enabled. If it was enabled, it will now be disabled.
To install LAPDOS in background and activate the Snowplow command, start at the system prompt and enter LAP/B/S or LAP/S/B.
Section 4: Exchanging Data
INTRODUCTION
This section takes you step by step through the process of exchanging data between programs. As LAPDOS makes it possible to transfer files between your desktop and laptop computers, so the various exchanging operations described here make it possible to exchange the format of files you create with one program for use with another.
By changing the format of files, you are making your desktop and laptop computers into an integrated system — the desktop for use at home or in the office, the laptop for use on the road or in the field.
Let's assume that you rely on ThinkTank to organize and store your list of business contacts. When preparing for a trip, change your ThinkTank contact list file into one you can use on your laptop computer with IDEA!, Traveling Software's outline processor. Having loaded the file — and IDEA! — into your portable computer, you can view and update your contacts while on the road. Back home, exchange the IDEA! format for the ThinkTank format, and continue as before.
The next few pages describe the LAPDOS Xchange option, with which you can convert files from a variety of programs, including ThinkTank, IDEA!, SideKick, and word processors like WordStar.
The remainder of this section describes the various steps necessary to interchange database, spreadsheet, and merge files with those from Traveling Software's database, T-base. Turn to appropriate pages if you have T-base and any of these other programs: dBASE II or III, R:base 5000, Lotus 1-2-3, and WordStar MailMerge. Most of the work to convert these files is done outside the LAPDOS program.
USING THE XCHANGE OPTION
The LAPDOS Xchange option makes it possible to take files you create with one program and use them with other programs. It is designed mainly as a bridge between desktop and laptop computers, but as you soon will see, Xchange can also be used to exchange files between different programs on the same computer.
Xchange makes this exchange of files possible by converting one program format to another. These are the conversions Xchange allows:
- ThinkTank structured format <==> IDEA! format
- ThinkTank structured format ==> standard text format (ASCII)
- standard text format (ASCII) <==> IDEA! format
- word processor format ==> standard text format (ASCII)
- SideKick format ==> IDEA! format
Begin using Xchange by placing the bar cursor over the name of the file you wish to exchange. Press [X]. Two things now happen on the screen:
- The message line identifies the name and type of the file to be exchanged and suggests how the file be converted.
- The usual commands in the command line are replaced by special Xchange commands that let you alter the conversion suggested in the message line.
MESSAGE LINE
Let's say you want to convert a ThinkTank structured outline — OUTLINE.TXT — for use with IDEA! on your laptop computer. In the MS-DOS window of LAPDOS, place the cursor over OUTLINE.TXT and press [X]. This message appears:
- Exchange ThinkTank file 'A:OUTLINE.TXT' to IDEA! file P:OUTLINE.DO
Press [Enter] to convert the file as suggested on the screen.
In the example, LAPDOS would make a copy of OUTLINE.TXT on the portable disk drive, in the IDEA! format, under the name OUTLIN.DO.
CHANGING THE DRIVE AND FILE NAME You can change the destination drive, the file name, or both by backspacing over the suggested drive and file name and typing new information. Press [Enter] to complete the conversion. (Like the Copy command, Xchange will automatically overrule any illegal file names you may enter.)
To change the kind of format the file will be converted to, you must use the Xchange commands.
COMMAND LINE
As soon as you activate Xchange, the command line shows these commands:
- Help ThinkTank Idea! ASCII Quit
To activate Xchange commands, hold down [Ctrl] and press the initial letter of each command: [Ctrl]-[H] for Help, [Ctrl]-[Q] for Quit, and so on.
An alternative Method: Press [Esc] to move to the command line. Move the cursor over a command and press [Enter].
Press [Ctrl]-[H] — or select Help in the command line — for a help menu describing the Xchange option. Press any key to leave the help menu.
Press [Ctrl]-[Q] — or select Quit in the command line — to quit Xchange without converting the file.
CHANGING THE SUGGESTED FORMAT
When you activate Xchange, LAPDOS suggests a format into which the selected file can be converted. You are not, however, bound by this suggestion. You can select another format — as long as it is among the possible conversions listed in the Help menu.
Use the Xchange commands — ThinkTank, Idea, and ASCII — to change the suggested format to one of your choice.
In the previous example, Xchange suggested converting the ThinkTank structured file OUTLINE.TXT to an IDEA! file. Let's say you want to convert it to a standard text format (ASCII) instead. As before, place the cursor over OUTLINE.TXT and press [X]. When the message appears suggesting a conversion to IDEA! format, press [Ctrl]-[A] for (ASCII). This message changes to this:
- Exchange ThinkTank file 'A:OUTLINE.TXT' to ASCII file P:OUTLIN.DO
Now either leave the drive and file name as they are — or backspace over them and type new information. Press [Enter] to complete the conversion.
If you attempt a conversion not allowed by LAPDOS, an error message will flash on the screen, and you will leave the Xchange option without converting the file.
MORE ABOUT CONVERTING FILES
THINKTANK TO IDEA! Before using Xchange, use the Port command of ThinkTank to create a structured text file. During conversion, lengthy ThinkTank headlines will be shortened to 32 characters — the limit for IDEA! headings — with the remainder placed in IDEA! notes. ThinkTank documents are converted to IDEA! notes just as they were entered unless you are using the cassette version of IDEA!. In that case, any returns within ThinkTank documents will be replaced by \\. In any case, no information will be lost in the conversion.
IDEA! TO THINKTANK IDEA! outlines are converted to ThinkTank outlines just as they were entered: Each IDEA! heading becomes a ThinkTank headline; each IDEA! note, a ThinkTank document. Nothing is lost in the conversion.
THINKTANK TO ASCII Convert ThinkTank structured files to standard test format (ASCII) to create an indented outline for use with a word processor. There are two spaces for each level of indentation.
ASCII TO IDEA! Convert files in the standard text format (ASCII) to IDEA! format for use with the IDEA! program. In making this conversion, LAPDOS will make each line or paragraph ending with [Enter] a separate idea. The first 32 characters of an idea become the heading; the remaining characters, the notes for that idea. Ideas are assigned levels according to indentation. Each idea that begins flush left, becomes a top-level idea. If you file is indented consistently, in outline style, LAPDOS will convert each sub-level to the corresponding level in IDEA!/
IDEA TO ASCII Convert IDEA! files to standard text format (ASCII) for use with WordStar or another word processor. There are two spaces for each level of indentation.
WORD PROCESSOR TO ASCII Change files created with WordStar or another word processor to standard text format (ASCII) to produce non-document files for use with other word or text processors like T-Writer or T-Word. This conversion works will with WordStar; with some other word processors, extraneous characters may be added. Check your file after conversion.
Note: When reading a standard text file into WordStar, open it as a document file and reformat it.
SIDEKICK TO IDEA! Convert SideKick appointments to IDEA! format to take your appointment list with you on the road. Each SideKick appointment becomes an idea, with the date and time listed before the appointment description:
- 12-04-85 01:15p Meet with marketing staff
Since SideKick appointments are likely to be converted in a random order, you will probably want to use the Sort command of IDEA! to put them in chronological order.
EXCHANGING DATA BETWEEN T-BASE AND OTHER PROGRAMS
T-base files can be converted for use with other databases like dBASE II or III and R:base 5000; with spreadsheet programs like Lotus 1-2-3; and with programs like WordStar MailMerge. Conversely, data files from other programs can be converted for use with T-base.
Most of the work for these conversions is done outside LAPDOS, using T-base and the other programs. The role of LAPDOS is limited to exchanging files between MS-DOS and portable disks and renaming files.
In converting files you will not be altering them, merely copying them in a new format for use with another program. Before converting files, it is a good idea to make backup copies of all your important data.
The important thing to remember about T-base files is that they are comma-delimited ASCII files.
FROM T-BASE TO OTHER PROGRAMS
Converting T-base files for use with other programs is in most cases a two-step operation: First create a report file and run that file with TB-RPT, the report — creating component of T-base. Then transfer the resulting file to your desktop computer and enter dBASE II or III, Lotus 1-2-3, or whichever program you are using to complete the conversion.
CREATING REPORT FILES In creating report files with TB-RPT, you will be accomplishing several goals:
- formatting your T-base files for use with other programs
- selecting the fields and records in your T-base files to be transferred
- entering data into the borrowed and calculated fields of your T-base files
To create a report file for conversion of T-base files follow these steps:
- In TEXT open a file and assign a filed name of up to four characters followed by *R.
- As the first line of the file, type this and press [Enter]
- DB, FILNME
where FILNME is the name of the T-base file you want to convert.
- What you type on the second line depends on the nature of the files required the other program.
For dBASE III, R:base, WordStar MailMerge, or any other program that requires files delimited by quotation marks, type this:
- OUT,SDF,FILNME [Enter]
where FILNME is the name of the file to be created.
For other programs like dBASE II and Lotus 1-2-3, type this:
- OUT,FILE,FILNME [Enter]
where FILNME is the name of the file to be created.
Because of the way MS-DOS interprets the asterisk, you should not include an asterisk in this file name. Therefore omit the asterisk at this point or rename the file — without the asterisk — before transferring it to a desktop computer.
- In the third line use the CO command followed by one number for each of the fields to be included in the conversion file. Which numbers are typed is not important; you simply must type a number for each filed. For six fields, for example, you could type this
- CO,1,2,3,4,5,6
- In the last line, select the fields and the order in which they are to be included in the conversion field. Do so with the DE command followed by filed names from the file description line, as in this example:
- DE,FIELD3,FIELD4,FIELD7,FIELD2,etc.
Note: If you are converting to Lotus 1-2-3, you will probably want to select only the numbered fields in your T-base files — that is, fields designated by the I, $, or F command.
- Save the file: Press [F8] on a Tandy computer, [Shft]-[F5] on the NEC.
- Now in the Ultimate ROM II menu, select TB-RPT. In the file-selection menu that appears next, place the cursor over the name of the report you just created and press [Enter]. You now have the opportunity to select the records in your database you want included in the conversion file.
To include all records, press [Enter] when the Field=>? prompt appears. Otherwise, select records according to instructions in the T-base manual. Then press any key to begin creating the new file.
COMPLETING THE CONVERSION Once you have created a file, use LAPDOS to copy it to your desktop computer. From here, you must rely on your other program to complete the conversion of your files. You are will advised to consult the manual for that program before attempting the transfer, but here are hints for some popular programs:
For dBASE II or III, consult your user's manual for instructions on using the CREATE command to create a structure to receive the T-base data. When this is complete, you will be asked whether you want to enter information now; press [N] for No.
Back at the dBASE dot prompt, type USE followed by the name of the file you set up with dBASE and press [Enter]. Then type APPEND FROM FILNME DELIMITED, where FILNME is the name of the file transferred from your portable computer. Press [Enter].
When through, dBASE will return you to the dot prompt. Use the LIST command to determine if the transfer was completely successfully.
For R:base 5000, refer to the user's manual for use of the FileGateway in converting ASCII files with delimiters.
For Lotus 1-2-3, rename the file transferred from your laptop computer by adding a .PRN extension. Enter Lotus 1-2-3 and press / for menu. At the succeeding prompts, press [F] for file menu, [I] for import, and [N] for numbers. Finally, type the name of the transferred file (without the .PRN extension) and press [Enter].
Once Lotus is through entering the data into the new file, you may get hits message: PART OF FILE MISSING. Press [Enter] to examine the file for completeness.
For WordStar MailMerge, your T-base data is immediately usable once it is transferred to your desktop computer as a quote-delimited file. Consult your MailMerge manual for creating letters using the .DF and .RV commands.
FROM OTHER PROGRAMS TO T-BASE
It is recommended that the screen files with which you will use the transferred data have the BS and CS descriptors and not the B and C descriptors.
With dBASE II, open the file you want converted to T-base. Then type:
- COPY TO FILENAME DELIMITED WITH,
In FILENAME do not include the asterisk. Once you have used LAPDOS to copy the file to your portable disk, use the LAPDOS Rename command to put it in the XXXX*R.DO format, and it is ready for use with T-base.
With dBASE III, open the file you want converted to T-base. Then type:
- COPY TO FILENAME DELIMITED WITH ''
In FILENAME do not include the asterisk. Once you have used LAPDOS to copy the file to your portable disk, use the LAPDOS Rename command to put it in the XXXX*R.DO format.
The file dBASE III produces will be delimited by quotes. Before using this file with T-base, you must remove the quotes. An easy way of achieving this is to call up the file using the TEXT program of the Ultimate ROM II; then use search and replace — [Ctrl]-[L] — to fined each quotation mark and replace it with nothing.
With R:base 5000, use the UNLOAD command, specifying the name of the file (or table) to be converted, the columns to be included, and other pertinent information. Also specify that the file is to be converted AS ASCII.
Appendix A: Problems and Error Messages
ERROR MESSAGES
Can Only Unload If Running in background
You have tried to remove LAPDOS from background when it wasn't' installed in background. See instructions on installing LAPDOS in background.
Can't Convert There Types
You have tried to convert a file to a format not supported by Xchange. Check your help menu for the possible conversions.
Can't Copy a Directory
You have activated the Copy command while the bar cursor was selecting a directory. LAPDOS will not allow you to copy a directory in this way To copy an entire directory, log to that directory, activate the Wildcopy command and enter *.* as the file name.
Can't Copy from P: to P:
You have tried to copy a file from the portable drive to the portable drive. LAPDOS won't allow this, but you can achieve the same result by copying the portable disk file to MS-DOS, and, under a different file name, back to the portable drive.
Can't Find LAP.EXE
LAPDOS tried to save the changes you just made in one or more of the Setup commands. It did not do so, however, because LAP.EXE, the file to which the changes are saved, could not be located. To save any changes in the Setup commands, remember to have the disk with LAP.EXE in the current drive of your desktop computer whenever you quit the program. The same applies when you restore the factory defaults (with the Originals command) or when you use the Record command while operating LAPDOS in background.
Can't Read File
The drive cannot successfully read the file. You may have placed a disk in the drive without relogging; use the Log command, and try again. If the problem persists, you may have a corrupted disk or file; try to copy the file to another disk. If that fails, and you experience the problem with other files, on other disks, you probably have a hardware problem. As a last resort, before contacting your dealer, move your portable disk drive as far from your computer and monitor as possible; radio waves may be interfering with the communications between the drive and the computer.
Can't Rename to a Different Disk
You have tried to rename a file and place it on a different disk. The Rename command allows you only to rename a file; do not include a drive or directory when typing the new name. To move a file to a different drive or directory, use the Copy command. Then delete the original file.
Can't View a Directory
You have activated the View command with the bar cursor over an MS-DOS directory. To view the contents of a directory, you must change to that directory: With the bar cursor still over the directory, press [Enter].
Can't Write File
The drive cannot successfully write the file. You may have corrupted disk or file; try to copy the file to another disk. If that fails , and you experience the problem with other files, on other disks, you probably have a hardware problem. As a last resort, before contacting your dealer, move your portable disk drive as far from your computer and monitor as possible; radio waves may be interfering with the communications between the drive and the computer.
Can't Xchange from P: to P:
Like the Copy command, the Xchange option does not allow you to convert a portable disk file as a portable disk file. As the drive destination, type an MS-DOS drive: A;, B:, or C:.
Disk Is Write-Protected
You have tried to write to a write-protected disk. On an MS-DOS disk, remove the write-protect tab; on a portable disk, move the write-protect tab so that the hole is covered; then try again.
Drive Not Connected
Check the connection between the portable drive and your desktop computer and make sure that the cable converter is in place. Are you sure that you have designated the proper serial port? This message will appear if you have designated a serial port connected to a modem or other device. Finally, check the disk drive ad make sure it is turned on. Sometimes, even when on, the drive is not ready. Turn it off for 2 or 3 seconds, turn it back on, and try again.
Duplicate File Name
Using the rename command, you have tried t assign a name that already exists on the disk. Either pick a different name or delete or rename the existing file.
File Must Be Under 64K
The file you tried to copy to the portable disk drive exceeded the limit of 64K. If possible, break the file into smaller files.
File Not Found
You have tried to copy or erase a file not on the disk. Relog the drive to make sure the listing of files for that drive is current.
No Disk in Drive, or Unformatted
There is no disk in the portable disk drive or, of there is, it is not formatted for that drive. Check that there is a disk in the drive, that it is properly in place and the drive door is closed. If this fails to correct the error, format the disk using the Format command. Remember that 3 1/2 inch disks formatted for MS-DOS drives are not interchangeable with those formatted for portable disk drives.
No Response from Drive
LAPDOS expected response from the portable disk drive but hot none in the time allowed. There are several possible causes: (1) Very commonly the problem lies with the portable disk drive, Though turned on, it may not be ready to send or receive information; turn the drive off for 2 to 3 seconds, turn it on, and try again. (2) the portable drive may be set to neither 19200 nor 9600 baud; see Appendix C if you need help in setting the baud rate on your disk drive. (3) The portable drive may be set to operate at 19200 baud, but the serial port on your desktop computer cannot operate ate this rate; if possible, se the DIP switches on the disk drive to 9600 baud. (4) You may have designated the wrong serial port; use the Port command to change the setting. (5) Finally, the portable drive may be experiencing radio wave interference from either your desktop computer or monitor; move the drive as far as possible from both.
No Such Drive
You have specified a drive that does not exist on your MS-DOS system. Reenter the drive; be sure to include a colon after the drive — A:, B:, and so on.
Not Enough Free Space on Disk
You have tried to copy a file to a disk without enough free memory for that file. Delete files from the disk, if possible, or replace it with a disk that can accommodate the file. Before copying a file, remember to compare its size with the bytes free listed for the drive to which you are copying.
Path Doesn't Exist
You have entered an MS-DOS path that doesn't exist — at least as entered. Check the spelling and syntax of the path. Consult your MS-DOS manual if still in doubt.
Snow Correction is Not Needed on Monochrome
You have tried to activate now correction on a computer without a color display adapter card. Snow correction on such a computer is neither possible nor necessary.
Time and Date Are Not Stored with Portable Disk Files
[Tab] with the bar cursor in the portable disk window will show this message instead of the time and date of the file. Time and date information is stored only with MS-DOS files.
Wildcopy Aborted
You have pressed [Ctrl]-[Q] to abort the Wildcopy command. Check the listing of files to see which, if any, were copied before the command was aborted.
PROBLEM IN RUNNING LAPDOS IN BACKGROUND
There may be times when you will be unsuccessful in calling up LAPDOS from background. Here are some {suggestions about the corrective steps to try.
IN MS-DOS If you have begun entering an MS-DOS command at a system prompt, press [Esc] [Enter] then [Alt]-[L]. The computer will merely beep otherwise.
WITH OTHER RAM-RESIDENT PROGRAMS Once some RAM-resident programs are installed in background, you may not be able to run LAPDOS in background. Try changing the order in which the programs are installed in background. If that fails to correct the problem, remove the other program or run LAPDOS in foreground.
IN GRAPHICS PROGRAMS LAPDOS cannot be used when graphics are displayed on the screen, as with Lotus 1-2-3. The computer will merely beep if you try. You will have to leave the program to use LAPDOS.
IN OTHER PROGRAMS Some programs use nonstandard input routines, which preclude the use of LAPDOS in background. There is no way you can use LAPDOS while using most versions of XyWrite, for example.
Appendix B: Lapdos and Autoexec.bat
By creating an AUTOEXEC.BAT file on your desktop computer — or by modifying an existing one — you can perform these timesaving operations:
- automatically install LAPDOS in background whenever you start your computer
- make LAPDOS available for use in foreground from any directory on the drive in which the operating program LAP.EXE is stored
With the same file you can perform a number of other start-up operations.
To use an AUTOEXEC.BAT file on a floppy disk system, you must copy LAP.EXE to your system boot disk. On a hard disk system, copy LAPDOS to your hard disk.
WHAT TO INCLUDE IN AUTOEXEC.BAT
To load LAPDOS automatically in background each time you start your computer, include this line in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
- LAP/B
To make LAPDOS available for use in the foreground mode from any directory, include the MS-DOS PATH command along with the directory in which you have placed LAP.EXE.
Example: You have copied LAP.EXE to the C:\UTIL directory. To be able to start the program from anywhere in the C drive, include this line in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file: PATH C:\UTIL\ .
CREATING AN AUTOEXEC.BAT FILE
- Move to the root directory of your disk, and type this:
- COPY CON AUTOEXEC.BAT [ENTER]
You have just instructed LAPDOS to copy the information you are about to type on the keyboard (console) into a batch file called AUTOEXEC. BAT
- Enter the command lines MS-DOS will execute each time you turn on your computer. Consult your MS-DOS manual for the possibilities.
Example: Let's set up an AUTOEXEC.BAT file to perform these operations: display the current date and time (and allow you to change them), install LAPDOS in background (with snow correction on), and make LAPDOS (located in the UTIL directory) available from any directory. Type these four lines:
- DATE [Enter]
- TIME [Enter]
- LAP/B/S [Enter]
- PATH C:\UTIL\; [Enter]
- TIME [Enter]
Note: If you are also installing in background other programs besides LAPDOS, enter the appropriate command lines for those programs in the order in which they must be installed.
- DATE [Enter]
- Save the file by pressing [F6] [Enter] or [Ctrl] - [Z] [Enter].
Each time you start up your computer hereafter you will have LAPDOS available in background at any time and you will be able to start it in foreground from any directory in drive C.
MODIFYING AN AUTOEXEC.BAT FILE
- Load AUTOEXEC.BAT into your editor or word processor. If using a word processor, edit it as a non-document file.
- Insert this line to have LAPDOS automatically installed in background:
LAP/B
Modify the current PATH command to include the directory in which you have installed LAP.EXE.
- Save the file and reboot your computer.
Appendix C: Setting the Baud Rate
You can operate LAPDOS only if your portable disk drive is set at 19200 or 9600 baud (bits per second).
On the Tandy Portable Disk Drive 2 and the brother Model FB100 disk drive the baud rat is fixed, at 19200 and 9600, respectively. These rates cannot be changed.
But on the original Tandy Portable Disk Drive and the Purple Computing disk drive both rates are available. Which to choose?
In general, if you have either of these disk drives, you will find it more efficient to operate at the faster (19200) rate: You can then copy files to and from the drive 20 to 30% faster. If, however, you find that the serial port of your desktop computer does not operate at 19200 baud, you will have to settle for 9600 baud.
To set either the original Tandy or the Purple Computing disk drive at 19200 or 9600 baud, follow these steps:
- Make sure the power switch on the front of the drive is off.
- Turn the disk drive upside down and locate the small rectangular DIP switch cover.
- Remove the DIP switch cover using a paper clip. You then see the four DIP switches.
- Set the switches as illustrated on the next page for 19200 baud:
{illustration not included — call support at 925-932-8956}
Set the switches as illustrated below for 9600 baud:
{illustration not included — call support at 925-932-8956}
Note: If you set the DIP switches at 19200 and you see this message when you start LAPDOS-
No Response from Drive
It is possible that your computer is among those whose serial ports do not operate at this speed. Check page Appendix A for other possible causes for this error message. If you eliminate the other possibilities, reset your portable disk drive to 9600.
REMEMBER: Whenever you change DIP switches, turn the disk drive off for 2 or 3 seconds and then on to register the new setting.
- Having set the DIP switches, replace the cover, turn the disk drive right side up, connect it to your desktop computer, and turn it on. You are now ready to use LAPDOS.
The Original Laptop Computer . . . 1983